Analysis of Competition on the Book “Maus”

arguing in Maus The book Maus addresses the issue of the Holocaust and tells the base of Vladek in detail, a man who survived Auschwitz. However, unrivalled of the nearly striking things about the tier is not the surviving issue, but how it reveals the relationship between Vladek and his son. Competition is everywhere in the story. In the first book Vladek had a warring relationship with his son Artie, but throughout the story the disceptation waterfall into the hands of Artie and Richieu, the dead brother.Artie is constantly struggling with the broken relationship he has with his father. When talking to Pavel, Artie says No matter what I pass accomplished, it doesnt have the appearance _or_ semblance like much comp bed to surviving Aushwitz (II, 45). Arties life experiences and those of his father be completely different and this difference seems to increase the distance between them. mass have different stories and backgrounds, but their skills and greatness good dealt be measured by one individual event, such as the Holocaust.Due to this gross(a) competition imposed by his father, Arties purpose for writing the book may have started in order to record family history, but this was a piddling coer attempting to everywherecome his deeper feelings of inferiority he felt while more or less his father. He loved describeing off how handy he was and proving that any(prenominal)thing I did was all wrong. He do me completely neurotic about localisation stuff One reason I became an artist was that he fantasy it was impractical-just a waste of time It was an area where I wouldnt have to compete with him (I, 97).In fact, Artie did show his competence through writing the book and be equal to(p) to portrait his dads story so well. A passage that demonstrates how Vladek eternally seems to be making Artie feel incompetent is when Vladek knocks over a his bottle of pills and blames it on Artie. Look now what you made me do (I, 30). Even though Vlade k recognizes it was his own fault, he doesnt want to lodge it. Then Artie tells him Okay, Ill re-count them later. 30), but Vladek replies saying that Artie doesnt know how to count his pills and adds Im an expert for this (30). These two quotes clearly show how Vladek is always trying to present himself better than his son. Vladek never gives Artie the chance to prove that he is cap able of doing anything and this increases the distance between father and son. Another utilization of Vladeks necessity for dominance is shown when he accidently breaks a plate and gets really upset. Artie tries to renovate the ituation and offers to do the dishes, but his father replies in his broken English, No. You can defrost out the turkey legs you only would break me the rest of my plates (II, 73). Vladek is always trying to give him easier jobs and wont admit that Artie is equally capable of anything because this would put a hole in his credibility. With credibility comes dominance, and with out it he loses it. If he loses his dominance over Artie, this would free Artie from the comparison pickle because he wouldnt feel inferior anymore.On the snatch book, Artie tells Francoise about Richieu and how his parents had always had a picture of the dead brother in their room, but never a picture of Artie. The photo never threw tantrums or got in any kind of trouble it was an ideal kid, and I was a pain the ass. I couldnt compete (II, 15). Due to this eternal competition with Richieu, Artie was caught in a competition trap that he struggled with his whole life. This incase Artie in. Because everything he did was compared to an unrepeatable experience, Artie could never break out of the competition trap.This trap would always hold him back. Artie lived in a parvenu time with new opportunities, but he unagitated couldnt let go of this surd competition with his ghost brother. One of the most effective images in the falsehood was on the very give-up the ghost panel, when V ladek says Im tired from talking, Richieu, its enough stories for now (II 136). This candidate illustrates the preference Vladek has for his first son, Richieu. In choosing this quote to be the last one in the book Artie displays that this competition with his brother has no end.The fact that Artie devote the book to Richieu is another display of this, that even though they never met, Vladek was able to bring Richieu alive in Arties life. This passage also demonstrates how much Vladek mum wishes Richieu was there with him. It is definitely painful for Artie to be called Richieu. In addition to this last quote, Artie also chose to dedicate the book to Richieu, Vladek and Richieu felt the direct pain of the holocaust, and as much as Artie tried he would only be able to experience its indirect effects, and this would never hold up in any comparison.Sibling rivalry built up in Arties veins, but as most siblings have ways to substitute this equally, Artie was in a unique situation. n ot only could he never experience the things Richieu did, he could never exchange any emotions. Richieu was only a photo, and yet Vladek always unconsciously made sure Richieus life affected Artie. Artie was never going to be good enough for his father, or his ghost brother. He was stuck in a constant competition with someone no longer living. Writing Maus was what he did to relieve what was forced on him.Most books written about the holocaust are full of the direct effects, but his book took a new torture on the topic by focusing on the indirect effects. He would never stop competing with his brother. This is evident up to the last quote of the story when Vladek calls Artie by his dead brothers name, which just goes to show that Artie is still upset by this competition. Work Cited Spiegelman, Art. Maus A Survivors Tale, I My Father Bleeds History. rude(a) York Pantheon, 1986. Spiegelman, Art. Maus A Survivors Tale, II And Here my Troubles Began. New York Pantheon, 1986.