Every Picture has A Million words…What words do you hear?
February 26, 2008 by palmeral
In my Literature of Warfare class last week we discussed whether or not comics such as the required reading for the week Maus by Art Spiegelman could display the same importance and credibility a memoir or a movie could portray. While I raised my hand and stated that people differ in which style of literature or representation a subject they relate to or at least appreciate it, my professor rapidly declined my answer. Rather, he stated that a western country artist could not sing about the Holocaust and have the same effect on people such a Maus. Although I believe he is right, I believe he has over-exaggerated what I was trying to imply. Yes, Rascal Flats might be able to sing wonderfully about a lost loved one but they could not string out to a song about the Holocaust and emotionally effect people. Rather, what I was trying to state is while I enjoyed Maus, I was unable to grasp and apprehend the harsh circumstances the comic was trying to present. Obviously, people will have different emotional experiences with certain dramatizations of history.
Lastly to display what I actually meant during class since I was wrongfully represented I have gathered certain articles, movies, and podcasts representing past and present wars which effects me. Since not all of my examples will have the same effect upon you, it perhaps clarifies my point on how different types of litterature effects everyone differently.
#1: In fifth grade while I was in Canada, we were discussing the Holocaust. While I do not recall if we read any books regarding the Holocaust previously, we did already know the important details of World War II. To emphasize what we had learned about the Holocaust and WWII, one of my classmates grandmothers came in to explain her experience in the concentration camps. Her name was Mrs. Olwson and while I do not remember what camp she shipped to, I will never forget her story. She fully described her time in the camp with her sister and how she was separated from her parents. Moreover, because she was the oldest she felt responsible for protecting her sister. During this hour and a half speech, she divulged horrible memories of her experience. She recalled how her ribcage was fully showing and her how her body was only skin and bones by the time she was rescued. While I can recite her whole story from memory I wont. Rather, I will just emphasis the emptiness in her eyes. As she spoke her eyes did not fill with hatred for the German Nazi’s but rather piety and confusion. The concentration camp had spoiled her youth and replaced it with memories of rapes, torture and death. As a fifth grader try having an elderly women explain how next to where she got food, naked dead Jews were being thrown upon each other with no appropriate burial, and not have nightmares.
#2: The CBC new podcast War Crime Translator on 02/21/2008, influenced me emotionally on the crimes that occurred during the WWII. Moreover, it also educated me on how war crimes were still being conducted even after such a large time has past since the crime. During the podcast, the translator, Leonardo Simeoni, who had to read and meet the victims stated, “It was not translating fiction it was translating history.” Moreover he mentioned how they (victims) wanted peace rather then revenge for what occurred to their families. The full podcast
#3: These two film clip are taken from the milblog At War on November 16, 2007 by 1SG Troy Steward. While the clips from A War Film are extremely heart-felt, the blog was also extremely intriguing. Although being a student and having a job keeps me far away from the up-coming movies and their release date, I hope this one is out because just watching the trailers leaves me with goose bumps. .
#4: Lastly, Night the memoir of Elie Wiesel, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, dug into me with a double-edged sword when reading. Although the whole book is extremely emotional, the fight against his God troubled me and impacted me the most.
” Blessed be God’s name?
Why, but why would I bless Him? Every fiber in me rebelled. Because He caused thousands of children to burn in His mass graves? Because He kept six crematoria working day and night, including Sabbath and the Holy Days? Because in His great might, He had Created Auschwitz, Birkenau, Buna, and so many other factories of death? How could I say to Him: Blessed be Thou, Almighty, Master of the Universe, who chose us among all nations to be tortured day and night, to watch as our fathers, our mothers, our brothers end up in the furnaces? Praised be Thy Holy Name, for having chosen us to be slaughtered on Thine altar? ” (Wiesel, 67)
While, I believe that the comic is perhaps influential to the younger generations I do not believe it should replace books such as Night by Elie Wiesel or The Diaries of Anne Frank. Furthermore, through my examples from above, I believe that different types of representations on a subject has many different effects on people. Whether they weep in despair or reflect. Whether they are left lost to comprehend what they just read. Or whether what they saw or read did not touch them, it does touch someone. And that is what I was trying to State.
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I agree with you in many ways Alyse, you hit it right out of the ball park when you said that there are many ways to reflect on things and some will be more moving for you then for others. I do believe song is a good form of this. Since the being of the war there have been many songs about the war some in a positive light such as Darryl Worley Have you Forgotten and some negative one like Pink’s Mr. President.
Again that depends on your point of view for other it might be the other way around on which is negative and which is positive. I just glad you had a form to get your feelings across and wanted you to know there are those who find any form of communication important in telling a story of importance like the Holocuast.
I was one of those that said a graphic novel gives more meaning than a movie. I didn’t mean Maus trumps Schindler’s List (because nothing can really beat Schindler’s list), I was trying to state that if Maus was a written novel, graphic novel and movie, the graphic novel would be the best. And, although, some said that they can’t get passed the fact that the main characters are mice, can’t you relate to the relationships they had? Hiding your grandparents and doing anything and everything possible to keep your family together means nothing? I don’t think you should throw out Maus quite yet without giving it a second chance. Maybe not little kids, but high school or even college students should be able to look past the pig masks and see the deeper meaning.
You gave great examples of how the Holocaust is displayed and taught. Nothing can be compared to someone’s story who actually lived it. It’s great that you had that experience and it’s a shame that the next generation won’t be able to do the same.
It’s also crazy that tragedies like this still happen. The genocide in Rwanda was only 14 years ago.
The movie trailers are amazing and Night is a classic, no arguments there.
Cheers.
I agree with your statement and actually agreed with you when you made the argument in class. While I think our professor did have a valid point it was slightly exaggerated. You looked at four instances of history that had a major impact on your life; while I was reading your post each had a slightly different impact on me. After looking at your first example I found it difficult to relate to only because I did not get to hear Mrs. Olwson speech first hand. However, the two video clips that you posted had a major impact on my opinion of war. As much as I don’t like poetry I find that it has the greatest impact on my visions of war because you can depict the words and phrases into multiple means obviously poetry does not have as large of an impact on you as you did not use it as one of your examples. This is proof that we are all effected by literature in a variety of ways.
The idea that Pictures are worth a thousand words is why I believe that one of the better ways to tell a good war or holocaust story is through the use of graphic novels. This is tre because words sometimes are not enough to portray the true gravity of the story. I think this because if an author writes all the words necesary to describe the situation that they went through they may simply bore there audience or just horrify then into not wanting to read anymore. This is why the idea that pictures substituting for thousands of words make it so much easier for the reader to see the situation the author is trying to portray. Also, a graphic novel will tend to better grasp the reader’s attention and make then feel more connected to the character’s because they are not left to only the words of the author and their imaginations to fill in the blanks.
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