Maus Background Research

Background research to help you gain a more in-depth understanding of the historical context of Art Spiegelman's graphic novel, Maus. 

At the end of each topic, the "On the book cart" section points out some titles from our book cart that might be most helpful. 

**Citing a book in MLA 9 is really easy: Author lastname, Firstname. Title. Publisher, Year.**

DON'T FORGET TO PUT PARENTHETICAL CITATIONS ON YOUR SLIDES! Parentheticals should have the author's name: (Douillard) or the page title if no author given ("Voyage of the St. Louis")

All Topics

• Holocaust Timeline : A really extensive timeline from the Florida Center for Instructional Technology. Click on the hyperlinks for a detailed timeline of each period.
• Facing History and Ourselves

This Bay Area educational organization focuses on the teaching of the most difficult periods of history.

• U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum

  The United States' museum dedicated to the Holocaust is in Washington, D.C. and has amazing resources for learning about the Holocaust.

• World War II (History Channel)

  History Channel

• World War II (USHMM)

• World War II (WWII Museum New Orleans)

• World War II: Defeat of Axis Powers (Britannica)

• On the book cart: Check out Voices and Visions; The Holocaust: The World and the Jews; Moral Responsibility in the Holocaust; History in Dispute: The Holocaust; Remembering the Holocaust

Anti-Semitic Stereotypes (or antisemitism)

Facing History 

U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum: Anti-semitism

History channel, anti-semitism

Attempt at creating an international definition of antisemitism

Anti-semitism throughout history (Anti-Defamation League)

 

"Degenerate Art" and literature: Art and literature that was censored or destroyed by the Nazis

• U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum: Degenerate Art
• Facing History: Degenerate Art
• Nazi Book Burning (USHMM)
• Degenerate Art (Florida Center for Instructional Technology)
• Degenerate Art (SF MOMA)
• Why Hitler Hated Modernism (BBC)

Nazi Expansion in Europe

• Nazification of Germany 1933-1939 (Florida Center for Instructional Technology)

• See the section on the left called "Rise to Power"

• Rise of Hitler and Nazi Party (USHMM)

• Hitler (Biography in Context database)

  If you have a public library card, you're lucky because you have access to this amazing biographical database that includes tons of articles, websites, e-books, videos, interviews, etc. about pretty much every famous person you can think of. It also provides citations.

  If you don't have a public library card, sign up for an e-card at this link 

• Hungarian Politics WWII

  From History channel

• Hungarian Politics WWII

  An interesting Smithsonian magazine article on the modern legacy of Hungary's role in the Holocaust.

• Hungarian Politics WWII (USHMM)

• On the book cart: Check out Forever Outsiders; Smoke to Flame; The Blaze Engulfs; The Holocaust: The World and the Jews

Groups targeted during the Holocaust

 

• Groups Targeted During the Holocaust (USHMM page 2)

• Groups Targeted During the Holocaust (USHMM)

• Non-Jewish Victims (Yad Vashem)--Yad Vashem is the Holocaust Remembrance Center in Jerusalem, Israel.

• Victims of the Holocaust (Florida Center for Instructional Technology)

• On the book cart: Check out Branded by the Pink Triangle

Ghettos During the Holocaust

• Ghettos (USHMM)

• Timeline of the ghettos (Florida Center for Instructional Technology)

• Ghettos and Camps (this resource from the Holocaust Center for Humanity in Seattle includes video clips from survivors about life in the ghettos. Let Ms. McAuley know if you need to borrow headphones!)

• Ghettos (Yad Vashem)

  Yad Vashem is the Holocaust Remembrance Center in Jerusalem, Israel. Make sure you click on the names of specific ghettos (ie; "Warsaw Ghetto") on the left-hand toolbar for more information).

• Ghettos and Deportation (from a British Holocaust memorial organization)

• Daily Life in the Warsaw Ghetto (British Imperial War Museum)

• Art of the Ghettos and Camps (Florida Center for Instructional Technology)

• On the book cart: Check out Life in the Nazi Ghettos; The Holocaust: The World and the Jews

Resistance

• Jewish partisans (USHMM)
• Jewish partisans (Britannica)
• Jewish partisans (Facing History)
• Jewish Partisan Educational Foundation

• Resistance

• Resisters (Florida Center for Instructional Technology)

• Resistance timeline (Florida Center for Instructional Technology)

• Warsaw Ghetto Uprising

• Resistance in camps

• 1944 Prisoner Revolt at Auschwitz

Living Conditions in Concentration Camps, Liberation of Concentration Camps

• Concentration Camps (Auschwitz-Birkenau museum)

• Concentration Camps (Yad Vashem)

• Yad Vashem is the Holocaust Remembrance Center in Jerusalem, Israel. Make sure you click on the sub-categories (ie; "Daily Life in the Camps") on the left-hand toolbar for more information).

• Ghettos and Camps (this resource from the Holocaust Center for Humanity in Seattle includes video clips from survivors about life in the ghettos. Let Ms. McAuley know if you need to borrow headphones!)

• Timeline of the camps (Florida Center for Instructional Technology)

• Timeline of Liberation (Florida Center for Instructional Technology)

• Liberation of the Concentration Camps (Britain's Imperial War Museum)

• On the book cart: Check out The Holocaust: The World and the Jews; Occupation and Resistance; Living and Dying in Nazi Concentration Camps; Beyond Courage; The Bielski Brothers

Who knew what about Holocaust atrocities (internationally, in occupied countries, in Germany, etc.)

What Did The World Know? (Facing History)--also click "next reading" at the bottom, the next few pages are really helpful

"It's Not That The Story Was Buried" (TIME magazine, re: what America knew)

Americans and the Holocaust (USHMM)

"Early Warnings: How American Journalists Reported the Rise of Hitler" (Atlantic magazine)--you need to be logged in w/ your school Google account to view

Voyage of the Saint Louis (USHMM)

Voyage of the Saint Louis (Facing History)

Voyage of the Saint Louis (History channel)

Voyage of the Saint Louis (Britannica)

World Responses to the Holocaust (Facing History)

Smithsonian magazine--a really interesting article about ordinary Americans like you helping researchers find documents about what Americans knew at the time!

• On the book cart: Check out The Holocaust: The World and the Jews; see also books listed under "All Topics" at top of this page

Nuremberg trials

Nuremberg Trials (Britannica)

• Nuremberg Trials (UMKC)

  The "Famous Trials" site is written and managed by a law professor from the University of Missouri, Kansas City, school of law.

• Nuremberg Trials (USHMM)

• Nuremberg Trials primary sources (Library of Congress)

  Documents from the actual trials

• "Aftermath" timeline (Florida Center for Instructional Technology)

• On the book cart: Check out The Nuremberg Trials, Crimes Against Humanity, The Nazi Hunters, The Trial of Adolf Eichmann

Survivor Guilt

Brief definition

‘I feel guilty I survived;’ youngest Schindler’s list Holocaust survivor tells United Nations her story

Survivors' guilt (Illinois State)

Survivors' long-term psychological impacts (APA)

Long-term psychological impacts of the Holocaust (this is by a 3rd year History student at UCSB but is well cited)