Portrayal of the Holocaust in Maus Written by Spiegelman and Life is Beautiful Directed by Roberto Benigni

Both Maus, written by Art Spiegelman, and Life is beautiful, directed by Roberto Benigni have two very different portrayals of the holocaust and their main characters both have different strengths that allow them and their families to keep afloat during the Holocaust. Vladek and Guido use their individual strengths to survive the prison camps and help their loved ones to survive as well. Both Vladek and Guido have families they need to keep track of while living in the harsh environment of the concentration camps. Guido’s ability to be comical and a quick thinker allows him and his son to stay alive. The resourcefulness of Vladek and his quick learning skill allow him and his wife to stay alive.

Vladek and Guido are not alone in the prison camps, they have their wives and children trapped as well. In 1939, a Jewish-Italian by the name of Guido Orefice goes to Italy to open a bookstore. While there, he works as a waiter in a hotel restaurant which his uncle owns. Guido then meets a woman called Dora. Guido naturally falls in love with her, calling her “princess” and saying, “You can't imagine how much I feel like making love to you. But I'll never tell anyone, especially not you. They'd have to torture me to make me say it.” They eventually have a son, Giosue, and on his fifth birthday, they get captured and taken to a concentration camp. Vladek was living in Poland, trying to work his way up through the textile business. Vladek’s love life was not up to par. He was dating a Lucia Greenberg, who was young and hot, but very needy. In December of 1935, he takes a regular family visit up to Sosnowiec. During the visit, his cousin introduces him to the rich and delicate Anja Zylberberg, who will be Art’s future mother. She and Vlade...

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...dea and Yidl is able to keep him protected. Vladek learns that Anja is inside. He writes letters and then gives them to Mancie, another tinsmith, and she would smuggle them out and give them to Anja, along with some extra food. Vladek gets shipped over to Birkenau, where he volunteers as a shoemaker. Vladek is able to get right to work fixing soles and heels since he watched shoemakers when he was little. A gestapo comes and orders Vladek to fix a boot for him, be he needs someone of better skill. He gives a specialist a day's ration of bread and watches him fix it. Vladek gets rewarded with a gigantic sausage because of it.

Both Maus and Life is Beautiful have similarities in their characters and their portrayals of the Nazi death camps and the holocaust in general, though one major flaw ends up being the demise of one of the characters, that being Guido.