Abstract

Via his father's testimony, Art Spiegelman in Maus seems to demonstrate that there is divine intervention in human affairs. Vladek's predictive dream about Parshas Truma (Exod. 25-27), as well as the prediction of the Polish priest at Auschwitz and the Gypsy fortune-teller's prognostication to Anja, point to the presence of a divine hand in Vladek's and Anja's survival. Vladek's ostensible stinginess is actually a fulfillment of Parshas Truma's invitation to give God gifts, making Vladek especially worthy of divine favor. But the hidden purpose behind the couple's survival is that it enables the birth of their son Art, who would create Maus. Richieu's death and Anja's later suicide also contribute to the creation of Maus, and are thereby invested with meaning. Parshas Truma, which concerns the construction of the Tabernacle and Ark, and was Art's Bar Mitzvah portion, provides the key to the aesthetic structure as well as to the significance of Maus.

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