Maus From Other Holocaust Narratives example essay topic

As a result of not having experienced the horrors of the Holocaust like their ancestors did, second generation Jews often sense they must demonstrate their respect and appreciation towards their elders. Indebted to the previous generation, these Jews search for ways in which to honor those martyrs who lost their lives half a century ago. The ways in which this generation pays homage are quite diverse. Many have developed their own shrines to the memories of their ancestors. Others are fully dedicated to the organization of campaigns in order to obtain justice in the name of Jewish families whose possessions were seized by the Nazis during WWII and stored in Swiss banks. Yet another way, is writing a narrative like Art Spiegelman does.

MAUS is an impressive graphic novel, drawn and written by Spiegelman himself, that narrates his father's life during the Holocaust. His memories come to life in the pages of the book, although they are intertwined with another account. This second narrative, Spiegelman's, complements his father's by presenting a portrayal of the life and struggles of a second generation of Jewish people whose existences are extremely influenced by the Holocaust despite not being born during its occurrence. This trait separates MAUS from other Holocaust narratives whose limits can only offer one side of the story, one view of the event, one version of the pain. Spiegelman's obsession with saving Vladek's story for succeeding generations is met with some opposition by his father, especially in the opening sequence. Neither Vladek nor Spiegelman are able to understand what the other is feeling due to their inability to relate.

Spiegelman wonders why his father is so hesitant to allow his life to be the subject of a novel; he is unable to put himself in Vladek's position. He is often frustrated due to this limitation, and often presses his father for answers he is unable to provide. At times he shares this frustration, which is sometimes met by sympathy from his father. Spiegelman is dumbfounded by this particular piece of his father's narratives.

He attempts to use logic to understand it, but finally gives up when he realizes he just does not understand. His father's final commentary on the strip, "nobody can understand" shows how difficult it is not only for the second generation, but also for the survivors themselves, to understand the events that transpired in the Holocaust. The evil of the Holocaust is unspeakable, unexplainable, but above all, unforgettable. Spiegleman realizes that no matter how hard he wishes he had been at Auschwitz to experience the horrors first-hand, he is unable to do so. Committing his thoughts and emotions to a written narrative, the graphic novel MAUS, is the best course of action for him, especially since it allows him to combine his story with his father's. The graphic novel genre is one of the most fascinating in literature.

While some critics censure the form citing a lack of printed text and the presence of comic-book style drawings, its positive qualities are impressive, especially when the topic is as difficult as the Holocaust. MAUS shines due to its impressive ability to "speak the unspeakable" by using the popular cliche, "a picture is worth a thousand words", to perfection. The most important distinction between humans and the rest of the animal kingdom is man's ability to understand, reason, and think. Conscience and intelligence are perhaps the human race's greatest gifts. Since humans possess such qualities, it is often hard to try to understand the Holocaust without having been there. Quite possibly as a method to deal with his own inability to comprehend the events of the Holocaust, Spiegelman uses animal characters instead of humans.

The most important two, Germans and Jews, are represented by cats and mice, respectively. Natural sworn enemies, both cat and mice lack reason and conscience. As a result, the Nazi cats find no fault in the systematic killing of Jewish mice. The image is also based on historical quotes, since Jews were called the "vermin of society" by the Nazis. The graphical novel format, in association with the depiction of Nazis as cat and Jews as mice, permits Spiegelman to force the reader to abandon any preconceived notions of human nature. Such an effect would have been quite hard to create if he had written a standard text, attesting to the incredible value of the novel's format.

The history of mankind is overflowing with episodes of mass destruction and killing. This century produced perhaps the greatest example of such atrocities, the Second World War. It was during this period of unexplainable brutality that both the Jewish Holocaust and the Nagasaki Bombing occurred. These awful events, discussed and regarded in a much different light half a century ago, are analyzed quite divergently now that mankind has had fifty years to ponder on its errors.

The Nagasaki Bombing was one of the United States' last actions during the Second World War. Although enacted on Japan instead of Germany, it symbolized much of the anger and desire to finish a long, bloody war. The initial joy that followed the devastating detonation of the bomb disappeared in time with the public's realization of the grave mistake that had been committed. Not only did millions of people perish during the Holocaust and immediately after the Nagasaki episode, but many more lost their lives some time afterwards, victims of physical deterioration, mental illness created by the tragic events, and depression brought upon by memories of the horrors. Anja Spiegelman is one such case. She found her demise twenty years after surviving the death camps, a victim of their memories.

In a sense, she did not survive. The estimate of six million Jews is ever-increasing, so the memories continue. Ironically, these two events, executed by opposite sides of the war, are linked by more than an in measurable amount of deaths. Many of the people alive during this time period are in possession of vivid recollections fo the historical occurrences, reflecting a near-unanimous disgust towards the brutalities occurred. While the Holocaust is one of the most horrible episodes of history, it is not one that could or should be forgotten. Its literary offspring is widely acclaimed, especially the subject of this essay, Art Spiegelman's MAUS.

Not only does the book narrate the horrors of the Polish concentration camps, it also displays the enormous difficulties of second generation Holocaust survivors to find a way to come to terms with the horrendous plight of their ancestors. Its graphical novel format plays an essential role in making the story come alive, as does the troubled relationship between Vladek and Art. In closing, it must be reiterated that MAUS is not merely a narrative of the Holocaust, but also a story of human suffering and struggle, not just after a devastating experience like the concentration camps, but also afterwards; not just of one generation, but also of succeeding ones..