Point Of View In Persepolis By Marjane Satrapi

“People say you don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone. Truth is, you knew what you had, you just never thought you’d lose it – Anonymous” (Quotes). Marjane Satrapi was born to a wealthy family and had parents who adored her. She seemed to have everything, and even as the war raged on, her family still managed to have something more than the next family. In spite of their good fortune, the war was taking a toll on the family and it was decided that Marjane would be sent to Austria. Thus leaving everything Marjane loved behind, leaving her to fend in the darkness of the unknown. In Marjane Satrapi's Persepolis, Marjane starts off as a rebel, though naïve at the same time, to an attentive but scared girl in order to show how the war has triggered Marjane's reality to crash down, clarifying the world around her.

Given that western clothes and icons were outlawed in conservative Iran, Marjane’s dressing up in jeans, denim jacket, and Nike shoes is an attempt to express her modern outlooks, Satrapi conveys the importance throughout the text reinforcing the conflict between Eastern values and Western values. In this scene, Satrapi embraces both cultures. She wears modern with a Michael Jackson button and Nike, and says ‘of course, my headscarf’. This displays Satrapi’s multiple personal identities: following middle eastern customs while sharing western values. A portrait image of Marjane is illustrated to show that she is proud of who she is and her posture and body language of her standing tall like she wants to show off her personality. But this doesn’t last long when she meets two guardians of the revolution that arrest women who are improperly arrested. When Marjane is caught, expressionism is used when Marjane is bawling her eyes out. The eyes look ghost-like representing the whole idea swapping personalities so that she could fit the government's likings. Marjane is not being able to fully express herself by wearing the clothes she wanted, doing her hair how she wanted, or listening to the music she wanted. From a young age is prevented Marjane from finding her identity and making her feel trapped. The revolution brought back Islamic ideals and customs, which were welcomed initially but soon became overbearing and restrictive and eventually totalitarian.

Throughout the Iranian Revolution, many events and changes took place that largely affected the views of Iranians by other nations. The graphic novel, The Complete Persepolis, written by Marjane Satrapi (Satrapi, 2003), conveys many of these events and changes through the eyes of a child growing up in the 1980s in Iran. Satrapi’s main purpose for this book is to describe how the Iranian government was corrupt, causing foreign nations to have a tainted view of all Iranian citizens. The Complete Persepolis does so by presenting major events and changes in a manner that is directed towards audiences that are willing to have an open mind about ethnicity and false stereotypes, and an audience that is young and can relate to the “coming of age” aspect of this novel. By exhibiting a credible first hand account of how Satrapi and many others were affected by the events that took place during the Iranian Revolution, The Complete Persepolis can effectively persuade a reader to eliminate the “Islamic extremist” stereotype that the corrupt Islamic Republic gave all Iranian citizens.

On pages 3 and 4, Marjane gives us the years for, when the revolution began, when children were required to wear a veil and her date of birth. The dates, enable the reader to get a sense the time period and the historical background of Iran. Timelines are imperative to understanding her life story. Next, Satrapi demonstrates pathos through illustrations and the speech bubbles. The emotions of the characters can be shown through their facial expressions and actions they take.

Rebelling has been a part of many people’s lives whether people try to or not, but not acts of rebellion are the same. In Iran, the Iranian people rebel against the Ayatollah in many minor and subtle ways. These small acts of rebellion could result in imprisonment or even death. In Persepolis, by Marjane Satrapi, the people of Iran bravely protest against the Islamic government in many subtle ways which show their determination to risk everything and fight for not only what the believe in, but also their country.

Marjane Satrapi’s early experiences have helped to form a unique perspective acknowledged throughout Persepolis. Throughout the novel, Satrapi uses graphic images to allow her readers to visualize various dramatic events that she (once) witnessed. Informal diction and simple graphics force her audience to perceive Persepolis from the same child-like perspective the author (once) had. More so, special attention is drawn to contrasting colors as a symbol of (internal) conflict. The clash between black and white graphics represents a much deeper meaning regarding Satrapi’s faith and understanding. Such a symbol of conflict enables the readers to empathize

By allowing the reader to form their own perspective it “makes the reader reconsider the assumptions…[of the] so-called other” by giving the reader the freedom to perceive the events of the revolution as they wish and not reconsider the way that they once understood the people of the east to be (Darda 34). Satrapi is using her experience and graphic novels to show what her experience as a child was, she does not claim at any point to be telling the entire story of the revolution she is merely introducing a new perspective which up until that point had not been seen in the western countries.

In the comic novel, Persepolis, the reader read about the Islamic Revolution from the perspective of a child. The Islamic Revolution took place during 1979, which brought sudden change to the people of Iran; the bilingual schools, girls boys were separated, and girls were required to wear veils. The revolution brought various changes, but it also brought violence between the authorities and the Iranian people. The author, Marjane Satrapi grew up during the era of the Islamic Revolution. As she grew up she wanted to become a prophet, so that she could bring change to the world.

“They whipped me with thick electric cables so much that this looks like anything but a foot. Not to mention putting out their cigarettes on our backs and thighs. ”(page 50-51) That’s how life was like in Iran during the revolution if you didn’t obey the laws. The book Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi is mainly about culture. Culture is the social behavior and norms found in human societies.

In the graphic novel, Persepolis, Marjane Satrapi describes her experience growing up in Iran following the Islamic revolution. The attached scrap, titled “the veil,” illustrates Satrapi, age 10, in the year 1980, when the veil became mandatory. Satrapi illustrates that the Islamic Revolution forced certain beliefs, including the veil, onto children (and, contextually, on the rest of Iran) that they did not necessarily understand. In his essay, On Liberty, John Stuart Mill addresses the idea of freedom and the role of government in protecting that freedom. Furthermore, he expresses the importance of doubting and questioning social norms.

The main purpose for Satrapi to write this book was to transform the reader into Marji, that is what makes Persepolis so touching and encouraging. The drawing’s make the reader infer about the next stage into Marji’s life, every single illustration represents some form of feeling, or emotion. Satrapi uses various different literary devices in Persepolis such as strong use of diction, creative imagery, uncountable smiles, a lot of foreshadowing, and very strong personification with specific examples. Satrapi’s writing is very straightforward and uncomplicated, this is because it is an autobiography and if it gets confusing, people can make inaccurate predictions and these rumors might spread like fire. Also, Persepolis does have a cliffhanger ending, because it doesn’t thoroughly explain what happened after she went to Paris and how she eventually became an author and wrote this book and what difficulties and tough stages of life did she go through before she wrote this

In the book of Persepolis, the author, Marjane Satrapi, shows her and her families experiences during the Iranian revolution. There are many different perceptions based on Iran and the Middle East in general. One event that Satrapi justifies is the burning of the Rex Cinema, where it gets burned down with uncooperative police officers. Satrapi’s portrayal of the burning of the Rex theatre is similar to most media reports, but she gives the readers a personal experience with her father rather than the media, who gives a more stereotypical view of Iran.

No two people can share the exact same perspective. Two people can have similar lives, similar families, and similar circumstances, but their stories will never line up perfectly. Our experiences as human beings are what makes up the eyes with which we see the world; in other words, our experiences create our perspective. Persepolis is written from Satrapi’s specific, personal account of her life in Iran, which means the entire story is saturated with perspective and personality. The reader journeys through her upbringing and her growth as she tries to mature as a young woman in this unstable nation, as told from her own memories and through her own words. Her perspective heavily influences

“One can forgive but one should never forget” is one of the quotes that Marjane Satrapi says in her memoir titled Persepolis. The memoir tells the story of Marjane when she was ten years old during the Islamic Revolution in the Middle East, specifically in her home country Iran. Most people evacuated the country because they knew there was not going to be a safe, prosperous future for their children. Due to Marji’s development from youth to maturity, she undergoes teenage rebellion and feels a desire to escape. The entirety of this memoir is portrayed as a graphic novel where Satrapi uses illustrative techniques such as the way she shades and colors and also the way that some panels bleed for emphasis.

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.