M A U S M A U S TEACHER’ SGUIDE Frieda Miller Vancouver Holocaust Education CentreAMEMOIROFTHEHOLOCAUST

M A U S AMEMOIROFTHEHOLOCAUST TEACHER’ SGUIDE FRIEDAM ILLER ANDTHE VANCOUVERHOLOCAUSTEDUCATIONC ENTRE

MAUS: AMEMOIROFTHEHOLOCAUST / Teacher's Guide Text: Frieda Miller, Education Coordinator, Vancouver Holocaust Education Centre Editing, Layout and Design: Graham Sharpe Research Assistance: Daniel Fromowitz Vancouver Holocaust Education Centre 50 - 950 West 41st Avenue Vancouver,BCV5Z2N 7 604·264·0499fax 604·264· 0497 © 1998 Material may be reproduced in part or whole, in any print or electronic format for non-commercial purposes provided that the publisher and author are acknowledged. ISBN 1-895754-29-1 Copyright to the editorial cartoons reproduced on pages 33-36 by Brian Gable, Bob Krieger, Bruce MacKinnon, and Malcolm Mayes remains with the artists. The Exhibition MAUS : A Memoir of the Holocaust Curated by Natalia Indrimi and organized by La Centrale dell'Arte, Rome-New York. Acknowledgments With special thanks to Brian Gable, Bob Krieger, Bruce MacKinnon, Malcolm Mayes for the permission to reproduce their work. Sponsorship This Teacher's Guide was made possible with the generous support of: Mordehai and Hana Wosk Family Fund for Education and through funding for theMAUS project provided by: Benwell–Atkins Ltd., British Columbia Teachers’ Federation, Canadian Race Relations Foundation, Lucien and Carole Lieberman, Community Liaison Branch – Ministry Responsible for Multiculturalism and Immigration British Columbia, United Way of the Lower Mainland, and VanCity.

Introduction 1 About the Teacher ’s Guide2 Art Spiegelman3 A Memoir of the Holocaust4 Pre-War Jewish Life 6 Loss of Rights 7 Separation, Hiding, Deportation 8 The Workings of Auschwitz-Birkenau 9 Language of Deception 11 Resistance 14 Liberation and the Aftermath 15 Form and Genre17 M A U S as Metaphor18 Metaphor by Design 19 Ethnic Metaphors 20 Controversies 21 Character Study23 A Comic Book About the Holocaust ? 26 Artistic Style 27 Artistic Process 29 Social Justice Cartoons31 Editorial Cartoons 33 Glossary37 Timeline of the Holocaust44 Resources47social studies language arts visual arts

Historical record, memoir or comic book?MAUS defies easy definition. The two volume, Pulitzer Prize winning book by acclaimed graphic artist Art Spiegelman functions on three distinct yet seamless levels. It is the story of the Holocaust as seen through the eyes of the artist's father, Vladek; it is the story of the tortured relationship between the artist and his father; and finally it is the story of the relationship between the artist and his art. Spiegelman uses a unique cartoon style, characterizing humans as animals, to illustrate the disturbing story of his parents' Holocaust survival, his father's ongoing pain, its impact on family relationships and his own artistic struggle. As a character in his own work, Spiegelman juxtaposes the minutiæ of day to day life with the magnitude of events surrounding the Holocaust. Beneath the apparent simplicity of MAUS