Personal Identity In Marjane Satrapi's Persepolis

Marji has to deal with things earlier than others the same age as her in different countries. As a child, Marji is exposed to the brunt of events going on in her country, especially

Marji asked her parents if she could go, but they declined every time;however, Marji still snuck out and went. Marji and her maid Mehri proceed on with their plans and go. When they arrive, Marji sees first-hand how people are really being treated, and she does not like it. A little while after the demonstration, Marji decides she is going to wear her new jean jacket and new nike shoes. She gets caught and makes up a lie so she will not get into too much trouble. She wanted to express herself a little bit, and show her own style. She comprehends now that she cannot wear what she wants, and she becomes angry and disappointed. Marji is tired of having to be who someone else wants her to be, and always having someone holding her back. Because of everything going on, Marji starts to do everything her parents ask her to, and she starts rebelling. Marji’s school teacher started being rude, so Marji decided she had enough and stands up for herself. She accidently hits the teacher and gets herself expelled. This promotes a big change in Marji, because she seems as if she really does not care. The final event that changes Marji is the bombing in her neighborhood. She thought her house was her safe place, but the bomb was an eye opener to her that she really was not safe anywhere. Some of the events that change Marji are: Uncle Anoosh’s death, the demonstration, the Nike shoes, getting expelled, and the bomb going off.

People grow up in different way, affected by many different things as they grow and mature, during the process people change perspectives and ideals. In the book "Persepolis" by Marjane Satrapi, a middle eastern girl who is coming of age, finds that her environment changes her as the country that she is in goes through an unstable violent state. With the rise of multiple changes, Marji’s family must learn how to adjust to the changing times. While Marji becomes a bystander to the persecution, violence ,and revolution, the main theme of the book is stay true to one’s self and forming one’s true identity through their own will. Marjane Satrapi shows how the quirky, but simple and straightforward communist child in a changing world to a grown young adult who is confused about herself and the world around her.

Marjane’s friendships are few and far between, after the wake of the revolution. In the beginning of the novel, Marjane’s best friend is God and how she mainly identifies herself. This is significant to understanding the depth of Marjane’s thoughts as a child. She is very different from the rest of the kids. This is evident when Marjane’s says when she wants to be a prophet and her classmates say they want to be doctors, or teachers. Growing up in Iran makes it hard for Marjane to express herself and really identify herself. This affects her friendships with children her age. Marjane is very sympathetic for a child her age, and she deeply understands what her country and family has been suffering through. She sat in a bathtub for hours trying to understand how her grandfather felt. Other children her age were not doing things like this. She often talks to God as mentioned before and this is when Marjane can express herself. She cannot do that with other children so she leans on God and identifies with him. As Marjane grows she meets her uncle who be¬comes the light of her life and her new best friend. He tells her stories about his struggles and Marjane begins to identify herself in his stories. In this quote her Marjane is talking to other children her age, she says “ There are lots of heroes in my family, my grandpa was in prison, my uncle Anoosh too: For nine

Marjane Satrapi’s memoir Persepolis is considered a “coming of age” story based on her experiences growing up in Iran during the Islamic Revolution. This graphic novel explores the life she lead in Tehran which encompassed the overthrow of the Shah’s regime, the triumph of the Islamic Revolution and the devastating effects of war with Iraq. Undergoing life with such a chaotic environment, it took Satrapi courage to act and live as her “authentic self” and explore what it meant to her to be authentic. Similar to Aristotle, May and Medinas Persepolis examines the concept of courage, through the view of innocence; through Satrapi’s childhood.

Although Marji begins as an outspoken and confident young girl, she quickly has to adjust to the harsh rules of society. Marji’s first conflict arises when she is forced to wear a veil in school. One frame shows her and all of her classmates playing different kinds of childish games with the veils they were forced to wear. In one corner, a girl is jump roping with a veil, and in another corner, two girls are faking an execution (Satrapi, 3, fr. 5). This is because Marji and her classmates do not understand why they have veils and undermine the authoritative power by playing with them. Although a small event in the novel, this mini-revolt sets a precedent for Marji’s actions in response to the regime's rules as she grows older. Later in the story, she is inspired to join the revolution and make a change after seeing her parents protesting. On one night, an audacious Marji storms into her parents’ room and exclaims, “I want to come with you tomorrow! To demonstrate on the street. I am sick and tired of doing it in the garden. For a revolution to succeed, the entire population must support it” (Satrapi, 16-17). Marji’s eloquent words are that of someone who is willing to sacrifice his/herself to make change in a corrupt system. In return for dealing with such heavy political issues, Marji is passionate about protesting and expressing her disdain for the Iranian government.

Marjane’s escape to Vienna is not an escape at all, as the pressure to conform follows her, only this time not involving the increasingly radical Islamic government. Upon meeting both her roommates and the group that she later calls her friends, there was an instant indication of a future struggle for Marji. With these two groups, not only was there a language barrier between them, but also stark cultural differences between the West and traditionalist Iran. Amid her struggle with the Western culture she says, “The harder I tried to assimilate, the more I had the feeling that I was distancing myself from my culture, betraying my parents and my origins, that I was playing a game by somebody else’s rules” (193). Marji began to develop a sense of identity before she left Tehran, becoming more politically active and holding opinions on current issues other than the ones her teachers and classmates have; however,

The illustration form of the work shows how even though she is away from home, her parent figures played important roles in the ways she was raised that she even feels guilty that she was so fast to change who she was to substitute them for the lack of family. The film does not hone in on how important the component of lack of family is affecting Marji, however, in the book, there is a portrait (194) that contains each member of her family that she believes she has left done by not sticking by her identity. Although parent figures play a huge role in the development of Marji becoming a woman she cannot seem to grasp and internalize the importance of staying true

The first is her physical maturity. She grows from a little girl, to a rebellious teenager, to a slightly less rebellious adult and she discovers her place in the world. The journey of her growing up, however, is not so simple. Growing up in Iran during the 1980’s was tumultuous. Marjane was the daughter of political activists in a politically volatile place.

Marji's role in life changes drastically throughout the novel. In the beginning, as a young child, Marji believes that she is a prophet. As the story progresses and they the revolution continues, Marji begins to feel dismay towards the revolution and towards God. Later in the novel, Marji’s mother also feels sadness. Her former revolutionary spirit is gone and replaced with fear. When Marji’s principal calls the house to complain that Marji disrespected of the teachers, her mother in the past would have been proud, but this time around she fears for her daughter and goes on to explain the things that happen to girls in Iranian prison. Her mother had given up optimism and established that war

After the revolution that was sparked by a group of islamic fundamentalists, the people’s support for western ways of life had to be abandoned. That made Iran a more islamic country with a government that reinforces the word and doctrine of Allah. This affected Marjane because she is a westernized woman and grew up in a westernized environment. The context proves that Marjane felt alienated from her culture and society because it’s not where she belongs. This is proven in the chapter ‘’The Socks’’, where Marjane organizes private parties in which she has fun with other women without respecting the society and its restrictions. It also shows a juxtaposition between her behaviour in public and and her behaviour in private. This shows that even if the society obligates her to act less westernized, she continues to do whatever she likes but privately. This proves again the theme of rebellion, she is a rebellious person since her

A graphic novel consists of both a narrative and its accompanying illustrations, which are capable of providing insight through a collection of images. Marjane Satrapi’s autobiographical novel, Persepolis (2003), is a collection of her comic-strip memoirs, written and illustrated by Satrapi herself. Persepolis tells the story of Marjane’s growing up and coming of age in Iran’s capital, Tehran, during the Islamic Revolution. It is a story filled with noticeable moments, all of which are supported by the artwork Satrapi has decided to include. Further analysis of Satrapi’s artistic decisions reveals her choice to include symbols that often represent Marjane’s emotions. Objects such as mirrors and the use of body language in certain characters,

To begin with, Marji’s lifestyle changed as she grew up in various unique ways. For example, when she

Throughout the entirety of the novel, Marjane Satrapi’s growth as a person seems to be a highlight that is almost as intriguing to track as the plot itself. Her loss of innocence and personal change can be linked to growing up within an environment of unrest and struggle. In regards to this idea, the character of Marjane Satrapi symbolizes a coming of age theme. Her relationships with surrounding characters, and experiences throughout her life heavily influence her perception and who she grows up to be.

In the graphic novel Persepolis, written by Marjane Satrapi, the author tells her personal life story of growing up in Iran during the breakout of the Iraq and Iran War. Her use of black and white comic strips makes her story come to life in an entertaining and attention-grabbing way. Marjane growing up can be examined by using Erik Erikson’s theory of the eight stages of life. Persepolis shows how a young girl can overcome and turn into a woman that has self-love and finds who she is meant to be in life.