In the telling of a story, which events are spoken and which are left unspoken may be considered an action of censorship, whether conscious or unconscious, on the part of the narrator. This "primary censorship" results in a narrative which accentuates the events that the narrator feels to be important while squelching those which are not felt to be "important to the story." Art Spiegelman elucidates the nature of this process by including it in his story.

Vladek: But this what I just told you about -- about Lucia and so -- I don’t want you should write this in your book.

Art: What? Why not?

Vladek: It has nothing to do with Hitler, with the Holocaust. (23)

This quote serves as a very obvious example of a process which occurs more often on a subtle, nearly undetectable level. Many events, which a narrator feels are not important to the story, are often forgotten and thus remain untold. Hence, one might consider Spiegelman’s inclusion of this overt censorship on the part of his father as a caveat, reminding the reader that Maus is based upon a single man’s recollection of the Holocaust, and that many names, places, and events might have selectively, though subconsciously, been forgotten.

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