Quote 16
“You had to pay Mrs. Motonowa to keep you, right?” “Of course I paid…and well I paid…What you think? Someone will risk their life for nothing?” (I.6.144)
Many Poles had to wrestle with the issue of whether to help the Jews escape the Nazis. Mrs. Motonowa is kind to the Spiegelmans, but she does have a price.
Quote 17
“And now I thought: ‘How amazing it is that a human being reacts the same like this neighbor’s dog.'” (II.3.72)
An ironic statement, given the representation of characters as animals in the text.
Quote 18
“A new tape recorder…Writing things down is just too hard.” (I.4.75)
Art’s use of a tape recorder (and inclusion of photographs) brings up the question of whether there are more accurate ways to represent the reality of the Holocaust. How can a comic compete with a tape recorder or a camera?