fragments of humanity
While reading Maus by Art Spiegalman, I have noticed a recurring theme of dehumanization both literally, and figuratively. But this happens all around the world too.
In Maus, the Nazis treated the Jews like they were worth nothing. From starving them, to punishing them for the smallest things, and even killing them as if they were insignificant, the Nazis systematically stripped away the humanity of the Jewish population. Even the verbal abuse hurled at the Jews by the Nazis with insensitive remarks reflects how the Jews were seen as “animals” without thoughts or feelings. This is a little similar to the Israel and Gaza situation where 16,200+ Palestinians in Gaza have been killed, and the way Israel placed Gaza under hermetic closure, blocking access to any resources, is similar to the way the Jews were cut off and their belongings taken away.
The Jews portrayed as Mice throughout the graphic novel represents the Nazis’ dehumanizing perspective towards the Jews. With the Nazis depicted as cats and the Jews mice, Maus emphasizes the way the Jews were preyed on, but also the dehumanizing way of the Holocaust. An example closely related to the portrayal of Jews as mice, is the Rwandan genocide. Both instances were in an effort to eliminate a specific group of people by committing atrocities. But more than that, the Hutu population dehumanized the Tutsi minority by addressing them as “cockroaches” and making them feel like one too. Just like how the Jews were treated as mice, the Hutu minority were treated as cockroaches.
In Maus, the Nazis treated the Jews like they were worth nothing. From starving them, to punishing them for the smallest things, and even killing them as if they were insignificant, the Nazis systematically stripped away the humanity of the Jewish population. Even the verbal abuse hurled at the Jews by the Nazis with insensitive remarks reflects how the Jews were seen as “animals” without thoughts or feelings. This is a little similar to the Israel and Gaza situation where 16,200+ Palestinians in Gaza have been killed, and the way Israel placed Gaza under hermetic closure, blocking access to any resources, is similar to the way the Jews were cut off and their belongings taken away.
The Jews portrayed as Mice throughout the graphic novel represents the Nazis’ dehumanizing perspective towards the Jews. With the Nazis depicted as cats and the Jews mice, Maus emphasizes the way the Jews were preyed on, but also the dehumanizing way of the Holocaust. An example closely related to the portrayal of Jews as mice, is the Rwandan genocide. Both instances were in an effort to eliminate a specific group of people by committing atrocities. But more than that, the Hutu population dehumanized the Tutsi minority by addressing them as “cockroaches” and making them feel like one too. Just like how the Jews were treated as mice, the Hutu minority were treated as cockroaches.
I liked how you connected the effects of portraying Jews as mice to another genocide where humans were dehumanized to mere cockroaches. What you said about people being seen as animals without any thoughts or feelings is so true, and by identifying the parallels between past and present genocides, I realized they may all stem from similar ideologies.
ReplyDeleteI liked your analysis on how the animal metaphor shows the dehumanization. It helps emphasize the reality of life for the victims. As genocides still occur, books like Maus become more important so that people can learn from history.
ReplyDeleteI liked how you referenced the Rwandan genocide as that's an event that's very unnoticed by many but really shows the effects of dehumanization.
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