Catherine's Blog on War

Williams states in the beginning that she is “one of the 15 percent of the U.S. Army that is female.” What is one reason why she enlisted in the army?

Williams hated how men looked down on her. She was able to use firearms, go through bombings, and take yelling. Her ex-boyfriend Douglas always yelled at her and she always told him that she didn’t like that. He responded by saying that she would never make it into the Marines because she could not handle the constant yelling. It was not that she could not handle it, but it was unnecessary for her to be taking that from someone who is supposed to be her lover. Although it made her feel weak and vulnerable, Williams ends up joining the military, disproving her ex.

In Chapter One of Regarding the Pain of Others, how does Sontag link the perception of war to other concepts?

War is blinding. One would think that after seeing all of these horrifying photos of war would make us want to fight to stop it. Sontag states that even pacifists give up on doing so because there are still many who want to fight for the glory. Soldiers are blinded and fighting in a war in which they do not know too much about. Persuasion tactics and propaganda influence their decision. They may be too affiliated with one side of the war that they do anything to come out victorious, even if that means killing innocent victims, whose name and story they don’t know. Those in the periphery are also blinded. They are told and persuaded that their side is “good” and the other side is “bad,” without knowing many facts. In Chapter One of Regarding the Pain of Others, Sontag links it with viewing photographs. Prior to viewing the photo we already have biases and favor a particular group. That influences us to judge the photo because of a preexisting view, which gives a negative perception on another party. An example of this in Chapter One was how the photo of the child was viewed in the eyes of the Palestinian and Jewish. Overall, war is blinding to all those watching.

How does fear influence the characters actions? For example when all the Jews were called to go to the stadium in chapter 4 and they all went out of fear for what would happen if they didn’t go.

Throughout the graphic novel, the characters’ actions are driven by fear. Vladek and Anja fear different things, which causes a difference in choices made. Vladek fears of not leading a life like it was before the war. Since he can pass for a German, he constantly searches for food and a safe place to live. He knows that he has to pay a significant amount of money, but he is willing to do it as long as he and Anja are living comfortably. Vladek always searches to do business with others, in terms of food coupons, living arrangements, and work papers. He risked being caught with sugar to trade for some coupons. Even as a prisoner, he wrote letters for other to gain some food for Anja. Overall, Vladek was driven by the fear of not having enough food and proper living spaces that he always went out to look for them.

On the other hand, Anja feared getting caught by the German gestapo. She refused to let her son go to another location to hide and disliked it when her husband went out to do business. Also, She was wanted to the whole family to stick together and make sure that they were all safe. For that reason, she always hid when Vladek was out. She came from a large family, so having lost a lot of them made her feel a sense of loneliness. She wanted to stay in one location that felt like home, such as at the Montonowa’s. I think she got along well with Mrs. Montonowa’s son because she missed her own son and family, She didn’t want to leave for Hungary even though Abraham sent a reassuring letter of his safe arrival. Her fear of getting caught and losing others resulted in her strong opinion to stay in one place. The differences in Vladek and Anja’s actions are driven by their different fears.

Does this form (graphic novel) effectively tell a Holocaust story? How does it differ from a conventional Holocaust story?

When I think of a Holocaust story, I think of a victim’s first hand story that experiences the horrors of the Holocaust. The conventional Holocaust stories give detailed information about events and heartbreaking memories. Although Spiegelman’s Maus is a graphic novel, I think it effectively tells a Holocaust story. The story starts off with family relations before the war. It goes on to tell how Artie’s father became a prisoner of war and went through many life-threatening events as he was under the control of Nazis. Like a written Holocaust story, the graphic novel talks about before the war, the Holocaust, and returning home (if they do). Through these aspects, Spiegelman’s Maus is effective in the telling of a Holocaust story.

The graphic novel is different from a conventional Holocaust story because of its unique characteristics. In Maus, casual conversations were used between Artie and his father makes a reader feel like they’re there. We see exactly what one said to another. Also, the drawings give a visual of maps and events, which simplify ideas and garners interest. Even though the characters were animals, it grabs the readers attention because of the unique way of storytelling. Overall, the graphic novel was different, yet effective in telling a conventional Holocaust story.

Woolf has strong beliefs of the role of women in her society. Why did she believe that “…woman must have money and a room of her own if she is to write fiction..” and what were the differences between women of her time and women of the past?

Woolf believed that “woman must have money and a room of her own if she is to write fiction.” Women were commonly overlooked and without a quality education, it was difficult for them to get their name out and to gain recognition. Money was a necessity that was used for college tuition and amenities. Without it, it was difficult to study and get a quality education. Room was an amenity at school that was given to the wealthy at school. As Woolf walks past these rooms, she realized that many great authors wrote books in there. She also walks pasts rooms where books were on display, so women need room for both writing and displaying to truly write fiction.

Differences between women of her time and women of the past was their role in society. Women of the past would work low paying jobs that earned too little in terms of saving up for their children’s tuition. They were also forced to give their hard-earned money to their husband, without any say. Women of Woolf’s time had a larger voice as compared to the women of the past. Woolf mentions that she would never let her husband take her money and that women should have a larger say in society.