Introduction
MAUS was published in 1992. The author, Art Spiegelman, is a Jewish survivor of Hitler’s Europe, tells his story. His son comes to terms with the story. Art got the whole idea of writing the book from his father. It has been acknowledged as the most successful and affecting narrative ever done about the holocaust. It is among the very first masterpiece in comic history. Maus is a haunting story within a story. It talks about survival by examining the relationship between the author and his aging father. Maus studies the very bloody paw prints of history and tracks its meaning to us.
Vladek’s story is a typical example of what happened to the Jews. The author draws the Jews as generic consisting of nothing more than nose, eyes and mouth. Spiegelman creates an impression that the holocaust ere a mass of anonymous people. The story draws the Jews as mice rather than as people, it becomes hard for the people to identify the story with people although it actually speaks about the people. Vladek’s photo shows the amount of suffering that vladek underwent. The amount of destruction, Death and unimaginable pain evident from the photo creates a sense of faceless victims. Vladek’s photo, a victim of the holocaust, shows the many effects of holocaust to individuals, their loves, friends, families and ambitions. In this way the effects of holocaust tragedy is multiplied.
The holocaust is cause by racial discrimination. When vladek is walking to see Mr. Ilzecki, he passes a group of German soldiers beating Jews to the ground with clubs. After being beaten the Jews are boarded onto trains. After the trains depart, Ilzecki sends his son to stay with a polish family until things get better. He advices vladek to do the same but he declines. Art does not have an answer as to why two people faced by the same problem are affected differently.
Vladek’s perception of the book is ironical. He considers the contents to be so ironical and inapplicable to the Jews. Although Vladek is also racial intolerance, he has a very high ability to understand the racial discrimination practiced by the Nazis against Jew. He sees the holocaust with a lot of positivity rather than negativity.
Art’s motives behind writing the book were to expose the social injustices that were taking place in the country. This portrays the Jews as a vulnerable society which the Nazi consider as a backward group. These motives help us understand the history of the Jews. He also exposes the changes that Vladek goes through. Vladek was initially kind, calm, composed, loving and in an affair with Anja. Later he becomes emotional and engaged with Mala.
Works cited
Spiegelman, Art, and Ana Uzelac. Maus. Beograd: Samizdat B92, 2002. Print.
Spiegelman, Art, Yaʻaḳov Roṭbliṭ, and Art Spiegelman. ʻakhbar: Sipuro Shel Nitsol. Tel Aviv: Zemorah-Bitan, 1990. Print.
