A Theme Of Guilt In The Complete Maus By Art Spiegelman
In the graphic novel, The Complete Maus, by Art Spiegelman, the author tells stories about his father's life before, during, and after the Holocaust, through a comic style of writing. Spiegelman narrates the reality of where Jews were killed during the Holocaust by Nazis, using animals to depict the different races, Jews are mice, Germans are cats, Poles are pigs, and Americans are dogs. In the 2016 article Survivor’s guilt: A critical review from the lens of the Holocaust, S. Juni states “. . . survivor’s guilt is using defensive strategies which coincides with exposure to violence and suffering of others. . . that entails feelings of guilt. ” Not only does the novel account for the reality of the Holocaust and concentration camps, but it also shows the family conflict that arises through survivor’s guilt.
Throughout the novel, Spiegelman shows the inner conflict that him and his father, Vladek have gone through as both of them try to come to terms with the past and work towards having a better life. Art and his father have had a rough relationship from the beginning. In the opening pages of the book, the author illustrates a younger version of himself where he is upset because he falls in a race and his friends leave him behind. Art runs crying to his father, who does not seem to have any sympathy towards him, and tells him “Friends? Your friends? If you lock them together in a room with no food for a week. . . then you could see what it is, friends!”. From early on Vladek was forcing his survivor’s guilt on Art. Years later, Art goes to visit his father and clearly states he does not have a close relationship with his father. Art grew up in his father’s shadow and was always subjected to his father’s high expectations due to the guilt Vladek brought upon himself. Along with Vladek being obsessive, compulsive, stingy, and determined to do everything himself, the high expectations were not easy to live up to. The tension between the two pushed Art away from his father and made him feel worse about himself.
Vladek’s relationship with his current wife, Mala, is not very strong either. Vladek is a terrible husband to her and is constantly telling her how much of a terrible job she is doing, questioning her domestic abilities. In his previous marriage, Vladek is kind and loving in his relationship with Anja and with Mala, he is the complete opposite. Mala and Vladek are constantly complaining to each other about Art. Vladek has regret in marrying Mala, and tells Art about her wanting to constantly change his will to get more money out of him. There is a strong possibility that Vladek is comparing Mala to Anja in all of the wrong ways. Vladek’s memory and love for Anja, is constantly causing a fight between him and Mala. Mala knows that Vladek still thinks about and loves his late wife, “. . . you keep photos of her all around your desk. . . like a shrine!”. It is hard losing a loved one and trying to get over them, especially when Anja was there for him through all of his rough times during the Holocaust. Mala and Vladek constantly fighting due the guilt Vladek has over Anja, keeps their marriage on the brink of ending. Art did not treat his father any better in the novel. He gets frustrated with his father very easily and small fight tends to break out, even over the smallest things. When Vladek was telling Art about a girl he fooled around with when he was younger, Vladek asked Art to not disclose any of the information he just told him and Art promised he would not do it. Art going behind his father’s back and still putting very personal information in the book without his father’s consent, contradicts the fact that he says he does not have a close relationship with his father and is not going to solve that problem. Even though their attitudes towards each other are not the best, Vladek clearly wants the best for his son and wants him to be successful, he already has guilt in the son he had previously lost.
One of the more heartbreaking issues in the book was Vladek’s suggestion to send their son, Richieu to live with a Polish family in order to keep him safe. Anja was not okay with it stating, “I’ll never give up my baby. Never!” but in hindsight, the readers learn Richieu’s life was taken. In chapter 5 of the novel, the family is forced to send their child along with two more children to a woman who they believe is safe from the Germans. Tosha, who is guarding the children, chooses to end her life on her owns terms, and decides to kill the children as well. “Always Tosha carried around her neck some poison. . . she killed not only herself, but also the three children”. Art illustrates a comic “Prisoner on the Hell Planet” before he wrote the novel. In this comic he expresses the guilt he feels towards his mother. One of his last interactions he had with his mother before she committed suicide, is when she comes into his room asking if he loves her and he rejects her pleas for love. Art believes his rejection towards his mother is what prompted her to commit suicide. He believes that everyone thought it was his fault for her death.
At the end of the comic, Spiegelman illustrates himself in a prison cell congratulating his mom for “committing the perfect crime”. The symbolism behind the ending of this comic strip shows how Art is stuck in prison of guilt because of his mother. Anja did not even leave a note. The guilt he feels towards his mother is often reflected onto his father. Art calls his father a murderer for destroying his mother’s diaries. Spiegelman’s way of depicting the family conflict, grasped the reader’s attention and made the stories he was telling more relatable. The author was able to have the reader feel empathy towards Vladek and why he acts the way he does. From Vladek’s high expectations to his stories, Art developed a feeling of survivor’s guilt. Having been born after the Holocaust, Art feels guilty about his parents living through it, while his life had been easy.
