Maus was written and illustrated by Art Spiegelman. The graphic novel won a Pulitzer Prize and came out in 1980. It is called Maus because most of the characters are depicted as mice. It’s an interesting choice, but it helps people that can empathize better with animals understand what the Jewish people and other minorities went through during the Holocaust.

Maus has been banned from many school systems, which is why people in other parts of the world seem more uneducated, compared to a school like ours, who has Maus in the curriculum. Not learning about the Holocaust births anti-semetic people who claim that the Holocaust never happened, and though it sounds shocking that people could be that unintelligent, we unfortunately see it all the time. 

Maus was banned because of cursing, nudity, suicide, and the depiction of Nazism. 

People have been claiming that teaching about Nazis PROMOTES Nazism, but in actuality, it shows us as students how Nazis will always be mixed in with the scum of the earth, and are horrendous, but important to learn about.

Suicide is another important topic that should be discussed…while its a harsh part of reality, it’s a huge part of some people’s lives.

The funniest part of this banning is that parents and teachers are worried about the nudity and cursing in the book. For starters, kids learn basic anatomy and lessons of puberty in elementary school, while this novel is for high schoolers. Second of all, THEY´RE MICE. Mice are always naked in nature and if these adults can’t handle seeing a naked animal, what CAN they handle ?

The first book I read as a kid that had cursing in it, was James and the Giant Peach. If kids can handle that, then why couldn’t high schoolers deal with profanity? While researching Maus, I found many articles with amazing points. The banning of Maus has only caused scales to skyrocket, and certain bookstores are giving it away for free ! NPR informs us that within the two novels, there are only eight curse words!

It’s shocking that parents and teachers are worried about this.

No matter if you don’t curse around your kids or not,  your child has heard curses in school…you can’t escape it. Maus is now one of the best selling books on Amazon, and numerous booksellers are trying to get stock of it in order to give it away and educate people on the Holocaust.

Donations of around 79k have been given to keep supply of this novel, and every kid will be donated a complete copy of Maus if all goes well. Mother Jones posted an article by David Corn, which was published in his newsletter, but they wanted to share it with more people.

Corn says, ¨The offending phraseology was “bitch” and “god damn.” Of course, it’s ridiculous to object to an account of the mass murder of 6 million Jews and millions of others because of salty language and (animal!) nudity. But that’s what happened.”

Which really sums up what’s happening. These people are shocked that Maus curses, but not that Jewish people are still facing anti-semitism ? The Holocaust is obviously much worse than seeing a naked cartoon mouse or seeing a curse word. There is nothing good about the Holocaust, and taking out a few curses isn’t going to do anything. It’s a horrible, undeniable reality. It’s the only graphic novel ever to win a Pulitzer Prize, and its subject matter is extremely important to learn about. 

 I am now going to read Maus myself…expect a part two where I go in depth about it.