Vladek In Maus
Maus is a comic book that illustrates the story of Vladek Spiegelman’s life, his survival of the Holocaust and his life in New York many years later, through interviews with his son, Art Speigleman. Most of the descriptions of Auschwitz and the Holocaust come from what Vladek tells his son Artie. This format of the book allows the reader to experience a more personal and real view of the Holocaust. Art decided to tell the story of the Holocaust primarily through Vladek’s perspective in a comic book because he thought that it would be a more accessible format; “It’s an important book. People who don't usually read such stories will be interested.”
Vladek’s story contains a lot of intimate details, some of which Vladek doesn’t wish to be shared, …show more content…
For example, Vladek is very cheap. Because Vladek is miserly, he is able to save up and bribe people for beneficial things in order to survive Nazi Germany. This is also a weakness because he is unnecessarily cheap after the war, which causes his second wife Mala, who he married much later in New York, to leave him. Mala usually complains about Vladek’s stinginess to Artie, “He only gives me $50.00 a month. When I need stockings I have to use my own savings!” Vladek also criticizes his son’s simple purchase of a tape recorder for $75; “Pssh, at Korvettes you could find it for –maximum- …show more content…
The war changed Vladek from a well-mannered and grateful person, to someone who thinks he is entitled to do and say whatever he wants. Vladek grew to be judgmental because of the fact that he lived his life in fear of Nazis. For example, he was constantly hiding from the Nazis with their dogs. He hid under coal so that the dogs couldn't trace his smell. They had to live in bunkers with worms crawling all over; “Is it safe to go out yet? I can’t stand all these worms crawling over me.” He also survived extreme starvation and abuse in Auschwitz. In contrast, Mala thinks that Vladek is just the way he is, not because of the camps, “All our friends went through the camps. Nobody is like him!” Spiegleman portrays Vladek as someone who physically survived the war, but psychologically died. The fact that the author paints a complex picture from an individual perspective helps to relay the Holocaust’s unspeakable
Vladek’s story contains a lot of intimate details, some of which Vladek doesn’t wish to be shared, …show more content…
For example, Vladek is very cheap. Because Vladek is miserly, he is able to save up and bribe people for beneficial things in order to survive Nazi Germany. This is also a weakness because he is unnecessarily cheap after the war, which causes his second wife Mala, who he married much later in New York, to leave him. Mala usually complains about Vladek’s stinginess to Artie, “He only gives me $50.00 a month. When I need stockings I have to use my own savings!” Vladek also criticizes his son’s simple purchase of a tape recorder for $75; “Pssh, at Korvettes you could find it for –maximum- …show more content…
The war changed Vladek from a well-mannered and grateful person, to someone who thinks he is entitled to do and say whatever he wants. Vladek grew to be judgmental because of the fact that he lived his life in fear of Nazis. For example, he was constantly hiding from the Nazis with their dogs. He hid under coal so that the dogs couldn't trace his smell. They had to live in bunkers with worms crawling all over; “Is it safe to go out yet? I can’t stand all these worms crawling over me.” He also survived extreme starvation and abuse in Auschwitz. In contrast, Mala thinks that Vladek is just the way he is, not because of the camps, “All our friends went through the camps. Nobody is like him!” Spiegleman portrays Vladek as someone who physically survived the war, but psychologically died. The fact that the author paints a complex picture from an individual perspective helps to relay the Holocaust’s unspeakable