Should decisions made in adverse circumstances "count"? do circumstances change the decisions that Vladek and others in Maus make or would these characters have made similar kinds of decisions anyway?

Decisions made during adverse conditions are usually ones that cary great consequences. They not only count at the time but resonate through future years. Vladek's decisions not only save his life, they also haunt him for the rest of his life. Vladek's hoarding, his treatment of women, and his unhealed emotional wounds reflect his present reality. These characters make these decisions in war time under the most dire circumstances. It is not practical to say that they would have made these same decisions during peace time.