The Swastika in MAUS Essay -- Maus Essays

The Swastika in MAUS The image of the swastika pervades Arthur Spiegelman's graphic novel MAUS. In a work where so much of the Holocaust has been changed in some way - after all, there are no humans in this version, only cats, mice, dogs, and pigs - we must wonder why Spiegelman chooses to retain this well-known emblem. To remove it entirely or replace it with another, invented symbol would completely disorient the reader; but some might claim that this is the effect at which Spiegelman is aiming. I believe it is not. Rather, Spiegelman uses the swastika to subtly remind the reader that while the guise in which events are presented may be somewhat unfamiliar, the novel is still a narrative of the Holocaust. The swastika, it has been pointed out, has always been a powerful symbol. Before Hitler's time, it was used across the world, often with the symbolic meaning of the sun, power, life force, or other superlatives - especially as a symbol for the Buddha. The Nazis co-opted this symbol only after much deliberation, and perhaps the Nazi regime never could have come into existence without the use of ideograms such as the swastika. The Nazis perverted this symbol by rotating it into a diagonal position and making it bolder than it traditionally was, therefore giving it more aggressiveness. Given the innate power of this symbol, Spiegelman would be hard-pressed to find an "alternative" for his depiction of the Nazis that could evoke the same response. The image found on the front cover of the book is clearly a Nazi swastika - the traditional, pre-Nazi swastika uses horizontal and vertical, not diagonal lines. However, to clarify who exactly is being identified with the Nazis, we must look to the stylized, angular cat's fa... ...entation of his father's Holocaust experience, it would be dishonest and unfair to do anything else. But then why is the swastika not only seen in places where it would have historically appeared - on Nazi flags, on the sides of Nazi vehicles - but also as a background image for a particularly gruesome event in the book and as a pattern formed by roads? It seems that this is intended to remind us that this is the Holocaust we are reading about. The blurb on the inside front flap states "Its form, the cartoon... succeeds perfectly in shocking us out of any lingering sense of familiarity with the events described." But this is not entirely true - by using the swastika, we are reminded that even though the characters are animals, this is still Holocaust history. The familiarity of the swastika still lingers in our minds and colors our perception of the entire story. The Swastika in MAUS Essay -- Maus Essays The Swastika in MAUS The image of the swastika pervades Arthur Spiegelman's graphic novel MAUS. In a work where so much of the Holocaust has been changed in some way - after all, there are no humans in this version, only cats, mice, dogs, and pigs - we must wonder why Spiegelman chooses to retain this well-known emblem. To remove it entirely or replace it with another, invented symbol would completely disorient the reader; but some might claim that this is the effect at which Spiegelman is aiming. I believe it is not. Rather, Spiegelman uses the swastika to subtly remind the reader that while the guise in which events are presented may be somewhat unfamiliar, the novel is still a narrative of the Holocaust. The swastika, it has been pointed out, has always been a powerful symbol. Before Hitler's time, it was used across the world, often with the symbolic meaning of the sun, power, life force, or other superlatives - especially as a symbol for the Buddha. The Nazis co-opted this symbol only after much deliberation, and perhaps the Nazi regime never could have come into existence without the use of ideograms such as the swastika. The Nazis perverted this symbol by rotating it into a diagonal position and making it bolder than it traditionally was, therefore giving it more aggressiveness. Given the innate power of this symbol, Spiegelman would be hard-pressed to find an "alternative" for his depiction of the Nazis that could evoke the same response. The image found on the front cover of the book is clearly a Nazi swastika - the traditional, pre-Nazi swastika uses horizontal and vertical, not diagonal lines. However, to clarify who exactly is being identified with the Nazis, we must look to the stylized, angular cat's fa... ...entation of his father's Holocaust experience, it would be dishonest and unfair to do anything else. But then why is the swastika not only seen in places where it would have historically appeared - on Nazi flags, on the sides of Nazi vehicles - but also as a background image for a particularly gruesome event in the book and as a pattern formed by roads? It seems that this is intended to remind us that this is the Holocaust we are reading about. The blurb on the inside front flap states "Its form, the cartoon... succeeds perfectly in shocking us out of any lingering sense of familiarity with the events described." But this is not entirely true - by using the swastika, we are reminded that even though the characters are animals, this is still Holocaust history. The familiarity of the swastika still lingers in our minds and colors our perception of the entire story.

Maggie Hobson Essay

Maggie’s personality in act one gives us the impression that she is very bossy and always wants her own way, â€Å"this is a shop you know, we are not here to let people go without buying†. She is bossing Albert Prosser into buying a pair of boots. I think that this makes her have an unpleasant appearance and is not the sort of person people like very much. During the play the author changes your mind by showing a different aspect to her personality. In act one, she acts very busy â€Å"she crosses and takes her place at desk†, â€Å"she busies herself with an account book†. This makes us think that she is the main boss of the shop. We also think that she does most of the work. The first thoughts of her is that she is anti-social. Alice : â€Å"oh it’s you, I hoped it was father going out†. Maggie : â€Å"it isn’t†. She is acting ‘businesslike’ and doesn’t seem to be acting very friendly to her sister Alice. Maggie is unromantic, she doesn’t think that there is any need for courtship before marriage, â€Å"See that slipper with the fancy buckle on to make it pretty ? Courting’s like that my lass. All glitter and no use to nobody. † This shows that she doesn’t believe in courting. Really courting is nothing like a slipper, but Maggie has a practical personality and doesn’t believe in wasting time. She is a lady who always get what she wants and doesn’t believe that you should waste time over courting when you can get married straight away. Maggie organises the household and arranges the dinner time, â€Å"so that, if you stay more than an hour in the Moonraker’s Inn, you’ll be late for it. † This show that she is trying to take over the main lead in the family role, when it should be her father’s role to say when the dinner should be ready because that was the norm in that era. Maggie has swapped roles with him. Hobson is very rude to his daughters, Alice and Vicky, about their delight in fashionable clothing and the idea of getting them married. Maggie is not included in the conversation of marriage. She then asks him what he thinks of her getting married. He lets her know he hasn’t given her any thought of marriage and is very rude giving his opinion of her, â€Å"but if you want the brutal truth, you’re pass the marrying age, you’re a proper old maid Maggie if ever there was one. † She reacts offended and upset to this remark and tells him that she is only thirty. We can tell that she wants to get married as well as her two sisters, Alice and Vicky.

Exponential Functions - How to Find the Starting Value

Exponential functions tell the stories of explosive change. The two types of exponential functions are exponential growth and exponential decay. Four variables - percent change, time, the amount at the beginning of the time period, and the amount at the end of the time period - play roles in exponential functions. This article focuses on how to find the amount at the beginning of the time period, a. Exponential Growth Exponential growth: the change that occurs when an original amount is increased by a consistent rate over a period of time Exponential Growth in Real Life: Values of home pricesValues of investmentsIncreased membership of a popular social networking site Heres an exponential growth function: y a(1 b)x y: Final amount remaining over a period of timea: The original amountx: TimeThe growth factor is (1 b).The variable, b, is percent change in decimal form. Exponential Decay Exponential decay: the change that occurs when an original amount is reduced by a consistent rate over a period of time Exponential Decay in Real Life: Decline of Newspaper ReadershipDecline of strokes in the U.S.Number of people remaining in a hurricane-stricken city Heres an exponential decay function: y a(1-b)x y: Final amount remaining after the decay over a period of timea: The original amountx: TimeThe decay factor is (1-b).The variable, b, is percent decrease in decimal form. Purpose of Finding the Original Amount Six years from now, perhaps you want to pursue an undergraduate degree at Dream University. With a $120,000 price tag, Dream University evokes financial night terrors. After sleepless nights, you, Mom, and Dad meet with a financial planner. Your parents bloodshot eyes clear up when the planner reveals an investment with an 8% growth rate that can help your family reach the $120,000 target. Study hard. If you and your parents invest $75,620.36 today, then Dream University will become your reality. How to Solve for the Original Amount of an Exponential Function This function describes the exponential growth of the investment: 120,000 a(1 .08)6 120,000: Final amount remaining after 6 years.08: Yearly growth rate6: The number of years for the investment to growa: The initial amount that your family invested Hint: Thanks to the symmetric property of equality, 120,000 a(1 .08)6 is the same as a(1 .08)6 120,000. (Symmetric property of equality: If 10 5 15, then 15 10 5.) If you prefer to rewrite the equation with the constant, 120,000, on the right of the equation, then do so. a(1 .08)6 120,000 Granted, the equation doesnt look like a linear equation (6a $120,000), but its solvable. Stick with it! a(1 .08)6 120,000 Be careful: Do not solve this exponential equation by dividing 120,000 by 6. Its a tempting math no-no. 1. Use Order of Operations to simplify. a(1 .08)6 120,000 a(1.08)6 120,000 (Parenthesis) a(1.586874323) 120,000 (Exponent) 2. Solve by Dividing a(1.586874323) 120,000 a(1.586874323)/(1.586874323) 120,000/(1.586874323) 1a 75,620.35523 a 75,620.35523 The original amount, or the amount that your family should invest, is approximately $75,620.36. 3. Freeze -youre not done yet. Use order of operations to check your answer. 120,000 a(1 .08)6 120,000 75,620.35523(1 .08)6 120,000 75,620.35523(1.08)6 (Parenthesis) 120,000 75,620.35523(1.586874323) (Exponent) 120,000 120,000 (Multiplication) Practice Exercises: Answers and Explanations Here are examples of how to solve for the original amount, given the exponential function: 84 a(1.31)7Use Order of Operations to simplify.84 a(1.31)7 (Parenthesis) 84 a(6.620626219) (Exponent)Divide to solve.84/6.620626219 a(6.620626219)/6.62062621912.68762157 1a12.68762157 aUse Order of Operations to check your answer.84 12.68762157(1.31)7 (Parenthesis)84 12.68762157(6.620626219) (Exponent)84 84 (Multiplication)a(1 -.65)3 56Use Order of Operations to simplify.a(.35)3 56 (Parenthesis)a(.042875) 56 (Exponent)Divide to solve.a(.042875)/.042875 56/.042875a 1,306.122449Use Order of Operations to check your answer.a(1 -.65)3 561,306.122449(.35)3 56 (Parenthesis)1,306.122449(.042875) 56 (Exponent)56 56 (Multiply)a(1 .10)5 100,000Use Order of Operations to simplify.a(1.10)5 100,000 (Parenthesis)a(1.61051) 100,000 (Exponent)Divide to solve.a(1.61051)/1.61051 100,000/1.61051a 62,092.13231Use Order of Operations to check your answer.62,092.13231(1 .10)5 100,00062,092.13231(1.10)5 100,000 (Parenthesis)62,092.13231(1.61051) 100,000 (Exponent)100,000 100,00 0 (Multiply)8,200 a(1.20)15Use Order of Operations to simplify.8,200 a(1.20)15 (Exponent)8,200 a(15.40702157)Divide to solve.8,200/15.40702157 a(15.40702157)/15.40702157532.2248665 1a532.2248665 aUse Order of Operations to check your answer.8,200 532.2248665(1.20)158,200 532.2248665(15.40702157) (Exponent)8,200 8200 (Well, 8,199.9999...Just a bit of a rounding error.) (Multiply.)a(1 -.33)2 1,000Use Order of Operations to simplify.a(.67)2 1,000 (Parenthesis)a(.4489) 1,000 (Exponent)Divide to solve.a(.4489)/.4489 1,000/.44891a 2,227.667632a 2,227.667632Use Order of Operations to check your answer.2,227.667632(1 -.33)2 1,0002,227.667632(.67)2 1,000 (Parenthesis)2,227.667632(.4489) 1,000 (Exponent)1,000 1,000 (Multiply)a(.25)4 750Use Order of Operations to simplify.a(.00390625) 750 (Exponent)Divide to solve.a(.00390625)/00390625 750/.003906251a 192,000a 192,000Use Order of Operations to check your answer.192,000(.25)4 750192,000(.00390625) 750750 750