Maus: Holocaust Survivor’s Guilt
By Sidney Wang
Period 1
Honors English 2
Mr. Cabcabin
Grief is a core theme in which Maus elaborates on how it shapes our day to day lives. Maus’ explores the devastating impact of the Holocaust on survivors and their ancestors. Through the eyes of his father Vladek Spiegelman’s past experiences and their present day relationship, Spiegelman emphasizes the obsessive behavior and depression that affect the lives of Holocaust survivors. Spiegelman suggests that all children of Holocaust survivors experience survivor’s guilt. However, sharing stories of the Holocaust strengthens their relationship as the two can confront their guilt and learn to heal and bond.
Throughout Maus,
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The comic greatly describes the unending depression and metal damage even after the Holocaust. The imagery during Anja’s suicide also suggests a deeper meaning as even after the war in bold words it states that “Hitler did it” with many swastikas surrounding many corpses. Vladek is depicted in the comic as a frail and weak, almost dead and clutches Anja’s coffin, howling. After marrying Mala, Vladek still cannot move forward from Anja’s death, having his second wife eerily similar to Anja and even having them wear the same wedding dress. Through the comic we can see how Spiegelman’s survivor guilt is inflicted upon him, as he feels responsible for his mother’s death and how he conveys people’s sympathy for him as negativity. Spiegelman also criticizes how Holocaust survivors never can be happy and inflict their sadness to those around them. In Maus II, Spiegelman illustrates himself as a fake Jew, writing books over hundreds of Jewish corpses, supposedly profiting off the suffering and horror of others. He becomes depressed and feels trapped again after his mother’s suicide and feels like a child, who is lost and doesn’t know where or what to do. He feels that this is a part of his life that he cannot shake off, therefore he needs to educate others about the Holocaust. Additionally, as Spiegelman