Question

what does art spiegelmans choice in portraying the jews as mice and the nazis as cats in maus reveal about his point of view? he sees the jews as the innocent prey and the nazis as the cunning predators. he feels that people with similar nationalities can be depicted by the same animal species. he thinks that animal characters will lessen the emotional charge of the narrative. he hopes to gain empathy for the jews who were forced to turn on each other to survive.

Explanation:

In "Maus", the metaphor of Jews as mice (prey) and Nazis as cats (predators) is a symbolic representation. Mice are often seen as innocent and vulnerable, while cats are predators. This choice of animal - human metaphor directly conveys a power dynamic. It's not about nationalities being depicted by the same species (as the Jews and Nazis are different groups with a predator - prey relationship, not just about nationality - based species depiction). Using animal characters doesn't necessarily lessen the emotional charge (in fact, it can make the horror more palpable in a different way). And it's not about Jews turning on each other (the main focus is the Nazi - Jew predator - prey relationship).

Answer:

He sees the Jews as the innocent prey and the Nazis as the cunning predators.