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  • Essay / Analysis of the Father-Son Relationship in Maus

    Through the use of modulating points of view, Art Spiegelman brings together several stories into one to depict his father Vladek's Holocaust story as well as his experiences with Vladek during the writing of the book. . The conflict between Art and his father is one of the major themes of Maus which can be analyzed in terms of Vladek's depreciation of Art, Vladek's dissatisfaction with Art's occupation and frugality by Vladek. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essayIn the first pages of the graphic memoir, Art presents a comic strip that, from the beginning, demonstrates a tension in the paternal bond between his father and himself. When young Art's skate breaks and his friends abandon him, he sullenly heads to where his father is working in the garage, looking for fatherly love. When Art tells his father that his friends are skating without him, his father responds, “Friends? Your friends?... If you lock them together in a room without food for a week... Then you will be able to see what it is, my friends! (6). While it is true that compared to the vast atrocities experienced by Vladek, Art's problem has minor consequences, his reaction is not well suited to answering a young child's cry for help. The belittlement Art felt on this occasion lasted beyond his early childhood into adulthood. When Vladek spills a bottle of pills during one of many interviews with his son, he blames Art. Art is visibly frustrated by this but he offers to help pick up and recount the scattered pills. Vladek then says: “You don’t know how to count pills” (30). It seems Vladek only trusts himself to take care of himself. Although this is regrettable, it is nonetheless reasonable, because during the most difficult period of his life, he could only rely on himself to survive. As he told Art, “It was up to everyone to take care of themselves!” » (114). Janina, the governess of Vladek's first son, had always offered to help the endangered Spiegelmans. However, even she abandoned them as she found her own life endangered by their presence at her doorstep. Used to doing things his own way, Vladek sees only mistakes and immaturity in his son's actions. Whether he's forced to finish everything on his plate or criticized for dropping cigarette ashes on the carpet, Art's father constantly treats him like a child. Unfortunately for Art, Vladek's dissatisfaction with him also extends to his chosen occupation. Art tells Mala, “He never reads comics…He doesn’t even look at my work when I put it under his nose” (104). A slightly more humorous example of his lack of understanding of Art's career occurs when he identifies him with Walt Disney, a well-known children's cartoonist. Identifying the author of Maus, a profound and moving work of scholarly literature, with Walt Disney, the artist behind countless low-end cartoons, is laughable but also unfortunate if the association is made by the father of the author. The conditions behind Vladek's lack of appreciation for comics are highlighted when he tells Art, "It's better for you to spend your time making drawings that will make you money" (12 ). It may be true that before Maus was published, Art was not making as much money as his father would have liked. However, making comics is what satisfied him so that's what he did. Born during the baby boom, Art is associated with a group of people who grew up in comfort.562143814705222)