In Maus, Art Spiegelman uses the comic form to explain aspects of the Holocaust that are difficult to convey in words, as well as to immerse the reader in the experiences of the characters. As nicehair85 explains, in Maus, “everything from facial expressions [to] symbols [to] environments is drawn out.” I think the best example of this is Spiegelman portraying Jews as mice, Poles as pigs, and Germans as cats: Spiegelman thus explains wordlessly that Nazis hunt Jews as if to do so is in their nature. To further prove his point, Spiegelman emphasizes Pesach’s death: Pesach and Haskel had befriended many Gestapo in the Srodula ghetto, which made their lives easier for a little while. However, when Pesach made a deal with one of the Gestapo to escape after the ghetto was liquidated, the soldier betrayed him and killed Pesach and the group leaving with him. While it certainly would have been possible to explain that Nazis and their enablers behaved like animals in their murder and torture of Jewish people, it is easier to understand this part of the Holocaust by seeing each character portrayed as an animal, and for the most part, behaving accordingly.
In addition, the comic form of Maus allows the reader to follow two storylines at the same time, which I think is the best way to explain Vladek’s trauma. For example, on page 83, when Vladek reveals Richieu’s death for the first time in the story, he speeds up on his bike, as if trying to outrun the awful memory. In the next panel, Vladek is exhausted as he tells Artie that he had to send Richieu away a year later, explaining that Vladek’s trauma from the Holocaust is still draining (to say the least) all these years later.
In “‘The Shadow of a Past Time’: History and Graphic Representation in Maus” by Hillary Chute, Spiegelman argues that the ability to follow multiple storylines at once is the nature of comics, saying “...each box [is a] different moment of time—and you see them all at once. As a result you’re always, in comics, being made aware of different times inhabiting the space” (Spiegelman in Chute). I see dual storylines as a crucial part of Maus, especially in explaining generational trauma.
For instance, on pages 70-71, Vladek tells Artie (in the present) that he has thrown out his coat because it was too shabby, and he gives Artie his old coat, which is in better shape. Although this is certainly an overstep, Vladek has just finished telling Artie about his time as a prisoner of war in 1939, where among many other abuses, he was given only a thin blanket to keep himself warm, and his only clothes were an army summer uniform. Although Vladek throws out Artie’s coat in a wildly different time, Spiegelman is able to explain his father without being painfully direct by using the dual storyline technique.
There are many instances throughout Maus where Vladek’s trauma becomes obvious, such as when he insists on returning his half-eaten groceries to save money, or on page 79 of Maus II, when Artie, Francoise, and Vladek drive through a present-day forest with four Jewish girls hanging, a scene that has clearly been impossible for Vladek to forget. In the midst of Vladek’s horrific stories, Artie visits his therapist wearing a mouse mask, and the two, among other things, talk about survivor’s guilt. Pavel, who is also wearing a mouse mask, suggests that Vladek was so hard on Artie “to show that he was always right—that he could always survive—because he felt guilty about surviving” (Spiegelman 45). I think Vladek has transmitted his own guilt to Artie, who tells Pavel that everything he has accomplished seems like nothing in comparison to surviving Auschwitz. His mouse mask implies that his guilt makes him question his own identity, as if he is not Jewish “enough” because he didn’t have to go through the Holocaust. Notably, Vladek is never portrayed in a mouse mask, only as a mouse, signaling Spiegelman’s struggle to understand his father (Pavel suggests that Vladek felt survivor’s guilt, which might have otherwise given him a mouse mask).
Finally, on the very last page of Maus II, Vladek mistakes Artie for Richieu as he falls asleep. I found this to be a beautiful and heartbreaking ending, because it reminds the reader of Richieu, who symbolizes innocence, and hints that Artie has spent his life feeling guilty and being compared to his forever perfect, innocent brother.
The lasting sentiment of Maus is one of discontent, which I think is intentional: Vladek was never able to move past his trauma, and though Artie’s trauma and guilt do not impose on his life to the extent of his father, they are and will stay a part of him.