Persepolis

Persepolis

Amazing, intriguing, and unimaginable are just a few words to describe how I felt about Persepolis while I read this true life story of Marjane Satrapi. This book has helped me to see all the life struggles, good times, and adversities that Marji faced between the ages of nine to thirteen. The Islamic Revolution had such a daunting effect in the Middle East, especially in the county of Iran where Marji and her family resided.

In the year of 1979 all that Marjane knew what it was like to not have to be forced into wearing a veil. Before the Islamic Revolution she was able to attend a a French Non-Religious school where girls and boys were allowed to study and play together. Unfortunately her world of carefree ness ended once the Islamic government decided to change their ways and force others to conform to their religious beliefs of what is right and wrong. Marjanne was raised by two very independent and brilliant parents who were upper middle class people. Her parents tried to raise her to believe that she could be anything that she wanted to be as long as she put her mind to it. Mr. Satrapi would give Marji books on communism and by Marz, because her father was a Marxist. Once the Islamic revolution took over Iran Marji had to wear the veil and was not allowed to go to school with her male friends because it is not of Islam for children of different sexes to be educated in a unisex school environment. Marjane's mother Mrs. Satrapi was a protester and her and her husband believed in protesting for things that they did not believe in. Protesting was seen as demonstrations that meant bad to all who participated in them. Well Mrs. Satrapi, was photographed by a German photographer in the act of protesting one day against the Islamic's beliefe. This then caused her to take safe precautionary actions like dying her hair, keeping her hair and face covered, and the wearing of dark sunglasses to prevent the police regime from arresting her. She did this hiding for two years just in case the magazine ever showed up in Iran which would have devastating consequences if her identify was ever found out. These events led Marjane to understand that all the things that were taking place in Iran was very serious business and if the rules were not followed then you were in serious danger. I really admired how Marjane's parents went out of their way and literally risked their lives so that Marjane could have a somewhat normal life.

The Satrapi family were really good people who always did what they supposed to do if they knew that it was the right thing to do. They believed that you should have the liberty to make your own decisions, which is why Marjane was so independent, brave, rebellious, generous, understanding. Marjane believed that you should always do what is right because every one is considered equal. Well even though Marji was taught that by her parents she soon learned that not everyone is considered equal according to what socio-economic class that they were a part of. When Marjane's family maid fell in love with the teenage boy next door, she did not see anything wrong with them both wanting to be together and get married. It's only when Marjane's parents found out about the maid's relationship that it was soon ended because her father told the young man that she was their maid. In Iran the mixing of social class was not something that was never allowed because to them marriage to some one of a lower social class was a total abomination. While reading this solution it made me think that her parents were being somewhat hypocritical about their maid and her interactions with them and other people in their same social class. If Marjane was taught that everyone should be created equal then why couldn't the maid eat with them? Well even though her parents tried to raise her to believe in equality it was mainly excluding the lower class from them. The Satrapi's did believe that everyone should be able to have equality with their religion, politics, and education, just not the union of love and much social interaction with lower class Iranians because that was the way the people of Iran were raised to follow. What Mr. Satrapi, did infuriated Marjane because her maid lost the love of her life. So to get back at her parents she felt that it would do them some good to go to protest against social equality even though they told her she could not go because she was a nine year old child and it was too dangerous for her to partake in.

Once the Islamic Revolution was in effect Marjane didn't like how all these Islamic rules were being forced upon in all that she did whether it was school or just hanging out with friends to how many times a day you prayed. School was closed down for quite some time so that the school books could be changed to what the Islamic way of life was and all the rules. Once school opened back up she only went to school with girls and they all had to be fully covered. The teachers of the school would teach about how great the religion of Islam was and how their ruler was the best. Of course Marjane did not agree with this so she started to smart off to her teachers and principal. She would also have her classmates rebelling right along with her which would usually get them sent home numerous times. Talking back at school was Marjane's way of protesting and having her own demonstrations since her parents did not think that it was safe enough to go to an actual one. Every time her parents would get a phone call they would always stand behind their daughter, which show how much they believed that what she was rebelling against was the right thing to do. After some time she had to stop otherwise she would never ever get schooled.

Marjane's parents resisted the new gender norms by throwing parties at their home, drinking wine, playing games, buying westernized culture