Skip to main content

Happy Endings Are Only For Fairytales


Maus ends without resolving all tensions that occurred during the novel.  When Vladek calls Art Richieu, there are many questions going through my mind.  Does it mean Art will never replace the void that Richieu left in their lives? Or maybe has Vladek finally accepted Art as a son that Richieu once was?

Art Spiegelman also ends Maus with Vladek and Anja’s tombstones dividing the last two panels.  He finishes his story with “happily ever after.”  We all know that the couple doesn’t have a happily ever after because Anja commits suicide in 1968.  Spiegelman could have possibly used the words “happily ever after” because the reality is that there isn’t a happy ending.  Not only was their reunion not a fair representation, but it is insensitive to those who lost their families and had nothing to go back to.  It shows that a story about the Holocaust cannot have a happy ending.  It is something so horrific and atrocious that there is no way that a happy ending could ever be possible. 

The Frank Family
Just like the Spiegelman’s, Anne Frank and her family had to go into hiding on account of Hitler’s invasion of Poland and the Netherlands.  The Franks were in hiding for two years until a German officer found their “Secret Annex,” and were betrayed by an anonymous tip, just like in Maus.  This proves how during the Holocaust it really was one man for himself, and how many friends and family members betrayed one another. Anne’s father, Otto, was the only family member to survive.  In so many cases, not one member of a family survived, so the use of Spiegelman’s reunion between Vladek and Anja is like that of a fairytale.  













            

Comments

  1. Shreya PawarOctober 13, 2019 at 11:00 AM

    I like how you compared the ending of Maus to a fairytale. This is accurate because this what all Holocaust families ideally wanted, but many of them weren’t as lucky as Anja and Vladek. I also agree that even though Vladek narrates their reunion as “happily ever after”, they are still haunted by war images that diminish their individual happiness.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Sawyer DarishOctober 13, 2019 at 11:50 AM

    I really liked how you were able to relate this back to Anne Frank is an original thought of way. Also I really liked how you found details that were not noticeable the first time you read the page and how you analyzed them.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A. Van Jordan

#TeachLivingPoets In the poem A Tempest in a Teacup , A. Van Jordan characterizes Prospero as a old, heterosexual white man who fears the changing times of America. Even though the cultural shift that is occurring could benefit both parties, he is blind. From lines 1-6, Prospero explains how he did not get his dream job because it was given to a Black man. He is upset on how times are changing, as Black people are now able to get the same opportunities are whites. From lines 7-11, Jordan demonstrates how Prospero is able to financially support his family and send his son to school. He is not racially profiled from strangers on the street, and does not have to worry about whether his son comes home or not. From lines 12-16, Jordan demonstrates how he has hopes and expectations for his country, as it has always been there to allow him to succeed. Prospero is the model citizen for the country, with all worries free. From lines 17-20, Jordan demonstrates how Prospero does not have to worry...
Post a Comment
Read more

This I Have Learned

  Throughout high school, I have found that I am constantly comparing myself to others. Given that I live in Troy, where the environment is relatively competitive and toxic, it has been hard to be myself. Everyone is taking a bunch of APs, talking about their grade in the class and how they did on the last test, yet I am just sitting there glad that I was passing at least. These kids would only talk about academics, as if that was the only thing that interests them. I thought to myself, “does no one here have any hobbies other than studying?” In my classes, I definitely felt out of place, as if I was not doing enough. When I finally took an AP class, which was English, I felt even more out of place. It seemed to me like everyone knew what they were talking about, yet the only words that I managed to get out were “so, like, and stuff,” which is not very eloquent. At times I felt like I should have just dropped the class because I did not believe I was meant to be a part of that spac...
Post a Comment
Read more

Polite Speech

We tend to say things we do not mean in order to make ourselves appear as a good person, like “let’s keep in touch” and “it’s nice to meet you.”   It is not always clear whether we are actually pleased to meet someone, or just do not want to come off as rude.   In the course of saying things we do not truly mean, the expressions that we use become meaningless.   As a society, we care too much about the way others perceive us.   We would rather say something such as “how are you” instead of being transparent.   We create this fake, forced, first impression because we are trying so hard to appear “perfect.”   We then continue being “polite” because we do not want to be labeled as a bad person.   However, we are labeled as a good person if we say, “sure, we can definitely meet up,” even though you most likely won’t.   I am not saying we should stop being polite because it is something we do everyday and it would be silly to stop doing it. ...
2 comments
Read more