genre :comic/ autobiography
The first thing that stood out to me was that the story was a comic book about the story of a Holocaust survivor, Vladek, and his son Artie. This was a very surprising and unexpected format because comics are known for being funny and any readings I have read about the Holocaust is usually the total opposite which made this comic unconventional in a way but also made me more interested in reading on this topic compared to just reading an autobiography, my projections changed but I wondered why the author chose a comic format?
Although the story is a true story based on Vladek’s experiences during World War II, all the characters in the comic are portrayed as animals such as mice, cats, pigs, frogs, and dogs making it fictional.
I began to think about the symbolism between the different animals and the race they portrayed to understand why certain animals were picked. I also wondered if the animals were used to lighten the mood of the story since it was such a harsh topic to read about.
Art talked about being in competition with his brother but I found it surprising that he referred to his brother as a ghost, picture, and snapshot instead of a human being.
“the photo never threw tantrums or got in any trouble…it was an ideal kid, and I was a pain in the ass, I couldn’t compete”
the eyebrows in the 7 sonic shoes one mouse looking mean and the other looking confused after his comparison, The words “spooky” and ghost” seemed bold which stood out since most ghost are considered scary.
Throughout the story, all the characters were portrayed as anthropomorphic animals, but on this particular page art now shows himself as a human with a mouse mask on. Looking at the comic scene strips in the order it’s basically zooming out, revealing the pile of dead mice that are supposed to represent Jews. In a way, the drawing sums up the guilt most Holocaust survivors have.
“After Anja died I had to make an order with everything… these papers had too many memories. So I burned them.’… ‘But, I’m telling you, after the tragedy with mother, I was so depressed then, I didn’t know if I’m coming or I’m going!” (159)
The first thing that comes to mind when thinking about surprising elements of Maus is the end of volume one. When I discovered that Vladik burned Anja’s old journals and belongings I was shocked. I had expected Vladik to have her belongings stored away since he keeps so many other things, including objects that could even be deemed trash. I also thought he would hold onto her things since he seems so unhappy with Mala and their relationship and I thought it was because he hadn’t yet moved on and healed from Anja.
Every moment in Maus in which Artie breaks his father’s narrative and resumes the “present-day” was surprising to me. This is because Spiegelman always left the story of his father’s time during the war off in such a place, that it juxtaposes Artie and Vladek’s current situation in interesting ways. For example, on page 118 Artie gives his father a hard time picking up a discarded piece of wire that Vladek insists can be reused. This occurs right after Vladek finished describing how he designed multiple bunkers with random household objects and furniture that ended up saving himself and many others. That same resourcefulness that saved lives decades before is now being rewarded not with gratitude, but annoyance. These moments recontextualize Vladek’s current behavior, which varies from strange to destructive. These moments also put Artie’s current problems into perspective, and show how little it takes him to become aggravated or anxious, versus how calm Vladek remained through most of his time during the war. The entire narrative structure is a great example of juxtaposition.
Maus is, without a doubt, one of the most unique stories I’ve ever read for a class assignment, with usually all the other books being novels. Why I think that is more of the fact that we get to jump between two different periods of time to fully understand the story at hand. By understanding what went on in the past, we can use this to help empathize with the issues happening today.
An example of this I want to touch up upon is when Vladek and his wife arrived at Auschwitz and were forced to be separated by the Nazis (book 2, page 25), as they desperately cling to one another to stay together, but their efforts were in vain as they were split apart. But as we jump to the present, Vladek tells his son, Art that they were never truly separated because they knew they would see each other again. As he says that, the book showcases a panel of an angry German Cat between the present and the past, between the old Vladek and the young Vladek, showcasing that this story is still going on then and it’s still going on now, that the ripples of time can echo into the future, shaping us no matter how old we are.
The Rowan Writers 