Maus II And Treichel: A Comparative Analysis

The Holocaust left a lingering hurt with many of the survivors and perpetrators of the war. As a result, victims often suffered from post-war trauma. Traumatic responses, by first generation Holocaust survivors, were often projected onto their children. Authors Art Spiegelman and Hans-Ulrich Treichel illustrate the above in their memoirs Maus I and II and Lost. Whether it is the war, losing a sibling, or parent, the guilt of the loss is projected onto Art and Treichel. In both cases, the parents are physically or emotionally unavailable to the children, which affects their psychological well-being. Consequently, Art and Treichel suffer from intergenerational trauma which hinders their growth and leads to a feeling of isolation. Several forces

work together to delay Art and Treichel’s personal development. Throughout the memoirs, both the narrator’s struggle to form a proper sense of self, which is hindered by their constant feelings of guilt, shame, and inadequacy that is projected onto them via their parents. Although both Art and Treichel confront psychological issues, Art specifically deals with displaced anger and depression, whereas Treichel suffers from repressed anger and an identity crisis. By writing the memoir, Art is able to effectively work through these negative forces and reach a sense of resolution, whereas Treichel’s dilemmas remain unresolved up until the end of the memoir.
Throughout the memoir, Art is constantly dealing with displaced anger. In Maus I and II, Art’s father, Vladek, is one of the causes and recipients of Art’s displaced anger. For instance, at the end of Maus I, when Art discovers that Vladek burnt his mother’s diaries, he says, “God damn you! You-You Murderer! How the hell could you do such a thing!!”(Spiegelman 159). Art experiences displaced anger at this moment, but when Vladek reasons with him by stating that he was depressed, Art immediately apologizes (159). Art is not angry at his father per se, as he realizes his father is also suffering, but he is disappointed that he lost insight into Anja’s, Art’s mother, experience of the Holocaust. Additionally, Art is irritated, as Anja’s diaries would provide a different perspective on Art’s memoir, and simultaneously, would help in his healing process. The fact that Art mentions that he wishes he had his mom’s story while she was alive, as she was would provide the memoir some balance, reinforces the above point (Spiegelman 132). Further, there are other instances in which Art lashes out at his father, especially when he interviews Vladek about the Holocaust. For example, in a midst of talking about Auschwitz, Vladek drift off topic and talks about Mala. He complains that as soon as he was discharged from the hospital, Mala, once again, wanted him to change his will. To this, Art replies, “Enough! Tell me about Auschwitz!” (47). In another instance, Art asks Vladek to clarify how Anja survived the war and Vladek talks about his windows and how he needs storm windows, as it is getting cold. Annoyed, Art replies, “Look…I’ll do it, but first, just tell me more about Anja (103). Art struggles to relate to his father; therefore, he reacts in a “negative” manner. He states that if he cannot understand Vladek, how is he supposed to make sense of Auschwitz (14). Whether it is comprehending the war, losing Anja, or dealing with a father who is affected by post-war trauma, Art’s displaced emotions are visible in his relationship with Vladek. Moreover, it is evident that Vladek also suffers from displacement. For example, in one scenario, Art uses Vladek’s wooden matches and this aggravates Vladek, he argues that Art already used the matches for making coffee and is now wasting them from smoking. When Art retorts that he will buy him a pack of wooden matches, Vladeck claims that it is not necessary, as back home he has an automatic oven (Spiegelman 20). Scenes such as these are humorous, in a way, but they also depict the viscous cycle that Art and Vladek are in. Vladek projects his guilt onto Art, and Art, as a result, displaces his anger onto Vladek. The root cause of the anger and guilt lies elsewhere, with the war, or with Anja’s suicide. Likewise, Art’s feeling of guilt is also a reason for his displaced anger. Art feels that he is not an ideal son to his father, and Vladek’s reactions to Art reinforce these feelings. For example, Art mentions that he feels his accomplishments are nothing in comparison to his father’s experience of the Holocaust (45). Thus, frequently, Art’s guilt and sense of inadequacy are channelled through his anger.
In contrast to Art, Treichel persistently struggles with repressed anger, in Lost. For instance, in the passage when the mother squeezes him close to her stomach, it shows the narrator’s resistance and anger towards her: “Let me squeeze you,’ my mother said, but I bent my knees a little at the last moment and simultaneously took an evasive step backward, so that my mother, eyes half-shut and already in something like a trance, reached into mid-air and almost fell over” (Treichel 55). The narrator expresses that he does not want to be squeezed by his mother, as he feels “uncomfortable.” However, he fails to convey this to his mother; instead, he indirectly rejects his mother’s embrace by backing away from her. Although, Treichel’s intentions are not clear at the moment, he later clarifies his stance. He states, he is tired of hearing that Arnold is not here and this makes him furious. Moreover, he is furious at Mr. Rudolph, a police officer and family friend, as he embraced his mother and she embraced him in a way that was different from the way she had previously hugged him. He says, she squeezed him tightly when she felt “attacks of despairing mother-love,” and this suffocated him (Treichel 130). Throughout the memoir, Treichel deals with repressed anger; but fails to express this to those around him. It is not that he does want his mother to be affectionate towards him, rather he resents the intention that his mother hugs him with. She hopes to find Arnold in him, which is not possible, as they are two different people. Further, the narrator reinforces this when he says that he represents, to his mother, everything she lost through the war, like his father and Arnold. Consequently, whenever she saw him, she was overcome with grief: “Back then all I noticed was that the sight of me put a look of pain on my mother’s face, and that I began to hate this pain as much as I hated my own reflection in the mirror. I became what is known as a difficult boy, ungrateful, obstinate, always irritated, always pestering my mother just when she felt bad” (Treichel 107-108). The narrator resents his mother, but he resents himself as well. Lastly, the narrator’s relationship with his “lost” brother, Arnold, is a cause for his repressed anger. He constantly feels undermined by Arnold’s figurative presence in his life. In one instance, the father mentions that the narrator’s life is easy and upon hearing this, the narrator thinks to himself, that it is not he who has it easy, but Arnold. He argues, Arnold did not do chores growing up, and he was not expected to always remain “alert” as a little boy, yet his parents constantly worried about Arnold (Treichel 92). The parents in Lost project their unresolved issues onto the narrator, who then struggles throughout the memoir to make sense of his feelings and experiences.
As depicted above, Art and Treichel confront displaced and repressed anger, respectively.

Additionally, they also deal with depression and an identity crisis. Art’s depressive state is evident in the comic strip in which Anja commits suicide. Art and Vladek are shattered after this tragedy. Art recalls how his mother came into his room and asked him if he loved her, he responded with detachment and irritation: “I turned away, resentful of the way she tightened the umbilical cord” (Spiegelman 103). After the suicide, it is apparent that Art regrets his behaviour and is overcome with guilt and shame for neglecting his mother when she came to him for support and comfort, he says, “I felt nauseous…the guilt was overwhelming!” (102). Having said that, simultaneously, he also resents her: “You murdered me, mommy, and you left me here to take the Rap!!!” (103). Art is burdened by his parents unresolved trauma, and he realizes that he needs to work through the traumatic responses which they have projected onto him. A feeling of responsibility towards his parent’s and the pressure to sort out their issues leaves a negative impact on Art’s mental health. For instance, during a conversation with Francoise, Art says, “I can’t even make any sense of my relationship with my father…how am I supposed to make any sense of Auschwitz?...of the holocaust?...” (14). It is clear how Arts resonates his relationship with his father with Auschwitz. Throughout the biography, Art struggles to decipher his relationship with his father and the Holocaust. He feels guilty that he lived an “easy” life in comparison to his parent’s. He claims that representing a reality which is complex and traumatic, through a comic strip, is difficult. He wishes that he was at Auschwitz with his parents so he could experience what they went through (16).Art’s relationship with Vladek and Anja influences his psychological well-being, but Richieu, Arts deceased brother, also has a deteriorating effect on Art. In

relation to Richieu, Art feels “survivor’s guilt.” There is a picture of Richieu in his parent’s room and when Francoise says she thought it was Art, he explains that his parent’s did not need a picture of him, as he was alive. Also, he states the picture did not throw tantrums or cause trouble; the picture signified an ideal child, which Art was not (15). Art’s feelings of inadequacy are brought forth in this scene. There is a sense of sibling rivalry, although Art claims that he does not remember Richieu that often (15). Similarly, in another moment, Art recalls that he hated helping his father around the house, as Vladek would believe that whatever Art did was wrong: “He made me completely neurotic about fixing stuff (Spiegelman 97). Further, he says that he became an artist, as his father could not compete with him in that area (97). For these reasons, Art not only resents Vladek’s attitude, but he also suffers from depression due to the responsibility he feels towards Vladek.
In Lost, Treichel deals with identity issues, as a result of his dysfunctional family life. As indicated earlier, when the narrator’s mother in Lost embraces him, he feels resentment towards her. There is a resemblance here to Arts relationship with Anja. Both mothers, in Lost and Maus I and II, look up to their sons as a compensation for their own losses, and both Treichel and Art reject their mother’s “affection”. For Art, this causes him to feel guilty and depressed, on the other hand, in Treichel’s case, it shatters his sense of self, as he thinks that his mother sees Arnold in him. Moreover, when the narrator’s father states that foundling 2307, Arnold, has an uncanny resemblance to the narrator, he shows his disagreement to this: “The supposedly amazing likeness made me feel less and less like myself. Every look in the mirror grated on my nerves. I didn’t see me, I saw Arnold, and he was getting less appealing all the time. (Treichel 42). This consistent comparison to Arnold, has a devastating effect on the narrator’s sense of self, as he feels replaced by an “other,” his “ghost brother”, who is taking over his life. Likewise, in another scene, the narrator stresses that he was becoming more like Arnold. He says, “…I wanted to stay who I was” (Treichel 45). The narrator stresses, he did not want to be like Arnold; he did not want to share his food or room with him (Treichel 45). Further, the threat of Arnold engulfing the narrator’s identity and replacing it with his own is so traumatic, that he suffers from physical symptoms. He is diagnosed with trigeminal neuralgia, which he relates back to his resemblance to Arnold. He explains the pain to be like a stomach cramp which reached his face, shot up his cheek, and ended at his forehead. Simultaneously, he compares it to the feeling he would get if Arnold was literally being carved out of his face (Treichel 40). Moreover, the narrator’s resemblance to foundling 2307 causes him to doubt his existence to such an extent, that he contemplates whether he is related to his parents in the first place (Treichel 117). For the reasons above, Arnolds influence in the narrators life, shatters his sense of self. He struggles to form an identity for himself and constantly question his existence throughout the memoir.
Finally, Art effectively works through his psychological and emotional issues by writing Maus I and II, whereas Treichel acknowledges his feelings, but is unable to efficiently work through them in Lost. The fact that Art is attempting to heal himself along with depicting Vladek’s story, is evident in his biography. In the section when Art discovers that Vladek read his comic strip about Anja and asks Vladek if he is angry, Vladek responds that he is glad that Art got it outside his system (104). Thus, in Maus I and II, there is sense that Vladek and Art are aware that Art is a victim of intergenerational trauma, but in Lost, the narrator seems oblivious, at times. This is justified to a certain degree, due to the age difference between Art and the narrator in Lost. The narrator in Lost recognizes his emotions of anger, guilt and shame, but does not effectively work through them. Both Treichel and Art experience the burden of their parents post-war trauma; yet, Art frees himself from this “weight,” whereas Treichel remains buried beneath it. Throughout the memoir, Treichel’s emotions are repressed and this is not resolved. For instance, in the end when the narrator, his mother, and Mr. Rudolph drive by the butcher shop to view foundling 2307, the narrator wants his mother to meet him and the urgency he feels is evident, but he remains quiet. The character growth that one expects from Treichel does not occur. He fails to voice his thoughts and emotions to his mother. Moving forward, Arts consultation with a psychiatrist, Pavel, tremendously aids him in his healing process. Pavel helps Art work through his issues with Vladek and provides him with the perspective he needs. Pavel sheds light on Arts circumstances by stating that Art is feeling remorse by exposing his “father to ridicule,” by writing the memoir (44). Further, he explains that Vladek projects his feeling of “survivor’s guilt” onto Art. This gives Art insight into Vladek’s behavior, which he struggled to grasp up until this revelation. Comparatively, the ending in Lost remains unresolved. After the narrator discovers that foundling 2307 is Arnold, the memoir ends. Therefore, it is not confirmed if this moment is cathartic for the narrator or if it help him on his journey to self-healing. Through Maus I and II, Art is able to achieve agency, whereas, Treichel is unable to accomplish the same.
Treichel and Art are victims of intergenerational trauma, as a result they are forced to confront several negative forces. Treichel persistently deals with repressed anger and identity issues and Art experiences displaced anger and depression. Story telling aids Art in his healing process and he is able to abolish these “negative” demons, but Treichel’s “working through” remains uncomplete.