Discuss the irony of the Spiegelman's Dilemma in chapter six "Mouse Trap"

War effects everyone. Spiegelman's wonderful recounting of
the Holocaust via his Pulitzer Prize winning graphic novel are certainly a testament to
that idea. As you encounter Vladek--who has his fair share of foibles--his personality
quirks are all for a reason: The Holocaust.

The chapter
entitled "Mouse Trap" is all about being 'imprisoned' again, despite surviving the
Holocaust. And, to understand this chapter you need some background on Vladek, who is
figuratively holding Mala and Artie hostage in their present
world.

Vladek is amazing in that he's a survivor--both
literally and figuratively--his knowledge of languages and skills as a craftsman gained
him privileges and extra food while in the concentration camps. Equally, he’s capable,
quick, ingenious and courageous (some would argue, even heroic), sharp-witted and
pragmatic. In the previous chapters I would also argue that he's a schemer (trickster)
but never at other’s expense; he never resorts to exploitation. Though Vladek had
opportunities, he never deprived others of their chance to survive. Vladek lived by a
strong moral code despite almost insurmountable odds. But, this behavior comes at a
considerable price.

Given what Vladek, Mala and others
experienced (pre and post Holocaust), Vladek's quirks should be a
mere annoyance. Spiegelman's focus is on the chaotic, traumatic encounter with parental
and social authority and he plays with this in all chapters because
everyone was profoundly affected by the
Holocaust.

 As you see in Vladek, Mala and even Anja's
short stay on the page, typical survivors were incapable of connecting with their
children because of an unresolved grief over lost ones, survivor's guilt or flatness of
affect (or emotion). Hence, Vladek does not see his son’s pain--or Mala's--only his. By
the same token, he doesn't see that his behavior is 'different' and he certainly doesn't
understand who/what he hurts by the choices he makes.

 So
really, they're all still 'trapped'. The memories of their struggle during the Holocaust
have bled over into their new lives and those memories won't fade because they're too
strong. Think, too, on the places Vladek and Anja hid to survive. Surrounded by rats, in
a putrid garbage, a hole in the ground and fed pig slop. All of this combined to be a
physical trap so the title is fitting here because it's the description of Vladek's
attempt to escape a real mousetrap (the concentration
camps).

The real irony, though, is the purposeful burning
of Anja's diary. Art has to reconstruct the narrative, although it's a Jewish tradition
to tell familial and communal history from parent to child. The transmission of stories
is a means of recalling the past and forging connections with younger generations, which
are the essence to community survival. So, burning Anja’s diary was Vladek's attempt to
burn the memories (her words went up in smoke, like the lives to which those words would
have been a testament). Spiegelman's struggle is using oral history as a
testimony.