A Mouse in Motion

A Mouse in Motion

Throughout Maus, Art's father Vladek very humbly and unemphatically recounts tales of how he managed to survive the Holocaust. Through Spiegelman's recount of his father's story one realizes that the author is not attempting to present the horrors of the Holocaust in general, nor is he trying to explain why the Holocaust occurred. In fact, Spiegelman focuses solely on his father's experiences, who, without sounding harsh, is just a regular guy trying to survive a remarkably unnerving time. Based on this view of the book, the question that is presented to the reader is as follows: What is the author endeavoring to convey in this particular graphic novel? Many segments in the novel deal with specific, though not always obvious, choices that were made by individuals during the war that lead ultimately to destruction or survival. I believe that the primary reason Vladek survived the Holocaust is directly related to his making the decisions that he did and acting on them directly.

In my opinion the first major action Vladek takes to surviving the Holocaust takes place well before he and Anja are hiding from the Nazis, in 1939. Vladek has been recruited by Polish army to fight the Germans, and having just been captured by said Germans he speaks to them in their own tongue to avoid any additional abuse. This is a very logical thing to do in the situation, and the fact that Vladek has enough common sense to do so may not sound very extraordinary, but this is the first glimpse the reader receives of Vladek's propensity towards rational action in the face of adversity. Every day he is in the POW camp Vladek bathes in the freezing cold river and does gymnastics to stay strong and healthy, and while the other prisoners were ready to die in the camp, Vladek volunteers to work for the Germans and is treated much better than before.

As we know from the narrative, Vladek is sent home to his family, but his troubles are far from over. After Anja and Vladek send their son Richieu with Tosha, Vladek designs and builds a secret bunker underneath the coal bin of one house and in the attic of another to keep their friends and family safe from the Nazis. These bunkers are instrumental in Vladek's survival until he is turned in by an informant; although Anja's parents end up being sent to Auschwitz, Vladek manages to get signed on in a shoe shop and once again evade the Nazis by hiding in a bunker concealed behind a large pile of shoes. Also, when he and Anja are disguised as Poles a small Polish boy recognizes that Vladek is Jewish and alerts his mother. Instead of doing what I feel most people would do and run away, Vladek calmly walks over to the mother and addresses the woman in German and she dismisses her son's warning as childish paranoia. There is no doubt at this point that without a bit of luck Vladek would not have survived this long, however it is even more clear that without the actions he has chosen and taken to this point, Vladek would certainly be in a concentration camp by now.

After Vladek and Anja are finally captured and separated upon their arrival at Auschwitz, Vladek is imprisoned with his friend Mandelbaum. Vladek is chosen by the Kapo, a prisoner who is selected as supervisor, to teach him English. While this may appear to be a lucky coincidence, it is just the opposite. Due to Vladek's decision early in life to work hard at his studies and learn the different languages, he is now the best qualified prisoner to teach his supervisor English, and therefore receives better treatment and more amenities. Vladek eventually gets to the point where he is able to repair the shoes of the German guards in exchange for extra food, and staying in the good graces of the Germans means staying alive for at least a little while longer.

Once Vladek arrives in Dachau he gets a wound on his hand, but instead of fretting he uses this as a survival tool. By intentionally making his infection worse, Vladek is able to have himself sent to the infirmary where he is given three meals a day and more room to sleep. Once he can no longer keep the hand infected without fear of permanent damage, he allows it to heal and is