MAUS I: INTRODUCTIONBy: Art Spiegelman

DO NOW: IN YOUR NB

Create a three column KWL chart. (K-what you know, W-want to know, L-learned)

Fill in the chart based on your knowledge of the Holocaust.

ABOUT THE HOLOCAUST

The word "Holocaust," from the Greek words "holos" (whole) and "kaustos" (burned), was historically used to describe a sacrificial offering burned on an altar.

Now… we know it as the mass murder of some 6 million European Jews by the German Nazi regime during the Second World War (1939-1945)

ANTI-SEMITISM- PREJUDICE AGAINST PEOPLE OF JEWISH HERITAGE

To the anti-Semitic Nazi leader Adolf Hitler, Jews were an inferior race, an alien threat to German racial purity and community.

Hitler's "final solution"--now known as the Holocaust--came to fruition under the cover of World War II. Other countries did not recognize the mass murders until the end of the war.

Mass killing centers were constructed in the concentration camps of German-occupied Poland

IN YOUR NB

Fill in the L part of your KWL with any information you just learned about the Holocaust.

MAUS I: WHAT’S IT ALL ABOUT?

Tells the story of (author) Art Spiegelman's attempts to learn about his father and mother's experiences as Jews during the Holocaust and later as survivors in the United States.

Maus also documents Spiegelman's difficult relationship with his father and his own search for understanding

The historical content is based on dialogues between Spiegelman and his father, Vladek, over many years.

Spiegelman uses animal heads with human bodies to portray characters: Jews are mice, Germans are cats, Poles are pigs, Americans are dogs, Frenchmen are frogs, Swedes are reindeer.

MORE ABOUT THE BOOK While the subjects treated in the books are

serious, there is also humor. The setting moves from New York, to various cities and towns in Poland, to a resort in the Catskill Mountains, to Germany, to Florida to Sweden.

The books (Maus 1 and 2) are hard to classify since they have elements of fiction, nonfiction, biography and autobiography.

Art Speaks about Maus

MAUS AND THE “HERO’S JOURNEY”

What were some definitions of a hero that we talked about last week?

Definition #4: The main character in a novel, poem, or dramatic presentation that overcomes an obstacle

Our heroes based on this definition are Art and his father Vladek. Art struggles with his relationship with his father, while we learn about the obstacles Vladek during World War II and the Holocaust.

Same format as comic books

Text & illustrations present information

Medium, not genre

Book-length, usually contain one story

A GRAPHIC NOVEL PAGE

Pages consist of a variety of elements

Panels-squares or rectangles that contain a single scene

Gutters-space between panels

Dialog Balloons-contain communication between/among characters

Thought Balloons-contain a character’s thoughts

Captions-contain information about a scene or character

Sound Effects-visual sound clues i.e.. Wonk! Pow!

HOW TO READ A GRAPHIC NOVEL PAGE

Graphic novels are read left to right, just like traditional texts

DIALOG BALLOONS

dialog balloons are read left to right or top to bottom as is appropriate.

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2

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4

Sometimes it can get a little more complicated…

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3

2

4

But the basic left to right rule still applies to panels

and dialog balloons as well

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2

3

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KEY VOCABULARY

Review this vocabulary now and keep it handy as you read so that you can refer to it.

You will encounter German words, Yiddish words, and other difficult vocabulary.

At the end of this unit, you will have an assessment on how the key words relate to the story and why they are important.

HW FOR NEXT CLASS

Read over the blog contract and get it signed by your parent/gaurdian

Read chapters 1-4 of Maus by Tuesday (including 4) Use sticky notes to mark parts that showcase the

hero’s obstacles/conflicts (Art’s relationship with his father, Vladeks obstacles in his early life)