Art Spiegelman's Maus: A Survivor's Tale

The concept of a comic rendering a Holocaust story seems perversely irreverent. Baking human flesh into buttons or literally working people to death is hardly the subject of Garfield and Peanuts strips. As a "low art," comics usually present lighter topics instead of serious opinions and ideas that would more than likely be ignored for seeming out of place. There is one way, however, for comics to get away with making intelligent points, but only as graphic novels. Art Spiegelman's Maus: A Survivor's Tale is one famous example. Maus unconventionally portrays the Holocaust in comic form, but, as eerie or even impossible as it may initially sound, the book is remarkably tasteful and credible. What makes the book so convincing as a Holocaust story is that Spiegelman recognizes the limitations of his art form---as a graphic novel-comic---and chooses a heavily stylistic portrayal of his father's adventures over a blatant attempt at realism. Too realistic of an approach would ultimately cheapen Vladek's experience as told by Artie, the author's character incarnation.