Margaret Callahan
Ms. Roper
World Literature
4 April 2023
Persepolis Research Paper
Iranian women have been struggling with their identity and their lifestyle for years before the death of Masha Amini. The novel Persepolis shows a representation of a young woman, Marji coming of age in Iran. She begins to gain curiosity about the topic of femininity and wants to fight back like her parents. Marji does not fully understand the reasoning behind this strict society and it continues to unravel throughout the novel. The Iranian Society sets strict rules between the males and females of Iran. Women were overruled by tyranny in minutes and crimes were committed if their practice and structure were exactly the same as the books. Iranian women had
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Masha Amini’s life ended due to her headscarf. Police were diabolical in killing her and then blaming it on her health. A mandatory clothing piece caused a woman's life. “Hijabs are mandatory to wear in public for all women in Iran, regardless of religion or nationality” (Kohli 1). Respect for your religion is one thing, however, the death of a woman due to her looseness caused putsches. The women of Iran had finally had enough, they started protests in respect for Masha Amini. “Protests began after Amini’s funeral on Sept. 17 in her home region, the Kurdistan province in the country's northwest, but quickly spread across Iran to as many as 80 cities and swelled in the capital, Tehran” (Kohli 2). Just like during the Iranian Revolution war, women protested. They saw a problem and went to make it right. Seeing a woman get killed due to a headscarf, is not disrespectful toward religion or Iran. Then a cover-up to make it seem like a coincidence. Women fought for their rights, they are still fighting for their …show more content…
The Iranian Revolution of 1979 resulted in a limited amount of freedom for women as they were forced to obey strict clothing rules, stripped of their right to education, and faced with widespread sexism, leading to the death of Mahsa Amini in 2022. Amini’s death allowed people to speak up publicly about the situation in Iran and has caused people to listen. Because of this death, people around the world were able to help make a difference and create an ongoing case. Women in Iran are not done with their mark, they continue to push through the Iranian stereotypes and create a new way. This topic is important to talk about because as women we need to support other women. Restriction based on gender should not be allowed nor should it still be happening in our time. Equality is needed to make the world a better place, not a place to seek refuge. Persepolis allows us to understand the minds of Iranian women. How they live constantly and their ways vs ours.
Works Cited
Kohli, Anisha. “What to Know About the Iranian Protests Over Mahsa Amini's Death.” TIME, 24 September 2022, https://time.com/6216513/mahsa-amini-iran-protests-police/. Accessed 20 March 2023.
Lehr Wagner, Heather. “Aftermath and Legacy of the Iranian Revolution.” The Iranian Revolution, Updated Edition, Chelsea House, 2021. History Research Center, online.infobase.com/Auth/Index?aid=&itemid=&articleId=528407. Accessed 20 Mar.
Since 1979, the Iran’s laws have been based on Islamic law, called Sharia. Though there are elected positions in Iran’s government, the ultimate power is held by religious leaders who ensure that all government actions are in line with their interpretation of the Quran and Sharia Law.” and it also states that, “The grim statutes [laws] that I would spend the rest of my life fighting stared back at me from the page: the value of a woman's life was half that of a man… The laws, in short, turned the clock back fourteen hundred years, to the early days of Islam's spread, the days when stoning women for adultery and chopping off the hands of thieves were considered appropriate sentences ....” Till this day women in Iran are still badly affected by these Iran
In the women entrance they were more concerned about them dressing according to Islamic standards and guidelines. This clearly shows that the court system doesn’t take women seriously. The documentary shows how the law and the court system in the Iranian court system are established in such a way to favor the rights of men over women. This is seen in the
Persepolis Argumentative Essay “If children feel safe, they can take risks, ask questions, make mistakes, learn to trust, share their feelings, and grow.” , (Alfie Kohn). In Persepolis, Mariji’s parents create a safe and free environment within their household to allow her to express herself freely. While she is growing up, she understands the meaning of the revolution through stories, books, and personal events because they provide her with knowledge and can affect her in the future.
The policies that were instated by the Islamic Republic require all women to wear hijabs in public and for women not to travel without the consent of their husband. The public being outraged by the oppressive nature of these policies towards women and the severe mismanagement of the country, held massive protests to challenge the law, the article stated “The protests were a culmination of the past five years where all facets of society — laborers, teachers, retirees, university students and average people everywhere — have been trying to call for an end to the crisis of impunity in Iran despite violent state repression” (Engelbrecht). Showing how the public was willing to follow their personal morality and protest the unjust laws and policies put in place by the Islamic Republic even at the risk of their personal safety. The article also stated, “They erupted last weekend after the woman, Mahsa Amini, died following her arrest by Tehran’s morality police on an accusation of violating the law on head scarves” (Engelbrecht). This quote mentions the story of a woman who was accused of
In the graphic novel Persepolis, the author’s use of dichotomies such as Westernization v. Traditionalism, Right v. Wrong, and Islamic v. Secularism all develop the theme of division in Iran surrounding the Islamic Revolution and the time period that follows, all the way to today. Secularism v. Religion is important to the theme and development of Persepolis and of Iran because the division is caused through the Islamic revolution and the ongoing protests against the hijab, the rights of women, and the changing unpopular laws in Islamic Iran. After the end of the Islamic Revolution in Iran, many women decided to not wear the hijab, due to it being uncomfortable and them being unused to it- despite becoming a law by the new government. On
The women of Iran had finally had enough, they started protests in respect for Masha Amini. “Protests began after Amini’s funeral on Sept. 17 in her home region, the Kurdistan province in the country;s northwest, but quickly spread across Iran to as many as 80 cities and swelled in the capital, Tehran” (Kohli 2). Just like during the Iranian Revolution war, women protested. They saw a problem and went to make it right. Seeing a woman get killed due to a headscarf, not disrespect toward religion or Iran.
Without God as a guiding presence in her life, Marji began to rebel against the ever-encroaching fundamentalist institution as much as possible. Under the pretense of religion, Iran strictly enforced new laws against social gatherings and all items of decadence, “They found records and video-cassettes at their place. A deck of cards, a chess set, in other words, everything that’s banned… It earned him seventy-five lashes”(105). This sudden loss of mediums to enjoy one’s self and prevalence of excessive punishment enforcing the declared moral code (132) were invitations to rebel for Marji.
In The Complete Persepolis, Marjane Satrapi recounts her life growing up in Iran during the Iranian Revolution. Through her personal experiences and observations, Satrapi conveys how the revolution had a profound impact on her perception of family and friends. Indeed, during this period, Satrapi felt fearful and confused; as a result, she desired stability and sought meaningful connections. Ultimately, the book’s portrayal of someone experiencing these emotions helped explain what is like to live through political upheaval and how it tests one’s relationships with loved ones.
The date that began it all, March seventh, nineteen-seventy-nine Ayatollah Khomeini, leader of Iran, had implemented a mandatory dress code meaning they had to be fully clothed at all times in public. The Iranian government had created the infamous morality police to enforce said dress code and the newfound laws.(Zamani) Since then Iranian women have been deprived of their basic rights and have suffered the male centered ideologies and male dominance that allow them to perceive women as an immature, irrational child from their birth to their death. Even as an infant they are still fighting to be recognized by men as more than dirt on their shoe or as a mere sacrifice they must bear for their bloodline to continue. Iranian men preach the islamic ideologies especially in the stance of polygamy.("Position of Women")
Many women had been attacked and beaten for wearing lipstick or because a few strands of their hair had been showing from under their scarves”(Nemat 124). This quote presented the Iranian cultural ideas of women’s clothing and physical appearances. As women were brutally tortured for showing their beauty, it shows that women were expected to hide their beauty, which can also be seen as hiding their true identity. Furthermore, this delivered the message that women were forced to remain as inferior individuals within Iranian society, as they were forbidden to reveal their attractive and powerful
One way Satrapi challenges negative stereotypes about Iranians is through important characters who oppose the Islamic Regime because she shows individualism. In the chapter The Veil Marjane in the year 1980 shows she doesn’t believe in being forced to wear
It is later that Marjane and her family watch a man decree on television that “Women’s hair emanates rays that excite men. That’s why women should cover their hair” (Satrapi 74). Women of Iran and around the
After the Iranian Revolution, it became compulsory for women to wear the veil as the Islamic dress code and all women were removed from government positions, leading to increasing oppression and inequality in Iran. The use of black and white on the first page of the book creates a very clear image that a lot of people are unhappy with the new rules that are introduced by the government. The use of images shows us the oppression of freedom in a way that it would be hard to imagine with words. The first panel shows Marjane in a somber mood, crossing her arms to show her defensive thinking against the veil and the world. In the following panel, the girl’s expressions range from neutral to dislike or discomfort, which shows the general thoughts from people on how they think of the veil.
To what extent is the literary devices shown in Persepolis increase the impact of the novel and show the culture of Iran in the 1970s? In the novel Persepolis by Majane Satrapi, she tells the story of her life living in Iran in the 1970s. In this novel she discusses the atrocities committed by both sides of the bloody Iranian revolution and how both sides truly were. In the novel, Satrapi uses several literary devices to enhance the meaning of the novel to a much greater degree than directly telling the reader. Still, these literary devices also allow the reader to peer into the very culture of Iran in the novel and how certain objects can mean certain things both from within the culture and the context of the novel.
Have you ever read a graphic novel with a variety of worldwide problems? From: racial issues, economic issues, women’s rights, political repression, social issues etcetera. Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi is the authors memoir of growing up in Iran during the Islamic Revolution. Marjane Satrapi tells her story through black and white comic strips of her life in Tehran from her childhood ages six to fourteen. Persepolis portrays a memorable portrait of daily life in Iran, as well the perplexing contradictions between home life and public life.