Brenna Gustafson
Stacy Knapp
English 1a
2 March 2013
Reading Response #1 (Persepolis) In the book “Persepolis,” by Marjane Satrapi, the author tells a graphic “memoir” of her experience growing up in the time of the 1979 Islamic revolution. Marjane Satrapi starts her “memoir” at the end of 1979 and the beginning of 1980 in Iran, as a young school girl who does not fully comprehend what is happening in her country. Marjane gives the reader a child’s view of the political turmoil taking place all around her. As the story progresses her parents reveal that her grandpa was the prime minister chosen by the Shah, her grandpa was a prince robbed of his throne and wealth. Furthermore, Marjane had a certain set of beliefs, that she had been taught in school, which conflicted with the beliefs of her family, and her parents wanted to further educate her on why the revolution was happening. Marjane is young and very impressionable with a more personal connection to the extreme actions of the former “King” Shah. Marjane Satrapi author of “Persepolis” expresses “I really didn’t know what to think about the veil, deep down I was very religious but as a family we were very modern…”(6). The revolution is reaching her in minor ways, but she still is trying to make sense of these changes, such as; wearing a veil at school, having gender separated classes, and her school converting from a non religious school to religious. In this quote Marjane clearly displays a child’s perception and confusion from being taught conflicting views from school and from her home. In the first chapter in the book “Persepolis” by Marjane Satrapi, Marjane recalls having a very personal connection with god. She is visited by god regularly. At first she had an infatuation with being a “prophet,” but as times goes on she is starting to understand what the revolution is all about she no longer wants to become a “prophet.” With new enlightenment, Marjane wants to do her part in the revolution by joining the protests. So she states “for a revolution to succeed, the entire population must support it”(17). This is the first clear statement of her new stance on which side she is gravitating toward, and she seems to be able to make a more educated choice from what she has learned about her country and its leaders. Marjane experiences and becomes aware of the social injustices of her country. The first time that she is really affected by the “social status” is when her maid, who came to live with her family at a young age, was not able to have a relationship with a neighborhood boy. That is a very important point in her life because even though her parents were protesting they still were bonded to old customs and beliefs. She argues this “dad, are you for or against social classes[!]”(37). She is saddened by the social inequality that marks that difference between her and her maid, but yet in her heart she sees her maid as not only her equal but her sister(37). Marjane is becoming aware of what she believes. Many people could probably relate in some way to what this girl is going through, even if it is on a smaller scale. What I related to this book is being taught certain subjects in school which may not be how that event really happened. This book opens a different perception on what happened in Iran at that time. From what was stated in the book I could really empathize with having a country slit in half, both sides having strong beliefs against each other. The last point that I would like to make is how the girl is, in my opinion, seeing the conflicts in her parent’s beliefs.
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