Specifically, the episode regarding the hitchhiker belongs in and “fits in” with the overall narrative found in Maus due to the fact that Vladek’s behavior seemingly mirrors the behavior of non-Jewish individuals during the Holocaust. When Francoise picked up the hitchhiker, Vladek was outraged that his daughter-in-law allowed an African American in the car, appearing to be both suspicious of and disgusted with the seemingly harmless man. Similarly enough, the non-Jewish individuals in Germany and Poland felt the same way about Jewish people during World War II, with many possessing the mindset that Jews were “disgusting” and not to be trusted. This shows that this practice of prejudice towards other groups of people repeats itself throughout
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When it comes down to it, prejudice is prejudice no matter how you justify it, and Vladek’s prejudice of African Americans is comparable to the prejudice against Jewish individuals during the Holocaust. In addition, Vladek is personally aware of the drastic measures that can result from this practice of prejudice, but he chooses to partake in it anyway. Once again, Vladek is rather hypocritical due to the fact that he believes that the Nazi’s prejudice against Jews was uncalled for. However, he also feels that his viewpoints regarding African Americans is justified because he “knows” what they’re like, making generalizations much like the Nazis did towards Jews, again showing that he was “just as bad” as the Nazis. Furthermore, as mentioned previously, this scene shows that there will always be a group of people who are deemed to be “lesser” or inferior to others. This practice, although disheartening, is a fundamental problem found in human nature—we always have to divide ourselves into “superior” and “inferior” groups. Much like how the Nazis deemed themselves and Aryans as “superior” and Jews as “inferior,” Vladek himself argued that African Americans were of a lower “class” than white individuals, which shows that history will continue to repeat itself in various ways.
When it comes down to it, prejudice is prejudice no matter how you justify it, and Vladek’s prejudice of African Americans is comparable to the prejudice against Jewish individuals during the Holocaust. In addition, Vladek is personally aware of the drastic measures that can result from this practice of prejudice, but he chooses to partake in it anyway. Once again, Vladek is rather hypocritical due to the fact that he believes that the Nazi’s prejudice against Jews was uncalled for. However, he also feels that his viewpoints regarding African Americans is justified because he “knows” what they’re like, making generalizations much like the Nazis did towards Jews, again showing that he was “just as bad” as the Nazis. Furthermore, as mentioned previously, this scene shows that there will always be a group of people who are deemed to be “lesser” or inferior to others. This practice, although disheartening, is a fundamental problem found in human nature—we always have to divide ourselves into “superior” and “inferior” groups. Much like how the Nazis deemed themselves and Aryans as “superior” and Jews as “inferior,” Vladek himself argued that African Americans were of a lower “class” than white individuals, which shows that history will continue to repeat itself in various ways.