Vladeks Quirks and Habits - 1594 Words

Valerie Alvarado Instructor: Darci Cather English 1302-SP2 5-12-14 Vladek’s Reaction to the Holocaust The Holocaust was a traumatizing and depressing time period in history due to the Nazis in the leadership of their dictator Adolf Hitler. The Nazis were a Political Party during World War ΙΙ from 1941 through 1945. Many Jews during this time were discriminated, murdered, and humiliated in front of many other Jews and Germans. â€Å"Six million Jews died in a merciless way at the hands of the Nazis† (Sherbok 1). The Holocaust is an unforgettable period in history that left a scar on many Jews including Vladek. Vladek was a Jew and a survivor of the Holocaust that experienced and witnessed several tragedies during this time. The war was†¦show more content†¦I can pack the fruitcake in with the cereal for you to take home† (Spiegelman 78) this simply characterizes Vladek as being stingy by not wanting to waste or throw anything away. He wanted for Artie to take it home and prefer for it not go to waste because the H olocaust had traumatized and caused him to be more resourceful with food. He was not fed enough during his awful experiences in the Holocaust and Hitler â€Å"ever since Hitler I don’t like to throw out even a crumb† (Spiegelman 78) Vladek explained to Artie. Vladek then decided to go back to the grocery store and return the cereal box that had already been opened and partially eaten from he did not wanted to waste any food and especially throw it away so he thought that returning the cereal will be better than just throwing it away to waste. When he got to the grocery store he got to return the cereal box and got in return â€Å"six dollars worth of new groceries† (Spiegelman 90). The experiences that Vladek went through during Hitter’s invasion definitely affected him by changing his life style because as described before he went back to the grocery store to return something that had already been used and not throw it away this can be described as being resourceful. Vladek was not only resourceful with his food but he was also very careful with his money. Artie would frequently go to his father’sShow MoreRelated Living the Holocaust by the Survivors Essay2801 Words   |  12 Pagespersonality changes would persist even in the rearing of the children of the survivors, to which Melvin Bukiet referred as the â€Å"Second Generation†. (13) The children wondered why their parents were not like other adults in terms of personality, behavioral quirks, obsessions, and having tattooed numbers. (14) As the Second Generation realized why their parents were the way they were, it began to feel a sense of sharing the inheritance and tried to develop coping mechanisms, such as writing and retelling,