June 10 2011
Artist Statement
I chose the Libyan protests as my current event, and I did this in order to draw a connection between Adolf Hitler and Muammar Gaddafi, as they are both that awful mix between psychotic and powerful.
With this piece, I tried to say that totalitarian governments only lead to destruction. The heartlessness of the antagonist and the hope brought on by the absence of fear are tactics I used in this piece, and I hope to spread the message that powerful leaders with the wrong intentions are harmful not only to the place they lead, but to the world.
Just like many of my previous works, this is humorous and drawn in a mediocre way. I am inspired by pictures I have seen of Muammar Gaddafi and Libyan soldiers, along with the day-to-day updates on the Libyan protests and the footage of Hitler’s speeches. Other influences include Theodore Geisel, Kate Beaton, and Charlie Chaplin’s 1940 film The Great Dictator.
Daily Blog: Maus - Day 18
“Some people feel the rain, others just get wet.”
- Bob Dylan
Bobby D is trying to say that some people take minuscule things more seriously than other people do. I could apply this quote to my life by not getting upset over the little things.
Inspirational Quote:
“Flying is learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss.”
- Douglas Adams
Daily Blog: Maus - Day 17
What did you already know, from what you read?
I knew about when Hitler came to power, the fact that he hated Jews and loved blond-haired blue-eyed men, and that the Nazi youth were in the SS.
How can you connect this reading to what we learned at the Museum of Tolerance?
Both the reading and the museum tour dealt with the suffering that the Jews went through during WWII, except this is more from a large overview, while the MOT’s POV was through the eyes of the people that suffered through the concentration camps.
What strikes you the most about this reading?
I continue to be amazed at what a great leader Hitler was. If only he wasn’t an anti-semitic pile of hypocrisy and imagined stereotypes.
Daily Blog: Maus - Day 16
“Lili Marlene is easily the most popular war song ever. Its theme of dreaming for one’s lover is universal. Why is the song so popular? The last word goes to Lale Anderson : “Can the wind explain why it became a storm?”
What does the last part of this quote mean?
That there is a bigger outside force affecting people (or things) that don’t mean to do any harm.
Why do you think this song became so popular among soldiers?
Because they all felt the same way. Every single one of those skinny teenage soldiers had someone back home that they missed and probably knew that they would never see again.
How was it used for propaganda if both sides used and liked the song?
It was used as incentive to fight and not die so you can go home to see your girlfriend and family and friends.
What did this song make you think of?
All Quiet on the Western Front. Everyone in that war was a scared teen or twentysomething living in terrible conditions and desperately missing home, but the one difference is that when the soldiers in WWII stopped fighting, they wouldn’t have a home or a family to return to.
How does it make you feel?
Nostalgic for a feeling I never had.
Daily Blog: Maus - Day 15
Write 3 of your best qualities
My charming smile
My blatant sarcasm
I’ve never done anything unique
Person 1 (Ryan):
Good martial artist
Fast reader
I can’t think of anything that makes me unique
Person 2 (Ben):
Respectful
Good friend
Selfless
Person 3 (Chris):
Creative
Physically active
Responsible
Why are we doing this?
To get to know the other people we sit next to in class.
Artist Statement Content
ONE PARAGRAPH
Why you have created the work and what is its history?
I have created this work to draw a connection between Adolf Hitler and Muammar Gaddafi.
Your overall vision— what are you trying to say in the work?
I am trying to say that totalitarian governments only lead to destruction.
How does your current work relate to your previous work?
Just like many of my previous works, this is satirical and drawn in a mediocre way.
What influences your work?
My work is influenced by Theodore Geisel, Kate Beaton, and Charlie Chaplin’s 1940 film The Great Dictator.
What is your inspiration for your images?
I am inspired by pictures I have seen of Muammar Gaddafi and Libyan soldiers.
How does this work fit into a series or larger body of work?
Historical satire is a large category that this comic could easily fit into.
Create a list of words and phrases that describe your chosen themes, your artistic values, creation process, and influences (i.e. experiences, dreams). Draw from your answers from the previous step.
Ruler, protests, war, killing, civilians, innocent, cruel, insecure, violent, unreasonable, drawing, marker, political cartoon, humor, tongue-in-cheek
Daily Blog: Maus - Day 14
2. a. The Battle of El Alamein significantly weakened Axis power in North Africa.
b. After the Battle of El Alamein, British troops moved north to Italy and conquered the island, then moved onto the mainland.
3. a. After months of fighting and about a million casualties on the Soviet side, Germany retreated to the west.
b. Hitler didn’t back out when his soldiers were sick, starving and unarmed, and Stalin didn’t give up when the city with his namesake was completely obliterated. If Hitler had backed out, there would be approximately 90,000 more German grandparents on this earth, and if Stalin had backed out, the Soviet Union would be a desolate wasteland to this day.
4. a. The Battle of Coral Sea.
b. If Japanese troops were to have won, American troops would’ve lost a key military base.
Daily Blog: Maus - Day 12
MUSEUM OF TOLERANCE REFLECTION:
What was the most powerful moment / aspect of the museum tour yesterday?
When we were in the gas chambers.
Describe what made it powerful.
We were actually in a place that looked like where thousands of Jewish people were killed. It was cold and dark and sad.
How did it make you feel? Why did it make you feel this way?
There was that eerie feeling I usually get when thinking about or seeing images of the past, plus there was that even more eerie feeling I usually get when thinking about The Holocaust and how something so terrible actually happened only 70 years ago.
What did you question during the tour?
Why didn’t the US loosen up the immigration policies when people were trying to flee their Nazi occupied countries?
What did you take from this experience that applies to your every day life?
You should always take it to be your responsibility to defend groups or people that are being discriminated against.
Daily Blog: Maus - Day 9
What do you notice about the way he speaks?
It’s very “heated” and has a certain rhythm to it, like a televangelist (how ironic). Also, he paused for a solid minute at the beginning, to the point where the thousands of eager Nazis were dead quiet.
What is interesting about his gestures and facial expressions?
He hits the point in a nearly literal way with his hand, and his stern face makes what he is saying seem extremely important.
How is he sensitive to his audience?
He reminds them that he fought with them and that he is one of them. He also acknowledges that Germany is in deep economic trouble and needs saving.
What strikes you about his words?
It is very essentially a political campaign, but with a hauntingly anti-semitic core.
List some main points he uses to justify his actions.
The country is in trouble, Germany is not to blame for the results of the Treaty of Versailles.
Which category (argument, persuasion, or propaganda) do you think Hitler’s speech falls under?
Persuasion and propaganda are both categories that this speech could fall under.
Why?
This is a speech, so he isn’t arguing with any outside force. He is also being quite persuasive when he talks about his ideas and thoughts being superior to the alternative.
Short Essay 2
Adolf Hitler gave many speeches throughout the 30s and 40s persuading economically troubled Germans to join and support the ideas of his National Socialist German Workers Party. The speeches he gave were terrifyingly persuasive, and the techniques he used to gain followers are precise and well executed.
Hitler kept audiences interested in what he had to say the entire time he was on the stage. After Goebbels got everyone excited for their leader to speak, Hitler stood in front of the crowd quietly for no less than a minute. The crowd joined his silence, and you could almost hear them sit on the edge of their seats. Once he did start to talk, it was with a cadence and sensitivity that almost commanded a loud cheer from the Nazis he was speaking to. This rhythm he spoke in is what made the speech so, for lack of a better word, creepy. It seemed like a normal political campaign, but with a haunting, anti-semitic core.
Adolf Hitler was able to draw people in with his promises of national success and “payback” to those who allegedly had done a disservice to Germany. His words were not the truth, but he spoke them as if they were the gospel. Hitler could persuade a nation 10 minutes at a time with lies and cleverly masked hatred. Now that’s what I call propaganda.
Daily Blog: Maus - Day 11
2.
a. Germany, Italy, and Japan were the Axis Powers.
b. Hitler sought allies in the late 1930s in order to have less obstacles keeping him from taking over countries.
c. I think he wanted to not be on the bad side of the strongest military force in Europe. France and Britain didn’t have a golden history of effectively interfering with Germany, and Stalin knew that the pattern of pacifism and defeat would repeat itself.
3.
a. Germany’s attack of Poland on the 1st of September 1939.
b. Germany successfully took over France within two months [Insert French joke here], but Britain and the Soviet Union didn’t get taken over. Britain was armed with radar, a new technology that helped them seek out distant threats. Even after the London Blitz, it was Germany who backed down.
New York Times:
24 September 2009 - After being introduced to the General Assembly as the “leader of the revolution, the president of the African Union, the king of kings of Africa,” [1] Colonel Gaddafi shatters protocol by giving a rambling speech that goes on for 90 minutes instead of the 15 minutes he is allotted [2].
BBC News:
In his first major speech since unrest began last week, Col Gaddafi said the whole world looked up to Libya and that protests were “serving the devil” [1].
He urged his supporters to go out and attack the “cockroaches” demonstrating against his rule [2].
CNN:
In Tripoli, another large pro-Gadhafi demonstration was held Sunday in the Libyan capital [1]. A witness said police were searching cars to try to prevent anti-Gadhafi protesters from coming out on the streets [2].
QCQ: Maus Chapter 5 (Book 2)
Quote: “Anja must have been a saint! No wonder she killed herself,” (Spiegelman 282).
Comment: That is a terribly insensitive thing to say. Anja was probably going through some mentally terrible things up until her suicide, and the fault shouldn’t be put on Vladek. Anja and Vladek loved each other, but there is only a certain amount of emotional turmoil she could’ve survived from losing so much of her family.
Question: How many languages does Mala know?
Daily Blog: Maus - Day 10
SOCRIATIC SEMINAR
‘The story of Maus could only have been told as a graphic novel.’ Do you agree?
Yes. Without the images, the way in which the story is narrated would’ve been infinitely confusing. It jumps from past to present and from Art to Vladek so quickly and often that there would be no way to get the context across merely using text.
‘Spiegelman’s masterful execution of multiple, intricately linked levels or frames allows for meaning to flow back and forth freely between different times and places.’ Discuss.
Sometimes, 80s Vladek would stand in front of the frames depicting his time in 1940s Europe, making it seem like he was interrupting a movie that you’re in the middle of watching. Making a clear separation between his past and his present helped to keep those two different Other overlapping frames tended to portray motion in a certain event. This helped to create a more in-the-moment feel.
