Maus

            For the past week my group and I have been reading Maus. Throughout the whole book, with all of the horrendous events that go on in Vladek’s life, he is always shown as being hopeful for the future. It’s interesting because even after his wife committed suicide, being in a loveless relationship and going through the Holocaust, he can still have happy moments. This is the difference between someone who has lived through an event, and someone who has survived it. In many ways I see Vladek as a survivor, but in many other ways I see him as someone who has simply lived through the holocaust.

            In a lot of ways I feel like everyone is a mix of a survivor and someone who is still haunted by the things that happened in the past because I think in some ways those experiences we hold onto make us unique. But I think they also hold us back from becoming a better version of ourselves. Rather, learning from our mistakes would be more beneficial, but people aren’t perfect; we hold grudges and get mad and make up and move on, and it’s all part of being human. Human error is quite possibly what defines us from all other animals. Since people are more easily allowed to evaluate their decisions and learn from experience, while animals it is most often times a situation where it is obvious that something needs to evolve or change. Most other living things live through experiences while people survive them. Which is better though? Over thinking things can lead to poor choices, maybe going with our gut or animal reaction is the first and only way to protect and better ourselves.

            It’s interesting that I brought up the thing about animals because Artie draws all of the people as different animals, Jew being mice and Germans being cats. This is said to be a metaphor that we are all the same and it’s ridiculous to hate one race or culture because of this. I think it also has to do with people reverting back to their animal-esque ways when faced with dire circumstances, such as the Holocaust. Vladek says in the beginning of the book something with the jist of “Friends? Hah! Lock yourself in a room with these people, starving and sick, then see who is your true friend.”

            It takes a survivor to realize that the easiest and first instinct doesn’t always benefit you, or help the situation, but someone who wishes to only live through something will always go with their first idea because there are no other ideas. I think living through something means being tortured by things you cannot control, yet not wanting to change them, only acting to better your personal circumstance; while surviving is fighting against powers that repress you. Those that live through life and its events always act upon their gut reaction, while it takes someone who wishes to survive to contemplate which choice is best.