The Path that Leads to Nowhere

On page 125 of Art Spiegelman's graphic novel "Maus," Vladek and Anja finally make it out of the ghetto they were placed in and escape from hiding. This, however, didn't necessarily help them in their quest for survival and safety. On one of the last panels of the page, a scene is depicted of Anja and Vladek walking together with three different possible paths for them to go to. The obvious symbol of the Nazis rule over Vladek and Anja's life is the swastika that is created by the path. First and foremost, the swastika represents that the only paths left for Art's parents involve Hitler's destructive and oppressive rule. Even though they have escaped the ghetto they were confined in, there is still no viable option for them to continue to be safe. Analyzing the panel to a closer degree reveals that one path leads to a factory of some sort, all blackened out. While some may dismiss this as just another factory, I see it as a reference to the places where many Jews were gassed and burned alive. The smoke coming from the chimneys would represent the burning of the dead bodies, a symbol that Spiegelman utilizes throughout the retelling of his father's story. In addition to this detail is the presence of mountains in the very back of the panel. This would represent an entrapment of the parents journey since the other paths lead to the borders of the panel. This ending of the paths further shows the trap that Vladek and Anja are caught in as a result of the holocaust. Even though there are paths present, they are still trapped in Nazi rule. Lastly, the significance of the shading in the panel is important. In class, we discussed the evidence of stripes symbolizing as prison bars and imprisonment. These stripes are on the ground, the mountains, and the path where Anja and Vladek are coming from. This only deepens the notion that the two escapees are still in a cage, locked and kept from freedom.