Persepolis, by Marjane Satrapi, is a novel based in Iran during and post Islamic Revolution that follows the life of young Marjane Satrapi, or as know in the story, Marji while her and her family try to get through all the changes happening around them because of the Revolution. The novel begins with Marji telling the reader that the Revolution had just begun, and a year after all women, children, and adults had to wear a veil even though “[they] really didn’t like to wear the veil, especially since [they] didn’t understand why they had to” (Satrapi 1). Throughout the story Marji constantly questions things going on around her, one thing in particular being the government's total rejection of the westernization that was slowly occurring in …show more content…
One major being the execution of Marji’s uncle Anoosh who was a revolutionary that escape Iran and fled to the Soviet Union. Once he was killed the Regime claimed him to be a Soviet spy. Satrapi shows us this as reason to why hardly anybody would single handedly speak out. The government had no problem silencing anyone who spoke out against them and they had no problem of the public being aware. Although some people would clearly speak out on the harshness of the Revolution other would defy it in silence, example being Marji herself. She would buy American tapes and try to make her fashion more Western like. But even doing something as little as not having her veil covering all of her hair and wearing tight pants would get a reaction out of the Guardians of the Revolution “Lower your scarf you little whore!... Aren’t you ashamed of wearing tight jeans like these”. (135) Strapi shows explicitly that the people have no voice and are essentially controlled by the government and even the smallest outburst against their rule could get them killed. As seen through Marji One could even go as far as to say that the people themselves have no problem with Western influence, but because of the freedom the American people posses the Iranian Government fears that once the Western culture begins to take over Iran, so will come their values of freedom; hence why basically all American humanities are banned and why Iran seems as if they hate everything