ENG 368: Maus Page Analysis by Tamara O'Callaghan https://padlet.com/ocallaghant4/eng368_maus_page en-us 2021-02-08 18:37:01 UTC 2023-07-25 13:29:17 UTC hello@padlet.com Maus, Page 32 (Tamara O'Callaghan, instructor) ocallaghant4 https://padlet.com/ocallaghant4/eng368_maus_page/wish/1178685956 This page consists of 4 panels: one unframed along the top of the page; two framed panels side-by-side below it; and a single large framed panel below that fills half the page.

I think this page is particularly noteworthy for several reasons. Firstly, the two framed panels on the second row have a second, internal framing because each shows the window of the train with Vladek, Anja, and the other Jews looking out at the scenery. We, as readers, are positioned outside the train looking in at the occupants. We cannot see what they see, but we are witness to their reactions. Based on the speech bubbles and the expression of the occupants' eyes, that reaction appears to be shock.

Secondly, the final panel, which is unusually large for Spiegelman, changes our point of view. Now we are sitting with the train occupants looking out and seeing exactly what their are seeing: a Nazi flag with a swastika hanging from the town flagpole and blowing in the wind. Notably, the swastika is distorted because of a fold in the flag. I have noticed that, whenever Spiegelman includes a swastika in a panel, it is always distorted, thereby helping to undermine the symbolic "power" of the image. Speigelman never appears to privilege the recognizable images of Nazism over the Jews, or mice, in his story. I think this approach helps to undermine the significance of such images so that the reader does not view them as the central image in the panel with no awareness of the other visuals.

Finally, the double framing -- that of the train window and of the framed panel itself -- in these three panels emphasizes the fact that we are in the act of seeing and witnessing the Nazis' rise to power in Europe. The image of the train in the unframed panel at the top of the page helps us to understand that the windows in the panels below are those of the train. Perhaps even more significantly, the image is a silhouette of the train and does not portray the vehicle as moving along the tracks from left to right, a visual that would direct us to the next page and the horror to come (see Elijah's post). Instead, the train travels from right to left as though to encourage everyone -- the Jews and the reader -- to turn back.]]> 2021-02-08 18:40:23 UTC https://padlet.com/ocallaghant4/eng368_maus_page/wish/1178685956 Maus - Page 33 (Elijah Canel) https://padlet.com/ocallaghant4/eng368_maus_page/wish/1179006919 The page at hand is made up of 6 panels that are symmetrical and is set up like a traditional comic. The dialogue is set up in a narrative format with most of the page being a scene that had already happened before. 

The reason I chose this page is because this is the first time we see the cats or in this case the Nazis. The decision to make cats represent the Nazis is a one that directly correlates to the fact that Cats in nature hunt small rodents like mice. Some homeowners choose to keep felines around so that they can hunt down mice should they ever enter the house. Within the third panel we can see the abuse the cats commit when they handle the mice who are representing the Jewish. The fifth box reinforces this sentiment of the Nazi group that sought to eradicate the Jewish Faith. 

A little added observation the Nazi logo is never in full view just like we have talked about before. Also, the Swastika is the background of the narrative scenes in order to give a heavy sense of the power the Nazi group had. The mice are talking about this horrific moment that happened to this neighborhood in Germany and by the end of the page we see a foreshadowing of events to come which set up the rest of the story.]]> 2021-02-08 19:36:58 UTC https://padlet.com/ocallaghant4/eng368_maus_page/wish/1179006919 Maus, Page 74 (Madelyn Wilke) https://padlet.com/ocallaghant4/eng368_maus_page/wish/1179709412 This page has one big frame at the top of the page, five little frames underneath, and an image that is not within a frame. In the big picture at the top of the frame, Vladek is in his own frame starting his story again in the present time. 

This page is noteworthy for a couple reasons. One is that Vladek is pictured at the top as if he is looking in on the scene he is talking about. It gives the readers the perspective of looking in on a scene like they are watching a movie. The big frame shows all of the mice sitting down for dinner which illustrates just how many people are living in this house, and how space is getting tight. 

Also, the five little frames underneath introduce a whole mess of new characters that add to the family. Their stories are important through the rest of the story, so their introductions are important. 

This scene is also the start of the end for the family. They still have some luxury left even though there is a lot of them living in one house. They are starting to ration food, and notice that things weren't going their way anymore. The situation just gets worse from this point on, so this scene kind of reminds me of the last supper in a way, and this is a ]]> 2021-02-08 23:15:33 UTC https://padlet.com/ocallaghant4/eng368_maus_page/wish/1179709412 Maus, Page 45 (Kate Lawson) https://padlet.com/ocallaghant4/eng368_maus_page/wish/1179717003 I book marked this page in my copy of Maus because I thought it was significant for several reasons. On this page, Vladek is talking to Art about how he was drafted into the army in 1939 to fight the Germans. Vladek then starts to talk about how his own father, Art's grandfather, desperately tried to keep Vladek and his brother Marcus out of the army by starving them so they would not be healthy enough to be chosen to fight. We even learn that Vladek's father pulled out his own teeth in order to be taken out of the Russian army. I think that this page is important because we get a look at what Vladek's own father was like, Vladek and his father clearly had a strained and perhaps difficult relationship; just as Art does with Vladek.

This page consists of one small bordered panel at the top alongside a unbordered drawing of Vladek and Art discussing Vladek's time in the army, where we can see a drawing of this right above Art's leg. Below this is three equal framed panels, followed by two larger bordered panels at the bottom. I thought that the unbordered drawing at the top of the page was particularly interesting. We see a lot of patterns in the drawing compared to other drawings. There is stripes and polka-dots on the vase, there is a flower or maybe a sun on the lamp, there's a picture frame with a photo in the background and the two chairs are filled in with a pattern as well. Vladek is also wearing a very spiffy looking dotted suit with a thick lined tie and light-colored shoes; while Art is wearing mostly dark clothing. All of the white and the patterns were an interesting choice by Art for this particular page because the narrative here deals with some very dark subjects, but the lightness and the patterns give a happy tone. Perhaps Art is trying to illustrate the two very different people that him and his father are.

In the panels below Art and Vladek speaking, the background of the panels behind Vladek talking become completely black all of a sudden. This complete blackness could represent the overall horribleness and darkness of war and Vladek's time in the army.]]> 2021-02-08 23:19:43 UTC https://padlet.com/ocallaghant4/eng368_maus_page/wish/1179717003 Page Analysis of Art Spiegelman's Maus ocallaghant4 https://padlet.com/ocallaghant4/eng368_maus_page/wish/1186407237 ACTIVITY GUIDELINES:
Log into your free Padlet account to ensure that your name appears automatically on your post and your comments for this activity.

Select a page from Maus that you find particularly engaging. Post a thoughtful analysis (250 to 300 words) of the narrative and visual design of that page and how the two interconnect. You may wish to note how these observations relate to the graphic novel more broadly. Remember to include a scan of the page your are analyzing (see instructions in Canvas on how to scan using your smartphone).

Once you complete your posting, be sure to comment on the postings of at least 2 other students (or on mine!). And remember to reflect on your analysis and those of others on this padlet in your Citizenship Journal.]]> 2021-02-10 09:24:27 UTC https://padlet.com/ocallaghant4/eng368_maus_page/wish/1186407237 Maus, Page 78 (Emily Phillips) emilyphillips1404 https://padlet.com/ocallaghant4/eng368_maus_page/wish/1282844142 I had this page saved in my book for a couple of important reasons. This page in particular displays how difficult times where becoming to be able to stay and not get taken. We are able to see this through Art's experience as he was heading towards Modrzejowska to but some textiles. However it was closed off because of the S.S checking everyone's work papers to make sure they were credible. Art realizes now that his Ilzecki's note wasn't enough to get buy because they had taken 50% of the people on the street away. This forces Art's father in Law to ask for help from a man who owns a tin shop who will allow him to escape and portray himself as a worker and to have a work card if there was a round up. This page also foresees the future where Art states "I learned here to do things what were useful to me when I came to Auschwitz". 
This page is constructed of one boarded panel located at the top of the page. A lot of detail went into this top panel illustrating how they were getting checking there identification and getting sent away. Underneath there are three equal sized panels that illustrates Art being surprised by the fact that they are doing round ups and it can be seen as this through the lines that surround his head. The last four frames are boarded but not illustrated as the same size. There is also a lot of illustration here by the outfits they are wearing to the design that is put on the walls. 

]]> 2021-03-08 16:01:02 UTC https://padlet.com/ocallaghant4/eng368_maus_page/wish/1282844142 Maus, Page 90 (Janise Price) pricej181 https://padlet.com/ocallaghant4/eng368_maus_page/wish/1293518786 Page 90 has a large panel on the top, 2 smaller panels in between, and finally a longer one at the bottom. The big frame at the top is being used to show just how many people showed up to get their passport stamped This is a good way just to show the sheer amount of people there and how chaotic it could be without saying any of that.

The smaller two frames show a close up of what is happening, so we go from a birds eye view to a normal close up. The text is outside the frame, similar to a label or when people label their pictures. A caption if you will. So we get text, quotes spoken from inside the picture, then we get the rest of the story from the captions. In the second small frame, the caption above mentions how people were separated into two lines, the left and right. The commands from inside the frame say "Old people, families with lots of kids, and people without work cards are all going to the left!" and then Vladek adds "We understood this must be very bad". On top of that, this panel is the only one where we see a close up of people's faces and they all have a look of unease and despair. 

The final frame confirms that the left side was bad by saying they didn't get any stamp and it also shows the passports coming out of the frame with the stamp, indicating the importance of the stamp. This whole set up was very good at directing the reader towards what was important in the story, without making it seem too forced which is a hard thing to do. ]]> 2021-03-10 15:40:28 UTC https://padlet.com/ocallaghant4/eng368_maus_page/wish/1293518786 Maus page 83 angiebos13 https://padlet.com/ocallaghant4/eng368_maus_page/wish/1501538716 I chose page 83 because of how it is set up compared to the rest of the graphic novel, which is already very dark and serious in its tone and meaning, but this page especially is powerful with the way it is set up and the images depicted on it.

This page has six panels on it, with four of them being the same size, one being slightly smaller, and the other being larger, taking up most of the page. Some of the panels overlap and lay on top of the largest one. This happens a few times throughout the novel, but it is significant each time, especially in this instance. The information about what had taken place, which is something very dark and awful, is put on top of the panel showing that which has happened. The panel is partly covered up by other panels, so you are not able to see the full image. I thought this was a powerful way to set this page up, and it almost feels overwhelming because of how it is formatted, which I think is the effect that we were supposed to feel -- what happened was very overwhelming in the story, so the fact that the format was able to give off that same feeling is significant.]]> 2021-05-07 08:52:01 UTC https://padlet.com/ocallaghant4/eng368_maus_page/wish/1501538716 MAUS - page 58 (Shelby Doyle) shelbydoyle02 https://padlet.com/ocallaghant4/eng368_maus_page/wish/1505434286
I found page 58 to have some interesting panels. Spiegelman actually drew the speech bubbles to reflect the tone of the speaker in two different panels. One features a Nazi guard yelling at the prisoners, and it has a harsh, jagged edge. The other features a prisoner whispering to Vladek, and it has an uncertain, wiggly edge. This is a significant source of emotion that Spiegelman includes in his artwork, that could not be conveyed the same way if he merely said how the characters felt. 
This is an interesting aspect of graphic novels in general. The panels almost tell their own story, but the writing is what ties it all together. The two elements can exist without the other, but the story is not as effective.


]]> 2021-05-08 19:49:35 UTC https://padlet.com/ocallaghant4/eng368_maus_page/wish/1505434286 Maus pg. 38 spookly13 https://padlet.com/ocallaghant4/eng368_maus_page/wish/1505740798 I have always found this page very impactful for the layout. It remains having an organized set of panels up until the very end of the page. Vladek is describing how he and Anja were separated at the beginning of the war. The panel is formed so the reader has to look all the way to the left to read the next sentence and then the eye has to travel all the way to the right to read the next. Anja was mentioned on the left and Vladek was mentioned on the right. This not only helps the reader visualize the couple's distance but it is almost tangible because of how far away the two sets of text are. This was even further demonstrated because of how neat and tidy the panels are closer together almost squished together. The text bubbles also show the worry and the franticness of the two characters. It is very subtle but fascinating how the author is able to direct the emotions and eyes of the reader to read the story in the way that he wanted it to be read. I wonder if there are ways to learn how to do this? Does one have to have a natural habit? Does one need to take a class? Does it just happen naturally? I feel like being able to direct the audience's eyes to certain points may have a lot more benefits than just for graphic novels.]]> 2021-05-09 02:29:30 UTC https://padlet.com/ocallaghant4/eng368_maus_page/wish/1505740798