Response to Maus Question

Does this form effectively tell a Holocaust story? How does it differ from a conventional Holocaust story?
I was bit surprised when I opened the file and I found out that the story was written in the form of a comic book. I thought that this was a refreshing way of conveying a story about such a terrible event. As I was reading it, I felt like I was reading about the life of a man (or mouse) and his experience in the World War II. However, the holocaust is kind of like the background of his story and not what it is essentially about. I don’t feel like this story effectively tells a holocaust story. At least not the ones I’m accustomed to reading about. Most of the holocaust stories I’ve read in the past are really sad and horrific. Much of the story goes in depth about the adversities the Jews encountered. How most of their families were killed on the street right in front of them. How most Jews never saw their family members again. The holocaust stories I’ve read describe the gas chambers and ovens that were used to exterminate Jews. It illustrates how, more often than not, Jews were executed by the Germans in shooting lines. This story, on the other hand is kind of like a much lighter version of a holocaust story. For most of Vladek’s story he explains to his son about how he met his mother and their experiences when they got married. The Germans and Hitler was always in the back seat for much of his story until the third chapter. Most of the story in the third chapter was about his experience as a POW. As POW he had to work long hours and was given scant food and shelter. No doubt he faced hardships as he was constantly shouted at and forced to do work he had no desire in doing. However, I thought he would’ve been killed on the spot since he opposed the German army and because he was Jewish. His situation got a little better when he was able to work at a different camp. The work was even tougher, but his living conditions improved. The only part of the story I felt really felt displayed the horrors of the war was when Vladek described how the Germans killed 600 Jews and how he was a part of the next shooting party. When I saw how the Jews were kneeled down awaiting to be shot, I thought that this was something that I always read about in holocaust stories. It gave me that same uneasy feeling. I enjoyed the story but I don’t feel like the holocaust was what the story was mainly about.