How we cite our quotes: (Part.Chapter.Page Number). Page numbers refer to The Complete Maus.
Quote #7
“Always Artie is nervous – so like his mother – she also was nervous.” (II.1.10)
Art’s similarity to his mother in temperament suggests that he is continuing her work. We may have lost Anja’s diaries, but Art, like Anja, wants to write down and record the Holocaust.
Quote #8
“It’s so claustrophobic being around Vladek. He straightens everything you touch – he’s so anxious.” (II.1.12)
It’s ironic that Vladek, in Quote #7, talks about how “nervous” Art is, when Vladek himself is so neurotic.
Quote #9
“Sometimes I just don’t feel like a functioning adult. I can’t believe I’m going to be a father in a couple of months. My father’s ghost still hangs over me.” (II.2.33)
Tellingly, Art depicts himself at this point as a small, child-sized mouse. He needs to come to terms with his relationship with his father in order to come into his own as an adult.