Compare And Contrast Essay: Maus And Schindler's List

Art Spiegelman and Steven Spielberg have created astounding but intense representations of the Holocaust through their works Maus and Schindler’s List. Nonetheless, Schindler’s List is a more accurate and authentic recounting of the events, while also reaching an extensive audience. Contrasts between the two include the type of media used and the way the stories are communicated, and Schindler’s List was more successful in utilizing those distinctions. Maus is the story of a man’s father who has experienced the Holocaust as a Jew firsthand, while Schindler’s List tells the story of a Nazi member, Oskar Schindler, who is trying to expand his enamelware business. Schindler’s List achieves a more realistic and engaging story of the Holocaust by showing intense emotion, cruelty and hardships, and applying numerous perspectives to a horrific event in history.

Schindler’s List is more successful than Maus in conveying an honest account of the Holocaust because the movie appeals to strong emotion. Maus is written as a story within a story. Art Spiegelman, the author, represents the feeling during the Holocaust through his father Vladek’s story. The reader can empathize with Vladek as he goes through different events. After leaving his bunker, Vladek recalls, “Anja and I didn’t have where to go. We walked in the direction of Sosnowiec - but where to go?! It was nowhere we had to hide” (Spiegelman 125). Maus portrays emotion through a single character, while also having material from the present. This allows readers to infer what will happen to the characters, which removes a lot of powerful feelings throughout the story. In Schindler’s List, the Nazis move most of the Jewish population into ghettos. They are given a small living space to share with many other strangers. One scene shows Jews conversing with each other about their situation. Many acknowledge that this is rock bottom, but others say that at least their businesses are not being taken again and there are fewer Nazis. One woman says, “There is nowhere down from here. This is the bottom.” Another man replies, “The ghetto is… liberty” (Spielberg). Scenes like this are heartbreaking to watch because viewers know that this is nowhere near the bottom for Jews during the Holocaust. They will be tortured, killed, starved, and experience one of the worst events in history. Following the characters and not knowing what will happen to them in Schindler’s List is devastating and emotional. It is not the same in Maus because readers know that Vladek will survive. There are upsides to this kind of writing, but an in-the-moment experience is more meaningful to the audience. Schindler’s List is more compelling than Maus in the sense that there is more mystery and uncertainty. This makes the story more realistic because there was no security at the time of the Holocaust.

Schindler’s List portrays a more accurate narration of the Holocaust compared to Maus due to the inclusion of appalling scenes of violence. While Maus contains many instances of cruelty, it also focuses on Anja’s suicide as the main tragedy. Art’s comic about his mother is featured in the book. It reads, “‘Your mother killed herself - she’s dead!’ I could avoid the truth no longer - the doctor’s words clattered inside me… I felt confused; I felt angry; I felt numb! I didn’t exactly feel like crying, but figured I should!” (Spiegelman 101). A theme in Maus is the inclusion of Art’s story, which is not referencing the Holocaust. A lot of the violence present is not related to the Holocaust, but instead to its aftermath.  Schindler’s List incorporates much of the brutalities of the Holocaust, including a horrific scene of people forced to shovel huge piles of decaying Jewish bodies. This extreme brutality is a theme throughout the movie. In one of the scenes, the Nazis work to liquidate a ghetto. Several Jewish people, including kids, are trying to hide anywhere they can. The Nazis carelessly kill anyone in their way, but Adam, a little boy working with the Nazis, helps his Jewish friend Danka and her mother get in ‘the good line’. Danka’s mother says, “Do you know the saying an hour of life is still life? I am saying a blessing for you.” (Spielberg). This quote helps the viewers to understand how much an act of kindness means, especially because it is such a harsh time. Throughout the movie, viewers see bloodshed, embarrassment, and fear. Schindler’s List is more effective in exhibiting the monstrosities of the Holocaust by using a visual representation. Maus rarely shows instances of violence. The oversimplification of groups through mice and cats takes away from some of the ability to show violence in a precise way. Schindler’s List is a more realistic telling of the Holocaust because of the accuracy in violence.

Schindler’s List has a stronger depiction of Nazi manipulation during the Holocaust by following both Nazis and Jews, while Maus only observes one Jewish man. In Maus, there is a constant fear that the Jews live with told through Vladek’s story. An example of this is when Vladek says, “One time I was going to see Ilzecki. This was late in 1941, I think. His house was very near to a train station… and it was going on there something terrible. I had to pass near - and they were grabbing Jews, if they had papers or no! What had I to do?” (Spiegelman 80). The Nazis manipulated everyone in their reach to submission. Jewish people take their papers everywhere to avoid capture, but even that does not matter. Everyone was waiting for the next horrible thing to happen. This is how the Nazis used their power to control. Schindler’s List shows the Holocaust through the eyes of both Nazis and Jews. The main character, Oskar Schindler, is introduced as someone who only cares about money and success. His priorities change by the end of the movie as he makes connections and shows empathy. As Schindler is building his enamelware business, he goes to meet a Jewish man in secret for an investment. The man wants a percent of the company, but Schindler argues that pots and pans will be good for trading in the ghetto. Later in the movie, he starts to go out of his way to save the lives of Jewish people (Spielberg). Schindler starts as a businessman using the war and exploitation of Jews to build his company and profit. This changes as he develops affection for his workers and saves them from the brutality of other Nazis. By the end of the movie, he uses his power and influence to put Jewish lives above his profit and security.  Maus does give examples of Nazi power through the story of one Jewish man surviving the Holocaust, but it does not account for the perspectives of the actual Nazis. Schindler’s List does a better job with this, as the movie follows a Nazi businessman, several SS officers, and many Jews.  Maus focuses on both the past and the present, making the Holocaust only one of the focal points of the story. Its purpose is to connect the two stories, while Schindler’s List is only concentrating on the Holocaust. The story includes the effect of the Nazis on the entire community, not just an individual. The story of Nazi influence on everyone in Schindler’s List demonstrates a clear and accurate account of the Holocaust.

Displaying feeling, brutality, and various viewpoints are critical to a successful record of the Holocaust in order to relay such a significant message. Schindler’s List and Maus are both excellent instances of this achievement, yet  Schindler’s List can impart all aspects of the Holocaust precisely and in the most effective way.