In Maus I and II prejudice, particularly anti-Semitism is seen throughout the novel through the actions of the Germans toward the Jews. Although anti-Semitism had a great deal to do with the Holocaust, this form of prejudice did not originate in WWII. In fact it originated hundreds of years before the war. In the article “Understanding the Horror” by Karen Shawn it states that anti-Semitism may have originated since times before the Dark Ages, “Many scholars believe that anti- Jewish prejudice began as early as the fourth century B.C., in Greece and Egypt” (Shawn 17) Before WWII Germany was recovering from its losses during the First World War. Hitler took this opportunity to rise to power promising a better future for Germany and blames Jews for everything gone wrong. Hitler’s philosophy must have spread during this time and in it was the “irrational hatred” towards all Jews,“ a hatred so all consuming that it led to the killing of the Jews” (Shawn 18) Hitler......
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Approximate Word Count: 1661
Approximate Pages: 7 (260 words per double-spaced page) |