Situations

When reading Maus there are many different circumstances that make you wonder if you would do the same thing in those certain situations. I’ll say that depending on the situation is a spur of the moment decision. I have found what I believe are some pretty good moments that brings this question to mind. Most of us wonder about these things and sometimes don’t like to talk about it. I don’t know maybe we are afraid that we might say the wrong things and hurt feelings. Lying, would you do it to save your life? Dying, would you do it for love? Betraying someone for money? Many of these questions I believe are the key for your sanity and a little hope.

Lying is one reason to stay alive. In volume one on pages 47-49 brings me to the first question asked. Would I lie to save my life? First I’ll explain the situation. Vladek is in the Polish Army. He is in combat and an officer asks him why his gun is cold and why aren’t you shooting. His reply is that he did not know what to shoot at. On the next page he actually shoots someone and his weapon becomes hot. After hours of fighting the Germans, they come over and raid their side. Vladek is then caught and the Germans ask him this question “Give me your gun. It’s hot! You were shooting at us!” Vladek’s reply is “My commander made me shoot. I only fired in the air”. Now, we know it’s a lie because he in fact shot someone from the previous page. I would have lied also. This lie saved his life; it was quick thinking on Vladeks behalf. Who knows what would have happened if he had said something different.

Dying for a loved one is a very hard decsion. In volume one on page 91 we read as this situation unfolds. The Jewish families are all told to register. Vladek’s family includes his own and his father and sister with her kids and Anja’s family all go to the stadium to register. There are two sides of placement the good side and the bad side. The bad side includes the sick, old, and families that have too many children. Anja’s family go through to the good side and Vladek’s family and father make it’s but not his sister with her kids. So the decision his father makes is to sneak to the bad side. They were never seen again. My decision would have been the same. How I feel is that I have lived my life and as the parent of that child I would not want for her to suffer alone.

Betraying someone for money has greed written all over it. In volume one on page115 betrayal comes to the surface. Family member s of Anja pay a guard jewels to be release out of the Ghetto. The family members are her parents. Vladek and Anja have made their payments to be release and the deal for her parents goes sour. The payment is taken from the parents to the guard and not only is it someone they know but a cousin of Vladek’s. He takes the jewels and never releases her parents they were betrayed. The parents are sent to Auschwitz. If I was put in that situation I would have released them. Even though the parents would have been taken away because their age; at least I would not have looked like a crook. So under certain circumstance is when you’re put to the test of what would you do? I rather would chose and have the choice of what I would be able to live with.