Boston, Massachusettes, US
Posts: 11
Art’s entire childhood was defined by the Holocaust, even though he didn’t live through it himself. The very first panel of Maus shows Art crying to his father about his friends leaving him behind after he fell. Rather than comfort his son, Vladek says “Friends?... If you lock them together in a room with no food for a week.. Then you could see what it is, friends!” (6) Similarly, the very last panel of Maus has Vladek call Art “Richieu,” his first son who died in the Holocaust, showing that Art is still living in the shadow of the Holocaust, growing up as the replacement for another boy. Vladek’s experiences in the Holocaust, specifically, how relationships break down when placed under the immense strain of such a tragedy, has clearly impacted him deeply and made him more cynical, and in this panel, knowingly or not, he passes that traumatized mindset onto his son while he is at an impressionable age. Another type of generational trauma is less about the traits that Art may have inherited, but the strain the trauma has caused on the relationship between himself and his father. His father, due to being extremely malnourished in the camps and having lost his entirely livelihood and income during the war, has become, in Art’s words, “stingy,” holding on to almost everything he can and going so far as to return mostly empty boxes to the grocery store to get some meager amount of money back. This personality trait both embarrasses and enrages Art, who laments that he is “just like the racist caricature of the miserly old Jew” (133). The trauma response that Vladek has to the Holocaust directly harms the relationship he has with his son, especially considering that before the events of Maus, the two weren’t particularly close. It isn’t just Vladek’s trauma that impacts Art, but his mother, Anja’s, as well. Anja commits suicide, and while it is never stated what her reason for taking her own life is, her trauma almost certainly contributed to the depression she was already experiencing beforehand. The article “Intergenerational transmission of trauma in Spiegelman’s Maus,” in analyzing “Prisoner on the Hell Planet,” makes note of how Art’s guilt about his mother’s death directly ties in to his inherited trauma of the Holocaust, with “a swastika sign on a camp wall and a pile of murdered victims at its bottom” in the same frame as his mother’s body. Her death, at least in Art’s eyes, is tied directly with the Holocaust, as is his crushing guilt over her death. Acknowledging this trauma is far better than pushing past it; if Art hadn’t written Maus, he would not have been as close to his father when he died, and would have likely felt the same sort of guilt he felt towards his mother.
Boston, Massachusetts , US
Posts: 11
LTQ Post 7: Generational Trauma in Maus
In Maus I and Maus II, Art shows that generational trauma isn't something children can simply learn about as it is something they live inside. Even though Art did not personally suffer through the holocaust, the aftermath shapes his entire familial life due to the guilt, anxiety, and constant sense of being measured against suffering he will never be able to comprehend. His father Vladek survives through extreme measures of suspicion, caution, and frugality that didn't disappear in peace, instead spilling into his current life. He becomes irritable, hoarding, distrusting, and emotional distance due to the traumatic experiences he was forced to go through. Art absorbs this secondhandly even as he knows the source is someone else's catastrophe. One of the most painful parts of the inheritance Art experiences are the contradictions that come with it. Art loves his parents and wants their story to be remembered and honored, yet he resents how their trauma dominates the family and impacts his own identity. Anja's presence is defined by her absence as her suicide becomes another layer of loss that Art has to carry, made even worse when Vladek destroys her diaries. The act is symbolic as trauma can erase evidence as survivors want to move on and try to forget, leaving descendants with gaps that can't ever be filled. Art’s work is both mourning and memorialization to reconstruct a past that is fragmented by fear, silence, and PTSD. Maus makes it clear that generational trauma isn't a personal experience, it's communal. When entire communities experience the same systematic persecution and dehumanization the effects pass on through stories, identities, and the expectations placed upon the next generation. Even today many young people have to inherit the weight of historical violence as their families identity is shaped by memories, echoes of racism, antisemitism, and displacement. The next generation is often made to feel pressured to represent survival, prove their gratitude, or thrive to make up for what earlier generations endured. Even without direct experiences the past can shape how the world feels and how the future is imagined. Maus suggests it is possible to move past generations' trauma, but that this is the wrong goal as it means forgetting in order to smooth over the pain. The better path is Arts attempts to live honestly, name what happened, and examine how it still has an effect.
Boston, Massachusetts, US
Posts: 9
Art Spiegelman in Maus shows how trauma doesn’t end with those who experienced it first hand and that generational trauma constantly affects the lives of children of Holocaust survivors. The trauma is passed down from generation to generation in an emotional sense. Art was the son of Vladek and he has to grow up with this guilt that he didn’t experience but he still feels for some reason. I believe that you feel something from your parents, or in this case Jews in general, where there's this lasting guilt influencing your identity. Vladek shows his survival instincts that he got from the Holocaust and he uses it in his everyday life. He is very angry and is always getting into arguments with Art even though the war was so long ago. These traits can carry on to Art, since they are a part of Vladek now and a part of his trauma. Art is in such a weird place because he understands where it comes from which can put a lot of emotional pressure on him. Vladek has trouble showing affection to Art which can make them emotionally distant from each other. In Maus II, Art speaks a lot about how he doesn’t think he can live up to his brother Richieu who died during the Holocaust. His parents “talk about him all the time.” This makes Art feel like he lives in his shadow. Children of survivors feel pressure to compensate for losses their parents experienced. This is probably where all of Arts anxiety comes from. Trauma still exists for young people today whos families were affected by slavery or genocide. These kids probably feel fear without even understanding fully where it comes from. That is why for some people it's not ok to joke around about that kind of stuff because it can have a big effect on someone else. Maus’ message is that you can’t just erase this generational trauma, you just have to acknowledge it and move past it. Art decided to tell his fathers story even though it was very uncomfortable for him. It just shows that it's a way for him to process this trauma instead of ignoring it.
BOSTON, Massachusetts, US
Posts: 12
LTQ 7 Generational Trauma in Maus
Throughout Maus, generational trauma is not just a historical memory, but a physical presence. This is represented by the relationship conflicts between Artie and his father, Vladek, who is a Holocaust survivor. Many children of Holocaust survivors feel a disconnect between themselves and their parents. In Maus, Artie struggles with feelings of guilt and a lack of understanding. Even though he didn’t directly experience life in the camps, his life is defined by them because his father lived through them. Vladek’s trauma is present in everyday life, and Artie documents his experiences in the book. Vladek was affected mentally and physically by the Holocaust. He is very frugal, has lots of anxiety, and can’t relate to his son. Valdek lives life like he is still in the camps. For example, being very concerned about food quantities and saving even though he is living in a time of abundance and wealth. Art feels guilty because he doesn’t know how his father feels and Artie's upbringing is affected by his father's experiences and trauma. The weight of their parents' suffering, the trauma and horrible things they experienced make their children feel like their problems are trivial. Generational trauma doesn’t just impact the children of Holocaust survivors. Any traumatic event can be passed down to children and impact them. For example, in the indigenous community, the legacy of residential schools and being forced from their land has resulted in generational trauma that has led to high rates of PTSD and substance abuse. This stress can leave an impact on genes, and offspring could develop higher levels of anxiety. I believe that it isn’t possible to move beyond generational trauama I think it is better to live with and acknowledge it and figure out ways to cope with it. Artie explores this trauma and gains control over it, and he doesn’t let it define him. If you figure out how to deal with the trauma and acknowledge it, you can help break the cycle of trauma and help future generations. Books like Maus can help children deal with trauma passed down through their families. The book doesn’t just help children of Holocaust survivors it can help anyone impacted by generational trauma.
Boston , Massachusetts , US
Posts: 10
I think people who are children of Holocaust survivors tend to have a lot of survivor guilt. In Maus, we see Spiegelman have a lot of guilt about not having to go through anything his parents went through during the Holocaust. With his parents Spiegelman felt that it was bad because of the traumatic events that they went through with not only being at Auschwitz, but also the death of his older brother who passed before he was born. On page 15 of Maus II we see Art talking to his wife about his older brother. We see him reference his brother as an “Ghost-brother”. This metaphor signifies as a haunting reminder that his brother was gone even though he wasn’t even born yet. Art also explained to his wife that, “The photo never threw tantrums or got in any kind of trouble… It was an ideal kid, and I was a pain. I couldn't compete”(Spiegelam 15). This shows how he always felt like that picture was a shadow haunting him, even as an adult. Once Spiegelman's mother passed away from suicide is when the survivor’s guilt started to hit even harder. I think that this weight of the trauma experienced by direct ancestors, as well as communities, play into the lives of young people today by many people finding themselves struggling with their relationships with their relatives. We see this dynamic with Art and his father. Valdek was very stubborn. He was this way because of the post war, which made his survival instincts very high. With Valdek being stubborn because of the war this made it hard for Art because it mainly shaped the relationship that they had during the entire book. I think yes, while it is possible to move beyond generational trauma, it is better to acknowledge it. This is because acknowledging this traumatic experience will help you break the cycle. Having self awareness helps to allow you to heal, and will make it faster to break what the problem was before it happens again. Acknowledging and validating the pain of what direct ancestors have been through helps you not let it control your life, or the future generations.
Boston, Massachusetts, US
Posts: 9
Generational Trauma
Ultimately, I believe that the children of Holocaust survivors get to decide how much their ancestors' trauma affects them to a certain extent. I think that children have the choice to acknowledge their family's past or not. Some children are more curious than others, and some fear that bringing the past to light could negatively affect their ancestors. In Artie’s case, he wanted to know more, and he made the choice to dive deeper into his father's past. Even though Art did not experience the Holocaust himself, Vladek's survival story shapes Art's emotional life, identity, and sense of responsibility. I find it interesting that even though Art has chosen to learn about his father's past, he still gets furious and embarrassed by his actions. For example, in Maus I, Vladek obsessively saves scraps of food and other household items even when they are useless. To Vladeck, this behavior stems from starvation and rationing during the Holocaust, but to Arty, this habit only embarrasses him, and he doesn't feel comfortable stopping his father, which deepens the tension. This tension demonstrates how survival strategies that once protected Vladek now create emotional strain for his son. As Stanislav explains in his article, Intergenerational transmission of trauma in Spiegelman's Maus, children of trauma survivors often inherit the emotional consequences of survival behaviors without having the context to fully understand them. Art’s choice to include these moments in his book about his father's habits, as well as his own frustration with Vladeck, shows that he potentially grew from those experiences, and now that he finally got his father's full story, he became more accepting and understanding of his father, knowing that they stem from trauma that he could not control. Speigman also illustrates the pressure that these children are put under to carry their ancestors' legacy. Holocaust survivors have gone through more pain and struggle than their children ever will, and that creates a sort of ‘survivor's guilt' within children in order to carry on their legacy and to be something that their parents would be proud of. That pressure to live up to their expectations can be damaging to one's self-esteem. Maus suggests that moving y beyond generational trauma may not be possible. The book ends with Vladek not fully healed, symbolizing that healing isn't always complete, which leaves Art feeling conflicted and burdened. Art felt that if he told his father's story, it would relieve him of the trauma he had held through all of these years, but he met with defeat when he realized that sharing Vladeck's story did not free him from the pain. I don't think that survivors of tragic events like the holocaust necessarily want to put that burden on their children, but it happens just through actions and habits, and it just reminds us that we are human. Art taking on a project such as Maus was his own decision, and I believe he learned a lot about healing and growth that a lot of other children of holocaust survivors relate to.
Boston, Massachusetts, US
Posts: 10
Originally posted by
forest-hills-station39 on February 01, 2026 18:57
Art’s entire childhood was defined by the Holocaust, even though he didn’t live through it himself. The very first panel of Maus shows Art crying to his father about his friends leaving him behind after he fell. Rather than comfort his son, Vladek says “Friends?... If you lock them together in a room with no food for a week.. Then you could see what it is, friends!” (6) Similarly, the very last panel of Maus has Vladek call Art “Richieu,” his first son who died in the Holocaust, showing that Art is still living in the shadow of the Holocaust, growing up as the replacement for another boy. Vladek’s experiences in the Holocaust, specifically, how relationships break down when placed under the immense strain of such a tragedy, has clearly impacted him deeply and made him more cynical, and in this panel, knowingly or not, he passes that traumatized mindset onto his son while he is at an impressionable age. Another type of generational trauma is less about the traits that Art may have inherited, but the strain the trauma has caused on the relationship between himself and his father. His father, due to being extremely malnourished in the camps and having lost his entirely livelihood and income during the war, has become, in Art’s words, “stingy,” holding on to almost everything he can and going so far as to return mostly empty boxes to the grocery store to get some meager amount of money back. This personality trait both embarrasses and enrages Art, who laments that he is “just like the racist caricature of the miserly old Jew” (133). The trauma response that Vladek has to the Holocaust directly harms the relationship he has with his son, especially considering that before the events of Maus, the two weren’t particularly close. It isn’t just Vladek’s trauma that impacts Art, but his mother, Anja’s, as well. Anja commits suicide, and while it is never stated what her reason for taking her own life is, her trauma almost certainly contributed to the depression she was already experiencing beforehand. The article “Intergenerational transmission of trauma in Spiegelman’s Maus,” in analyzing “Prisoner on the Hell Planet,” makes note of how Art’s guilt about his mother’s death directly ties in to his inherited trauma of the Holocaust, with “a swastika sign on a camp wall and a pile of murdered victims at its bottom” in the same frame as his mother’s body. Her death, at least in Art’s eyes, is tied directly with the Holocaust, as is his crushing guilt over her death. Acknowledging this trauma is far better than pushing past it; if Art hadn’t written Maus, he would not have been as close to his father when he died, and would have likely felt the same sort of guilt he felt towards his mother.
The most compelling idea this author depicted was that Art “lives in the shadow of the Holocaust” even though he did not live through it himself. They claim his personality and key traits were defined by the event. It also reshaped how he viewed and valued relationships and life. As well as, they point out how he suffered an intense strain in his relationship with his father because he could not move past it, but it wasn't fair for Art to ask him to do so. Both men's personalities and actions were based on this event. It is outrageous to claim they were not affected and permanently altered. There was so much change from this moment on. The author and I agree on this. This post is very interesting because the author's interpretation was very different from mine. We did not disagree, however it resonated with us in different ways. The first idea I thought of, and that I thought was most prominent, was the idea that the Holocaust was such a major event that generational trauma is so obviously a result, it's basically implied. The specifics of the event, in this circumstance do not matter. This is not to downplay the extent of the effect of other trauma, however.
Brighton, Massachusetts, US
Posts: 9
LTQ Post 7: Generational Trauma in Maus
Generational trauma in Art Spiegelman’s Maus is not just one single event, but it is the atmosphere of the entire novel that shapes the identity of second generation descendants. Children of Holocaust survivors such as Artie experience phantom pain as they do not actually have the memories, but this pain is one that’s constantly felt. This pain is embodied when in the presence as well as the absence of Artie's brother, Richieu. Even though Archie never met him, he is a representation of a heavy family tragedy that Artie can’t compete with, Richieu was the perfect kid who died in a tragedy. This leaves Artie to battle his own flaws in the shadow of a history he never experienced. The weight of this trauma is present in Artie and Vladek’s strained relationship. Vladek’s survival instincts that used to be necessary have transformed into controlling behaviors in the present time, such as his obsession with money saving and resource saving. This creates a dynamic where Artie feels like a parent and is overwhelmed by guilt and frustration with his father. His guilt is complex and it is not just guilt of being annoyed, but it’s a deeper survivor’s guilt stemming from having the life that Richieu, Vladek’s first son, could never have. Artie even questions if he is a graverobber for his creation of art from his fathers suffering, he feared that he was exploiting his fathers memories for his success. Is it possible to move on from trauma such as this? Maus suggests that moving beyond is leaving it behind which could be impossible or unhealthy, The text instead argues for the importance of living with it and acknowledging the past. In Maus II, the image of the flies that buzz near Artie implies the overwhelmingness of the trauma, Through the visualization of the story and confronting his dad’d history Artie does not “cure” the trauma he experiences, but rather validates it. If he denied it it would only deepen the wound that he has, but through his acknowledgement he can genuinely understand how the past defines the present. Maus shows that while being the child of a survivor won’t allow you to change the past, you are still able to honor what happened through your refusal to look away from it.
