Transitions Used In Maus

Photos By Hannah Parker, "Transitions"

Identifying Transitions Used in Maus

       I am continuing to read Understanding Comics The Invisible Art, by Scott McCloud, and just finished Maus A Survivor’s Tale by Art Spiegelman. In this blog I am to identify at least three out of the six panel transitions that McCloud discusses in his book, and relate them to Maus citing examples.In Understanding Comics The Invisible Art, McCloud explains   the six different panel transitions used in the world of comics:

1.     Moment–to-moment (each frame is moving in time)

2.     Action-to-action (the progression of action!)

3.     Subject-to-subject (stays within a scene or idea, that holds the meaning)

4.     Scene-to-scene (transports reader to a different place, setting in space and time)

5.     Aspect-to-aspect (bypasses time, and sets a wandering eye on various aspects of a place, mood, or idea)  
                                                                            
6.     Non-Sequitur (these panel transitions have NO logical relationships to one another) (McCloud 70-72).                                                                                                Three of the main panel transitions that are clearly apparent and frequent in Spiegelman’s Maus that are: action-to-action, scene-to-scene, and subject-to-subject. I noticed that Spiegelman does mix up these transitions, meaning that he does not use just one or two to move the story along. By having some variety he really makes the story interesting. It also brings a smooth flow.   There are some action-to-action transitions in Maus, for example, when Vladek goes outside to urinate and a guard begins to shoot at him, it transitions from Vladek creeping slowly outside his tent, to an abrupt gunshot coming from straight behind, startling him, and making him run and crawl back into his tent (Spiegelman 62). Another example of action-to-action is in chapter three, “Prisoner of War," when Vladek shoots the moving “tree,” killing a Nazi (Spiegelman 48-49).

"Action Transition"

     Scene-to-scene transitions make their way in Maus when Vladek takes his wife Anja to the sanatorium to get help for her post-partum depression. A few frames show different scenes of locations the main character traveled. Vladek journeyed from his factory in Bielsko to help Anja who lives in Sosnowic to the peaceful far away location of the treatment center. (Spiegelman 31-34)

"Scene-to-scene"

I would have to say that even though Spiegelman uses a diverse range of transitions, he certainly favors the subject-to-subject transition the most. This type occurs on almost every page moving the narrative along. Subject-to-subject transition happens the whole time Art and Vladek are simply interacting with each other, and with Vladek going “in and out” of present time to his recalling his memories from the past. For example, when Art and Vladek are taking a walk and talking about the past, Vladek changes the subject by rummaging through a trashcan to find a wire.  At this point, Art must get him back on track to transition back to his past story. (Spiegelman 116-117).

"Subject-to-subject"

Sources

McCloud, Scott. Understanding Comics The Invisible Art. Harper Collins Publishers. 10 East 53^rd Street, New York, NY 10022, 1994. Print

Spiegelman, Art. Maus: A Survivor’s Tale. Pantheon Books a division of Random House, Inc. Published in New York and Canada, 1992.