Maus by Art Spiegelman Essay Example

Maus is a book written over the course of 13 years by Art Spiegelman. The book tells the stories of Vladek, Art’s father. It describes, in graphic detail, the holocaust along with other parts of Vladek's life. And even though the second book has been out for over 30 years, one mystery still remains: Why is everyone an animal? Despite the story being nonfiction, there are very few examples of humans. Everybody is depicted as an animal. This metaphor put in place is essential to the story as it highlights stark differences both between people and their actions.

After reading the first few chapters, the reader finds out very quickly that all the Jews are drawn as mice. Other animals represent other groups. The Nazis are depicted as cats, a predator known for chasing, hunting, and killing mice. This predator/prey power dynamic is made especially clear at Auschwitz as the cats abuse their power. “... A few days later the Germans chose him to take away to work. ‘He got killed. Or he died. I know they FINISHED him’... A guard on his walk grabbed his cap away. So what could he do? He ran to pick it up and the guard shot on him for trying to escape” (p 194-5). It is these differences between species and the relationships they highlight that point out to the reader in black and white how cruel the Nazis were, reinforcing the impacts of it to the reader.

There are probably a number of reasons that influenced Art’s decision to draw everyone as animals and he is still criticized for it. It seems controversial or insensitive at first. Equally controversial is the quote found at the beginning of the book  “The Jews are undoubtedly a race, but they are not human” (p 10). These are the words spoken by Adolf Hitler. These two things go hand in hand. By drawing the Jews as mice, Art is poking fun at Hitler's words. Not only are the Jews not human, but neither is anyone else. By making everyone an animal, he is making them equal. 

The use of animals further impacts the story when the metaphor is suspended temporarily. Especially important or graphic scenes show up multiple times throughout the book and many of them place the metaphor on pause. When the metaphor is removed. The reader is left stunned. They are reminded that these aren’t just animals. It isn’t a fictional tale. These are real people and real events. The first example of this is found on page 102 when the reader sees, for the first time, human faces in Vladek's comic Prisoner on the Hell Planet a Case History. In this comic Art’s mother and Vladek’s wife, Anja, commits suicide. When this happens, the veil is lifted. “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'' (p 103). The reader is hit by the realness of everything just as Art was. Since the reader was so used to the cute and loveable mice the fact that these pages are humans makes it especially impactful.

Scholars still debate why Art decided to draw everyone as animals. It may have been to soften the blow. It may have just been to differentiate the characters. While his original intention isn’t stated, there is no doubt that the mice, cats, pigs, and frogs all create an artistic feel that is exclusive to Maus. The deceivingly cute animals help deepen the impacts and when they are stripped from the reader, they are left with the dark reality of the situation.