Throughout the book, Persepolis, there is this constant theme involving the education system of Iran, which is that the education system revolves around whoever is in charge of the country. The two figure heads that are in charge of the country throughout the book are the shah and the Islamic regime. The Shah was in power for the first part of the book, until he was forced to step down and the Islamic regime took over in his place. There are numerous examples in the book showing how the education in Iran is shaped by those who are in power. The different education systems of the the shah and Islamic regime failed the children of Iran not because they were kaput systems in themselves, but because the change from a secular education to a religious …show more content…
This education is completely based around the teachings of Islam, and it follows the strict rules that of Islam. Some of those rules include that boys and girls are to be taught in different classrooms, and girls are required to wear a veil that covers all of their hair. “The educational system and what is written in school books, at all levels are decadent. Everything needs to be revised to ensure that our children are not led astray from the true path of Islam,” (Satrapi, 2000, p. 73). Also, the Islamic regime required that all the textbooks of the secular schools be burned, and new ones were brought in so that the children of Iran would not become corrupted by western culture. This dramatic 180 degree turn in the Iranian school’s teachings are detrimental for not only Marjane but for the children of Iran …show more content…
The education system in place when the shah was in charge was secular in nature, and the education system implemented by the Islamic regime was incredibly religious and based upon the teachings of Islam. If the students of Iran were not forced to switch from one education system to the other, then each system in their own way would have succeeded. However, since the students were forced to switch education systems, this caused the students to become rebellious. “I think that the reason we were so rebellious was that our generation had known secular schools,” (Satrapi, 2000, p. 98). The students had become accustomed to they ways of the secular schools, that when they were forced to switch to the strict rules of the education system of the Islamic regime, this caused pandemonium and ultimately led to rebellion. This switch is education system was the reason both forms of education ended up not succeeding but failing. Change is sometimes a difficult thing to undertake. Therefore, when you force change upon children who do not fully understand everything that is going on around them, this can cause things to not work like they are suppose to. This is the main reason why the education system of Iran was a failure. The students were forced to go from a secular based educational system to a religious based education system. Individually the education systems of Iran may have succeeded, but
In the novel Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi, Satrapi’s childhood was highly impacted by American culture. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the affect American culture had on how Satrapi viewed the Iranian Revolution.
In the graphic novel, Persepolis, the main character, Marjane, faces many coming of age moments. Each one of these change her in a way that impacts her view on the world around her as her and her family strive for a better life amongst a war that hinders their ability to follow their beliefs. Marjane learns to forgive, experiences pain and suffering, and changes her opinions on God and her own views on religion forever. Marjane’s life has been filled with hard times, but also glorious moments as well.
It is crucial to recognize the critiques of this religious accommodation to fully understand its implications. The states interest in educating every child is a legitimate one as education leads to effective and intellectual participation in the open political system which otherwise would be compromised. Education also ensures that the child becomes a self-reliant and self-sufficient membe...
The most significant similarity that Satrapi shows in persepolis is the similarities of Iran and American schooling. He does this through the main character Marji. The western view that the author challenges is the view that the
First, the Shah, out-of-touch with what his people wanted, became the catalyst for massive xenophobic and anti-Western feelings to spread throughout the nation. By giving up traditional Islamic ideals and becoming sort of a “puppet” for the U.S. and the Western world, the Shah made a mockery of himself and of those traditional Islamic values, which were paramount in Iran. For many years, Iranians wrote letters to the Shah, voicing their discontent with many aspects of his rule — the spread of the Bahá’í Faith, the collapse of Islamic traditions, and the crumbling economy. The Shah, however, did nothing to fix these issues. Instead, he designed a political reformation movement, hoping to silence his opponents, to introduce personal rights for women, and to establish a sense of fiscal equality. This series of reforms, which appeared to be a blatant attempt to Westernize Iran, became known as the “White
The introduction to Persepolis gives a great deal of background information to the unrest in Iran leading up to the Islamic revolution. Iran had been in a state of unrest for “2500 years” (page11). Iran was ruled by foreign nations and exploited by the western world for its rich expanses of oil. In 1951 the prime minister of Iran tried to take back his country’s wealth by nationalizing
In the 1970’s Iran, under Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi was a very centralized military state that maintained a close relationship with the USA. The Shah was notoriously out of touch with working class Iranians as he implemented many controversial economic policies against small business owners that he suspected involved profiteering. Also unrestricted economic expansions in Iran lead to huge government expenditure that became a serious problem when oil prices dropped in the mid 1970’s. This caused many huge government construction projects to halt and the economy to stall after many years of massive profit. Following this was high rates of inflation that affected Iranians buying power and living standards. (Afary, 2012) Under the Shah, political participation was not widely available for all Iranians and it was common for political opposition to be met with harassment, illegal detention, and even torture. These measures were implemented by the Iranian secret police knows as ‘SAVAK’. This totalitarian regime combined with the increasing modernisation of the country paved the way for revolution.
The purpose of this paper is to analyze the effect of an oppressive regime on the child Marjane Satrapi as depicted the graphic novel Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi.
There are many different influences in the world today; a big one that most people in the world face is religion. Religion is an influence that people first encounter during their childhood. They grow and learn to have faith. People’s perspective on religion is affected by their culture, their family and the events they witness during childhood. Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi is the story of a young girl growing up in Iran, during the Islamic Revolution, and the war with Iraq. Throughout the novel religion develops along with the plot, in good and bad ways. In the story Marji loses her faith and it changes who she is, religion also changed her lifestyle by the government putting religion into the law. Religion is a topic that people label as
What is the role of religion in Persepolis? How does religion enhance your understanding of the themes and culture of the novel?
Persepolis 2: The Story of Return is anchored around how Marji is affected by the social injustice that occurred during the Islamic Revolution. Growing up as “a westerner in Iran and an Iranian in the West,” (Satrapi 274) changes and molds her into the young woman she is at the end of her journey. In this second chapter of Satrapis life she moves away from the comfort of Iran and finds a life in Vienna. Marji desires to find her purpose and identity during her brief time here and faces many battles with language barriers, people and herself. Marjis past from Iran haunts her and instills the idea that she needs to make something of herself while in Austria. Finding that Austria took her down a darker path where the light was scarcer and the
There are many times when problems in a country affect one's life. Persepolis by Majarne Satrapi recounts the coming-of-age of a girl during a period of war. Utilizing a graphic novel to illustrate, Marjane recalls the struggles of her family and herself living in warfare. For instance, in Persepolis, Marjane's external conflict result in her internal conflict.
Nowadays, there are many religions that one can choose from. Religion, to some, is a guide line, but to others it’s more like falling in love. In 1979, Iran was in the midst of the Islamic Revolution. During this time, some people held tight to religion while others let it go. Marjane Satrapi wrote Persepolis about her life at that time. At the beginning, Satrapi grasps religion tightly; however, by the end of the book, she seems to let it go. Throughout Persepolis, religion acts like a security blanket and enhances the understanding of the graphic novel’s theme, which is “stay true to yourself.”
Marjane Satrapi in her memoir, “The Complete Persepolis” enlightens readers with the reality of living in Iran, as she tells her journey through her life of becoming a woman during the Islamic Revolution. Iran similar to other countries has made different prescribed roles for their women and men based on their cultures religious and traditional set of laws. Society to them was a depiction of what their people were expected to look, and act like when in public. When trying to understand the importance of gender along with their roles in society, it’s crucial to acknowledge outside factors, for instance things like culture and social class. The characters throughout her memoir illustrate how their
Though the White Revolution’s efforts were made to remove Islamic values, create a secular rule and “westernize” Iran by Shah Muhammad Reza Pahlavi, the people desired a fairer governmental rule immensely influenced by Islam. The Shah’s tight dictatorial rule and military expansion attempts were viewed as threats as well and resulted in the overthrowing of the government to create religious and political change. Although the Iranian Revolution was a religious and political movement that ended an oppressive rule to established a republic and which was fought to maintain Islamic beliefs, it was more a religious movement in that the movement was a result of desires to create a society influenced religiously and politically and that the result was a republic based on Islamic values and law.