Theme Of The Holocaust In Art Spiegelman's Maus

During World War II, millions of innocent people died in one of the most horrific genocides ever recorded. Jews, along with other religious groups were heavily persecuted by the Germans, forcing them to leave their homes and families to go to designated places where the heartless killing and torture of these groups took place. In Art Spiegelman’s Maus, Art obtains the countless stories and memories of his father Vladek as he recalls his sad and sorrowful experience of the Holocaust. During the Holocaust, the Germans conceptualized the Jews and other prosecuted groups as lesser than regular human beings. Because of this mentality, they treated the victims of the Holocaust with hatred and abhorrence. The Germans treatment of the Jews led

to horrible conditions for the Jews such as: intense physical labor even if someone was not able to do the labor, beatings, very little rations, and cruel and inhumane ways of execution. However, the prisoners of the Holocaust showed great courage and toughness by steadfastly practicing their religion and by adopting the idea of helping each other out because they had a better chance of surviving as a group, rather than as an individual.
Most Jews and other prisoners, although angered and frustrated by being prosecuted at first, eventually were worn down so much by fear and hunger that they lost the energy to fight back. During Vladek’s time at Auschwitz, he quickly realized that any sign of resistance, even minor, was met with twice as much force from the German officers. Even in situations where the prisoners were cooperating with the German orders, the officers would create fake resistance as an excuse to hurt and sometimes kill the prisoners. For example, the German soldiers would steal the prisoner’s hat and throw it toward the fences, and when the prisoner ran to get it, they would shoot him saying the prisoner was trying to escape. Each day was a struggle in Auschwitz, which caused the prisoners to have little energy and will to resist. “But a day after, they pushed in a shipment of maybe 400 more Jews there. It was room hardly to move. Only to go down to the toilet was 15 minutes walking on the unlucky ones sleeping on the floor. And coming back I couldn’t again where is my bed. In the barrack was a Kapo – a supervisor – he was screaming and kicking whatever he could. ‘Line up in rows of five, you shits! Stand straight! Now lie on your bellies. Quick! Stand up! Lie down! Stand up! Faster! Lie down!’ We did such ‘sport’ all day – kicking, hitting, yelling – ‘till some dropped dead. Then more.” (30 vol II) For the prisoners, not only were they forced into tightly packed, horrible sleeping conditions which deprived them of sleep and therefore energy, but then for the remainder of the day they had to succumb to a malicious Kapo who beat them at every chance for no reason. After enduring these harsh conditions everyday left the prisoners with little energy to act upon or even think about such things like revolt. Since prisoners had little remaining energy, all of it was focused on surviving and pleasing the Kapo, in hopes to continue to receive rations. Besides worrying about losing food privileges or being beaten if one resisted, prisoners also had to worry about loved ones being hurt, which is why when prisoners made the attempt to help one another out, it was looked upon as heroic.
During Auschwitz, a small act such as sharing food was considered gallant.

The prisoners of Auschwitz were given such little food that a week’s worth of food only amounted to a loaf of bread. Food was so precious that giving even a small amount of it to someone else was considered heroic. However, in certain situations, a few brave individuals were willing to sacrifice their own health, for the well being of another. In Vladek’s circumstances, he was willing to make tremendous sacrifices to protect his beloved Anja. “I starved a little to pay to bring Anja over. All what I organized I kept in a box under my mattress. But, when I came back one time from work… ‘It – Its gone!’ I’m telling you I wanted to cry … I saved a second time a fortune, and gave over bribes to bring Anja close to me.” (64 vol II) Vladek experienced starvation not only once, but twice just to ensure Anja’s safety. In Auschwitz and other concentration camps, the prisoners were taken away from everything they had, and stripped from everyone they loved. And after being placed into a unfamiliar situation, completely alone, they had to continue with fear in their hearts through the terrible camps while being given very little food, water, clothes. Even though the prisoners had so little, some courageous people were willing to share their means of surviving so others could also survive, which signifies the group aspect of the

camps.
The majority of the prisoners and victims of the Holocaust were targeted because of the religion they practice.

For example, Jews were under extreme discrimination because of orders by Hitler would had ingrained the thought that Jews were second class humans compared to the Germans. However, despite the constant abuse because of the Jews religion, they continued to persistently practice their religion. In some ways, the practicing of religion was a direct defiance of Nazi wants and orders. One of the reasons the Jews were believed to be subhuman was because they did not practice Christianity, which the Germans thought to be the ultimate religion. However, Jews, even after experiencing the Holocaust due to their religion, continued to practice it showing that they could not be broken and were committed to their religion. Religion also sometimes gave them hope and the will the live. “It was so real, this voice… ‘You will come out of this place – free!... On the day of parshas truma … before work a few from us prayed. IT was a rabbi there with us. One moment, rabbi. When will we read parshas truma? … In the middle of February – almost three months from now.” (57 vol I) Vladek had a dream where his grandfather came to him and told him he would be freed on parshas truma, a Jewish holiday. This news gave him hope and the energy to endure through all punishments down onto him. Besides from giving him hope, religion brought together various lonely victims of Auschwitz,

creating a strong bond and the belief that they would get through together. So he and others kept praying with the rabbi, and kept believing that some day they would be freed. And eventually, Vladek was freed on parshas truma.
Following WWII, the Holocaust soon became known as one of the largest and vicious genocides ever recorded. The Germans did not see the Jews as being human, which led to the inhumane torturing, forced manual labor, execution methods, and scientific testing performed with Jewish test subjects. In addition, the Jews were given not nearly enough food, and were cramped with over 400 over prisoners in sleeping quarters that were infected by lice. Treatment like this led to the overall atmosphere of fear. Each individual did not know if he or she would get picked next to die, or get beaten, or even if they could continue through another day of back-breaking labor. Despite this, the admirable strength and courage of most of the Jews allowed them to come together, backed by their religion, to form a strong group that prayed, gave each other food, and looked out for each other. This group mentality is what allowed lucky prisoners to survive. However, even if one survived the Auschwitz, the memories and horror they felt while imprisoned there carries on with them throughout their life.