When reading Maus, I was pleasantly surprised as it was much different than the typical Holocaust story. As a Jew, I have pretty much read and watched every holocaust book or movie that I have ever come across, it was beaten into my brain since I can remember.....
My favorite part of any Holocaust story is not the violence, betrayal, hatred etc. It is the stories of family reunions. This is what drew me immediately to the end of the story, when Anja and Vladek are reunited.
Anja and Vladek defied all odds when they met again. Countless numbers of families simply could not find their relatives after the war was over, they did not have homes to go back to. Vladek going back to Poland to look for Anja exemplofies the way that love and family are the things that got the Jews through this ordeal. Vladek thought about Anja everyday, and would not agree to live without her. In the end, he found her in Poland, and they lived out their lives.
This reminds me of stories my granparents used to tell me. I am lucky enough to not come from European descent, as most of my family would certainly have been killed if they did live in Europe at the time. My family comes from the Middle East, and lived in Iraq during the time of World War II, it was not the best place for Jews, but certainly better than Europe at the time.
My Father's Father was jailed in 1941 for teaching neighborhood kids how to read and write Hebrew. He was sent hundreds of miles away to what was then Palestine. He didnt do anything wrong, just bad luck and discrimination he used to say. During his time in prison, middle east politics became a volatile issue. My grandmother spent every day wondering if she would see my grandfather, and the thought of her and his children kept him strong in prison. When his year was complete, he had no way to get back to Baghdad. He ended up having to walk most of the way through the desert, and humorously enough, rode camels. eventually he made it and got back to his family. My father was not alive yet at the time, so I credit my existence to my grandparents strength and perseverence through a period of time in history where Jews were nothing more than a nuisance and a parasite.
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I certainly agree with what you said about Vladek and Anja and how the strength between the two of them, espeically Vladek, was the nice part of this story. It shows the strength that was a a big part of this time. The desire for family and for peace. I also found your family story really interesting and really great connection to the Maus story. To have grandparents that survived such a horrible time and did anything they could to get back to each other is a powerful family story that I'm sure will be passed down for generations to come.
ReplyDeleteThis book definitely put a different perspective on the typical holocaust story. I personnally have not seen too man holocaust movies or read any stories on it (apparently I'm a little sheltered to worldly events), but compared to learning about the holocaust in history, this book gives an individual experience. Instead of the Jews being described as a group, this book focuses on one family. It allows the reader to learn that the Jews were not just a passive group just being acted upon, but as a individual unit.
ReplyDeletethat is an amazing story! it seems like the jewish people havent had it very easy. i am the type of person who loves it when a book ends happily, and i was glad to see that both the husband and wife reunite. however it was still sad to know that they would never see thier son again. and it does seem as if even after the holocaust, they were still suffering from what they experienced and lost. it was also sad to hear that the wife committed suicide after surviving the holocaust.
ReplyDeleteImagine being jailed for teaching children? I consider that the antonym of freedom. Freedom is being able to think critically and learn without boundaries. There ares till places int he world today (iraq) where you cant teach foreign languages and ideals. These children have no way of seeing two sides to a situation. By banning these actions they are controlling the minds of the youth and filling the with propaganda.
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