In Persepolis, author Marjane Satrapi, Marji as a character, expects readers thoroughlyanalyze her detailed images combined with text that are meant to describe the events in her lifeas a young girl during, and after the Iranian revolution. In doing so, a deeper meaning amongstthe images can be found. The panel in the bottom right corner of page 24 shows Marji’s motheras a child and her mother visiting her father while he was in a very empty and dark prison cell,illuminated only by a single bulb, crawling with spiders. Marji’s mother was excited to see herfather and asked to ride on his back, and her mother objected because she knew her husband wastired, and suffering in pain. The panel in the top left corner of page 25 shows Marji’s mother,again as a child, riding on her father’s back anyway, because he granted her request even thoughhe knew the pain it would bring him.As a young man, Marji’s grandfather was a prince because his father was theoverthrown emperor, and the father of the shah was out to get him. …show more content…
Eventually, Marji’s grandfatherwas crowned Prime Minister, and then became prime minister. Because of his actions, he wasimprisoned many times. As a small girl, Marji’s mother claimed, she feared that every knock onthe door was someone coming to arrest her father, which eventually did occur (Satrapi 24). Thecountry of Iran turning into a republic was a result of the Iranian Revolution which began inattempts to overthrow the shah. Due to this, people began many demonstrations to protest, andbegan retaliation.This time period was hard for Iran as a country. People were in pain and struggling tohold on to their beliefs, much like Marji’s grandfather in the panel in the top left corner of page25 was in pain and struggling to hold on to Marji’s
In Persepolis, Satrapi develops the central idea of Marji and her parents rebelling against the social injustices held by the Shah and the government. This is demonstrated in chapters “ The Trip”, “The Passport”, and “Kim Wilde”. Early in the revolution, females were forced to cover themselves up. They were told to wear their veils because it didn’t show a sign of western American style or sexual
Persepolis is a inspirational story written by Marjane Satrapi in the perspective of a young girl’s life during a powerful, historical moment in Iran. The Islamic Revolution was a life-changing moment that impacted her view on the world around her and her innocence shaping her into the woman she is today. Not many people understand what it feels like to feel pain, hurt and abandonment as a child from major and minor things. The author writes this story and decides for it to be a graphic novel to allow the not only young readers, but also for those who do not understand what happens everyday in the world they live in. Satrapi uses all rhetorical stances, ethos, pathos, and logos to show problems, purpose and emotions.
Persepolis is a graphic novel depicting the life of author Marjane Satrapi’s life throughout the Islamic revolution, starting from her childhood. At one point in the story, the Shah of Iran has left the country, and Marjane’s parents think that they will have new freedoms. Later, however, the country is bombed and fundamentalists occupy the United States embassy. After these events, Marjane is ultimately forced to leave the country without her parents to live in Europe. This was foreshadowed in arguably the most significant panel in Persepolis, the 7th panel on page 43. It features Marjane and her parents, sitting in the family’s living room, the news on a television in the background. They are discussing the fact that the Shah recently left Iran to live in Egypt. Around the panel’s frame is a serpent-like creature. In this panel, Marjane Satrapi uses the frame, and contrasting facial expressions and dialogue to show that the Shah is not the only problem in Iran, foreshadowing the unexpected events of unrest that fill the rest of the story.
This is much bigger than just Marji life it’s the entire lifestyle in Iran. Marji explores the transition with references to torture to human rights when she shows it being done in society through media and images. In the novel, the author could be visible the struggles that the main character Marji in socialism is true between the world of Iran’s such as the social classes, Morality, freedom and
In Persepolis, Marjane Satrapi’s childhood experiences allow her to demonstrate the cultural changes that occurred in post-revolutionary Iran, as well as those perpetrated by western culture. In Persepolis, western culture plays a major role in the author’s attempt to dispel the
“Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved.” This quote by Helen Keller sums up the book Persepolis perfectly. Margi went through many hardships but in the end it strengthened her character and she was able to embrace the world in a better way. Margi is like a baby. The first time they try and take their first steps they topple over in a few seconds but each time they fall they learn and soon enough they are running as happily as can be. The events Margi experiences throughout the graphic novel Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi helps her be able to deal with life`s hardship in .
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.
Due to the serious tensions looming in the air, many people would think it is strictly forbidden to laugh a little or have fun in Iran. The constant political instability makes it seem like the citizens live like robots under extreme oppression. However, in Marjane Satrapi’s biography, Persepolis, she gives an inside look at her experiences growing up in Iran and adds comic relief throughout the novel. As the main character, Marjane, evolves from an innocent girl into a mature woman, Satrapi adds bits of comic relief to highlight her typical personality while living in the midst of an oppressive society.
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
When it comes to culture, different views can cause major conflicts, and these said conflicts occur in the novel Persepolis. The book is a memoir about Marjane Satrapi, also known as Marji, growing up in Iran under the Shah’s rule and the Islamic rule. Even with the many different cultures in Iran, she stuck up for what she believed in and rebelled against the things she thought were wrong. In Persepolis, Marjane’s growth is affected by various aspects of culture including religion, government, and social organization.
Iran’s society became more fundamentalist, which made Marji more disillusioned of her religion. At the beginning of the story, when the westernized dictator Shah governs Iran, Marji defines herself as a “very religious” (6) person, although she and her family think of themselves as being “very modern and Avant-Garde”(6). Religion, and its many stories and traditions perspectives allowed Marji to think of herself as “the last prophet”. Thinking of herself as a prophet somehow made her to escape to an imaginary religious glory where there were not violent atrocities. But, ironically, that religious imaginary boundary was only a façade that blocked her to see the violent reality. However, in the story “The Sheep” she began to see the cruel reality. In the story “The Sheep” Marji’s uncle Anoosh got executed by the so-called “Divine Justice”. Although the
Pictures are worth a thousand words, as the saying goes, making graphic novels powerful works of art. A prime example is Marjane Satrapi’s Persepolis, the memoir of Satrapi’s childhood, which took place during the Iranian Revolution. Satrapi uses powerful imagery in her novel to show the war through a child’s eye view. A rather heartbreaking panel is on page 15, in the middle of the bottom row.
Throughout Persepolis, Marjane Satrapi displays the vital role that the women around her have in developing her character and becoming the woman she is today. Women such as her mother, her grandmother, her school teachers, the maid, the neighbors, and even the guardians of the revolution influenced Marjane and caused her to develop into an independent, educated, and ambitious woman. Throughout the novel, Marjane never completely conforms or lets go of her roots, this is primarily due to the women who have influenced her. Marjane’s mother was one of the most influential people in her life, her mother taught her to be strong and independent. By introducing her mother through the story of her mother getting photographed at a demonstration, Marjane presents her mother as being independent and rebellious (Satrapi 5).
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
Thus, it is crucial that she effectively communicate this humanness of Iran to the literary audience in America. Since the literary devices in a work are needed to correctly convey a message, she found it necessary to include these and manipulate them in her favor. Satrapi uses the innocence of a child along with morals in her pictures and a relation of cultures to effectively communicate her message. It is necessary to examine how she manipulates such literary devices in order to gain a full understanding of the text. To begin with, Satrapi writes Persepolis from a child’s point of view.