Persepolis Iranian Revolution

In the Ruins The complete Persepolis is a glamourized depiction of the atrocities occurring during the Iranian Revolution. Most people are never formally educated in modern Middle Eastern history, and they do not know any better than to take this story as the truth, the end all be all, but Marjane Satrapi’s account of the revolution is only one story of many and its not the worst of it. Unfortunately, many people take the first story that they hear as a truth, when it is merely the story of a singular person who cannot speak for the experiences of others involved. There are many perspectives that people overlook because The Complete Persepolis will be the first time they are exposed to the Iranian Revolution. In a way Marjane was looking

Marjane and her family could have fled anytime, they chose to stay. There are many people that could not leave if things got rough, they only had a few options. None of the given options were going to be great, trapped like rats in a cage people had to conform or suffer, join or die. The fact that they were so limited by their circumstances, awfulness or more awfulness, is in my opinion is a tragedy in and of itself. Marjane would often condemn these people for not acting out and doing as they were told, but many people simply wanted to live, even if that meant giving up basic human rights. Marjane had no sympathy for those who did conform, but she was looking down on them for something she did not understand, the fight to survive. Many people probably completely conformed and became a part of the regime because they otherwise would have died. She has never struggled to live and so cannot understand that the only other choice that some people have is death, and she has no right to tell people that its better to die than be oppressed. That is not a decision that you can make for another person, only they should decide what their life is worth. Risking life and limb is difficult; people are quick to judge those that do not risk their lives, but given the same hand of cards they usually make the exact same decision. It is not a bad thing to value

I think it is great that there is a story about the Iranian Revolution from a first-person perspective, most people only learn through articles written by people who have never even been to Iran. I wish that there were many more books like this one, it is a good way to learn about a horrible event that took place not that long ago. It is also easy to read and comprehend, and the format is interesting. I think the illustrations really help drive home some of the main points of the story. The religious journey that the main character went through is really great to see because its so relatable. There are actually a lot of people that have knowingly and unknowingly separated themselves from Muslims, considering them something different, especially with the social and political climate these days. The relatability of the main character is good because it makes it less of a Muslim story and more of a human story. I know of a lot of people that forget that before everything else, we are all