Weather remembering/regretting what has happened, or planning/worrying about what might happen, the past and future steal away our attention from the present. We become mentally absent forgetting to experience what is happening right here and right now. I believe that this is related to the theme in this novel which is that people should live in the present. Life unfolds in the present. The present is where decisions are made and emotions are felt. People should give it the attention it deserves. The great philosopher Buddha once stated, “The secret of health for both mind and body is not to mourn the past, worry about the future, but live in the present moment wisely and earnestly.” (131…
Art Spiegelman’s Maus expounds on the poignant story of Spiegelman’s father, Vladek, and his traumatic experience as a Polish Jew during the Holocaust in World War II. Vladek is a complex individual whose arduous past explains his difficult behaviour in the present. His son, Artie, renders him as a very meticulous, demanding, critical and anxious character. Vladek’s involvement in the Holocaust through his unwavering pursuit for survival is what makes him quite the tangled personality. His encounters with traumatic events such as death and loss of family members and friends from the war greatly explain his complexity. As readers, we are meant to sympathise with him and understand why his painful past is a notable reason for his convoluted character in the present.…
This book describes the life of his father during his time in the camps, narrated by his father, but also includes scenes of Art himself commenting on the story as his father tells it to him. For example, when his father is retelling a dream he had about a voice telling him the he will be freed, “… on the day of parshas trauma,” Art interrupts him to ask what parshas trauma means (Spiegelman 57). Although many see this merely as an innovative literary tool, I believe that this shows that Art, a member of the second generation of survivors, wanted others to know about the Holocaust as well, which gives not just his father by also himself a lasting connection to the…
Throughout the Book Maus A survivor's tale we see the characters are represented by different animals. The jewish people are represented by mice. In representing the Jews as mice, Spiegelman is playing off the anti-Semitic stereotype of Jews as vermin or pests, as less than human.the Nazis are represented by Cats. The Americans are dogs who save the Jewish mice from the German cats. The French are frogs, and the Gypsies are moths. The Poles are pigs. In the final chapter of part one of Maus Mouse Trap we see Vladek compromise his identity in order to survive. He places on a Pig mask in order to safely travel through the city in order to get food. Him putting on the pig mask means he is taking on the persona of the polish.…
The remembrance fills me with sorrow and shame” (Jacobs 233). She prepares you for bad times to come each time. Like she is giving a trigger warning in a way in her own novel. With Jacobs personal tone and writing this style truly gives the personal feeling. As though you are in the room with her as she writes this at a desk under a lamp.…
Because most of the present experiences happen within the concentration camps, a lot of their reminiscing is of their family, or friends, people whom they loved or pleasant experiences which made them happy. I find this extremely effective and important. This device helps the reader receive a better picture of emotions and feelings the main character is going through. Not only can we be there for what the character is presently going through, but the author is allowing us to view how they once were, what they once felt. It 's as if the author is showing the reader, "Look, I had what you had, once I was normal, and had a normal life, but now this is my…
It's Thursday, the day of the Farmers Market in Swansea, Il. This market takes place every Thursday at the Rural King parking lot, during the summer months of April thru October.My grandfather Norm started this event about 4 year ago, with just around 3 vendors. Now the business booming, with approximately 15 vendors participating ,vendors now range from wooden sculptures, to jewelry, and even Shea butter to help eliminate dry skin. Norm was born and raised in Belleville, il where he and his wife Deloris raised four children Mary ,Mike, Tom ,Barb. When Norm was young he attended Belleville west high school, where upon he found his first job working in Sears sales department. Later into his career he found an interest in auctioneering, and created his own family business, called "Geolat auction". After 30 years of being an auctioneer, he retired and began his real passion in agriculture. At his house in Belleville Norm owns around 3 acres of land that he uses to grow peppers,tomatoes,beets,turnip,and even square watermelon. Norm was…
For me I would say that my dad is not supportive to me. My mom and my dad they divorced and then my mom married another person which is the one I live with now. I feel really good with my stepdad, and my mom is happy. My biological dad to me, it just the memories from the past that I hate. I would like to forget about the past memories and it would be easy for me to become a different person. He is the one that I will not ask any help and any supports…
The Holocaust was so entwined with Art that it had to factor into his identity, however with such complexity Art was at a loss. With such an issue revolving around his life and those who raised him, he could not figure out how he fit into the horrors of the past along with the rest of his family. While aware of what happened during the Holocaust, Artie felt compelled to know what specifically happened to his parents in order to construct his own identity…
The payday lending industry is a very competitive industry established in the 1990’s, designed to give citizens the option to receive a quick fix regarding financial issues, in an effort to make ends meet. The main objective for those in the payday loan industry “should be to serve customers in compliance with the rules of the industry and better educate them on the services and products they offer” (Personal Communications, 2012). This industry raises the controversial topic of ethical, or unethical, and to this day is still being disputed.…
My father’s hero has always been his father, my grandfather. Under the influence of my dad and raised in a family where respect is one of the key elements, I’ve grown to love and respect my grandfather just as much. All that changed one night with just one phone call.…
In my life, I have met certain people who have changed me for the better and have helped shape me into who I am today. A lot of those people have left but one that has always stood by my side and sticks out in my mind is my favorite person in the whole world, who happens to be my Papa. He has been there for me since day one, literally. He was the second person to hold me as in infant, after my mother. People like him don’t come around everyday. He is the most genuine person you will ever meet. A lot of people would speak this way about their relatives or friends but every person who my grandpa meets, leaves with a smile on their face.…
Did you know a key to wrongfully convicted people was once lack of forensic evidence? I never imagined that innocent people was incarcerated for crimes they didn’t commit until I read the article “Wrongful Conviction”. In that particular article it showed that it can happen, and it gave an example of a person who was wrongfully convicted and how it had affected him. Uniquely, I had stumbled upon an article that were the lessons on wrongful convicted people. According to the article, since the development of forensic science testing many who were once convicted were release due to their innocence.…
My dad was extremely involved in my life especially when I was younger. I was a daddy’s girl one hundred percent growing up. My dad got me involved in all the sports I partook in. Encouraging me, giving me lessons, and helping me become better in any way he could. My mom was normally just there for moral support but my dad was the one to push me. He encouraged me to be good at anything I wanted to do. My dad played such a strong role in my life, and helped me become who I am today. The influences he forced on me created many of the interests I still have today. I feel as if I would be a different person if he weren’t there while I was growing up. To see the change that one person could have on you is deranged. She was involved in any sport…
What exactly is an empire? Macedonia, Rome, Byzantium, Ottoman Turkey, China, Peru, the Soviet Union, the United States, even by its enemies, the European Union have all been described as empires. We talk of “informal” and “economic” empires, of “business” empires, even of the empire of the heart or reason’s empire. “Empire” has become as much a metaphor as the description of a particular kind of society. today the word is generally used as a term of abuse, although one that is also often tinged with nostalgia. “Empire” suggest the ruthless exploitation of largely defenseless, technologically unsophisticated peoples by the forces of technologically sophisticated ones-the kinds of empires carved out first in the Americas, then in Asia, and…