Marjane Satrapi's book Persepolis is quite disarming; perhaps that's the case for any text that at first glance resembles a comic book. But of course the graphic novel has become a serious genre, and in this case, what starts as an illustrated childhood memoir quickly tranforms into a very profound text indeed. There is of course the frame of the Islamic Revolution in Iran and the miserable Iran-Iraq War in the backdrop; there's the constant fear for the heroine and her family, whose left-leaning, Western tendencies always put them at risk. There's a lot to be gained here, lessons about what it's like to live through these kinds of momentous events.
But then there's the story of Marji at the center, and her childhood drama. I'm particularly interested in her vacillations between faith and doubt before the revolution, and as it unfolds. Early on, she strikes up an allegience to/alliance with God, but then somehow absorbs some Marx and becomes a revolutionary. Back and forth she goes. I wonder: how seriously should we take the faith of a child (think back to Wiesel, Freud, etc.)? Is it inherently naive, or is there something authentic about it?
I also have to wonder: with thoughts of God and revolution floating around in her head, why didn't the heroine of this story latch onto the cultural transformation that occurred (instead, she resists it)? Is this adolescent rebellion?
Finally (and I suspect that this is related to the theme of a child's view of the world, which is running through this post), what does Satrapi's style of illustration convey?
I don’t think Persepolis is meant for young children at all. This book seems to be a graphic novel written about children for adults, and it provides us a glimpse into the daily lives of children who are living through repressive regimes and impending (or ongoing) wars. The illustration (of a child's view of the world) in Persepolis also brings us much closer to this group of people, as opposed to what we usually hear and read about through syndicated news reports. Although seemingly simplistic, this method is extremely effective as Satrapi's style of illustration makes her message stylised but accessible, political but pleasurable.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Angela that I don’t think Persepolis is meant for young children at all. As discussed on Wednesday, our group found that the comic book form added a new layer to the story told by Satrapi. The illustrations are very powerful. For example when the ex convicts tell their story of how they were tortured and their friends were killed, the illustration depicts this. Marjane’s reaction to their story is similar to the readers in this scene, because she is shocked and didn’t realize the horrible acts that were going on around her. I think that Satrapi made a conscious decision to depict Marjane as a child because she is in a sense representing the reader. Not only is she young, but she is naive and not aware of her surroundings. Satrapi gets the message across in her story through the representation of a child’s point of view and through the use of illustrations. The combination proves to be very effective.
ReplyDeletePersepolis, for me, was a very powerful book. The combination of words and drawings really captivated me. With pictures to go along with Marjane’s words, I found it much more powerful. The depictions of the incidents she witnessed and survived were drawn out for the reader to see, not leaving out too much gore. In the chapter, The Key, Marjane explains how hitting oneself was the country’s ritual. What struck me was the man who had the knife who seemed to be hitting himself in the head with it. That image was one of the most powerful in the book that struck me.To see a man striking himself in the head with a knife for a religious ceremony amazed me,i could never imagine anyone in America doing that in the name of something. That showed me how devoted the people were, even if they just beat there chests.
ReplyDeleteThe images for me were very powerful because it made the words become reality.
I agree with Victoria to a certain extent. It was indeed a very powerful book filled with true life experiences of a young girl transformed into art. In the chapter The Key, when the men were physically violating themselves in the so called name of religion I found this to be disturbing. I do not think it shows devotion at all. This made me think of a recent conversation about 911 in my Religion and Sexuality class. One individual raised her hand and said the actions carried out on 911 showed the true dedication these terrorists had to their religion. She went as far as saying it was amazing. Of course much of the class disagreed including myself. I personally don't feel the use of violence has any place in religion.
ReplyDeleteI think it's important to take the faith of a child seriously, because in this world we want others to respect our own faith. Childhood belief may be ever changing, but it doesn't mean that in the moment, those beliefs aren't extremely real and important for a child.
ReplyDeleteAt the very end of "The Heroes" chapter, after hearing all the violence those men had to face, all Marji says "the only place I felt safe was in the arms of my friend." The image is of Marji encompassed by G-d.
I believe that everyone wants to feel safe from danger, and immune to the worlds hardships. G-d was how Marji felt safe.
I don't necessarily think that her beliefs were naive because she wasn't sheltered from hearing about heinous acts of torture, and yet she still went to G-d. I would argue that he faith is quite real, very strong, and to be taken seriously in this account of her childhood.
**Correction: omit the world "all" from "all Marji says." It should be "Marji says..."
ReplyDeleteThere is alot to be said about the way Marjane presents and illustrates Persepolis. Firstly, not only do the events of the Iran-Iraq War and the cultural transformation, such as the bombings of near by villages and the tortures which took place, come across so matter-of-factly. This kind of de-facto description of these momentous and, maybe to an outside witness, scarring events speak volumes about the way children percieve the world around them. This is not only portrayed in the dialogue of some of the characters but it is also evident in the way Persepolis is illustrated, in black and white. This apparent preference in illustrating the graphic novel in black and white symbolizes the way children see the world; things are either right or wrong, moral or immoral, good or bad, and never both at the same time.
ReplyDeleteChildhood faith in God is a strange topic because I think it varies from culture to culture and family to family. I went to a private school for a long time when I was young and it was the first experience I had with education and interaction with other kids, and all the videos we watched were of course about being a good christian and things like that, I was saved at 7 years old. I think in situations like mine, it wasn't authentic at the time. I certainly believed in a God, and we talked all the time, but looking back it seems like more of a ... I don't want to say brainwashing, but similar. A bunch of little kids being taught a religion that their parents also practice, and its all your taught, you're bound to believe in God. I still believe in God and in the Christian Bible, but for different reasons. For some reason Satrapi's faith seems more real than brainwashing, maybe its just because that's the way she portrays it in the book, but she has some really personal connection with God that I don't most people experience. So although I'm sure there are a lot of kids who have authentic connections with God , I think the specific child's surrounding should be taken into account. The fact that marji's parents were rather liberal and she was going to a french school lends to the idea that her relationship with God was much different than the average private school taught child.
ReplyDeleteI want to add on to previous comments about the layout of Persepolis, and the fact that she uses this graphic novel format. I think it has another effect, which is to generalize the events in a way that makes them accessible and relatible. In a novel with more descriptions, I think it would be even more emphasized that her story is happening in Iran, and the specific reasons for that revolution and the specific qualities of that dictator would be further described. However, the pictures depict scenes that could really be showing any revolution or dictator, and the struggles of the people that live in all those countries who have suffered in a similar way. I recently watched the movie, and in her commentary Marjane says that on film the animation as oppose to live action had this effect; instead of being a specific setting in a certain country with actors of a certain ethnicity, the animation gave the viewer the ability to see a common international problem of revolutions and dictators and the horror that accompanies them.
ReplyDeleteI believe that every child is born with a naive sense of faith. They are given the faith and belief that their parents have bestowed upon them. We are too young to understand what we want from God or if we should believe if God exist. For marji and like most children, their minds are like sponges and will absorb everything around them. I think at Marji she went through a cultural transformation than resisting it. At the time the story takes place she is 10 and on the brink of adolescence. With everything going on around her she just got caught up into it.
ReplyDeleteI think the faith of a child is more naive than that of an adult because the mind of a child is impressionable and typically cannot think for itself. So when a child believes in God, that idea has probably been placed in his/her head by someone else. In Marji's case, her parents were not as religious as she was but that just indicates that she probably picked up her beliefs from somewhere else- maybe school. Having said that, I often find the faith of an adult to be pretty naive too, so it's hard for me to compare.
ReplyDeleteAbout the comic book genre, I think it lends an interesting flavor to such a serious subject matter. For me, it almost makes the story more serious. When you're witnessing such horrific events through the innocent, curious eyes of a child, it makes the situation that much more grave.
In Response to what Jamie said, I do agree that it was disturbing, that's what had drawn me to that image. It caught my eye because I couldn't imagine that going on. It’s disturbing but to me it shows a person’s devotion to their belief. I’m not saying that its morally right or not disturbing, it just blew my mind how someone could to that to themselves in the name of something.
ReplyDeleteI think its interesting that many of us would not recommend this book for young children , yet it is based on how a young child interprets certain experiences. Perhaps that goes to show that young children aren't really as naive as we think they are and that , as all people , when placed in disarming situation they find a way to deal with it. With that being said , I don’t think that the faith of child is any more naive then that of an adult. In both cases the faith is built on exposure to a particular religion or faith that , for unexplainable reason , comforts that person. In many ways , I think the faith of a child more trustworthy then that of an adult just because the child has less life experience and outside influences that can tint that faith. It’s similar to a five year old believing in Santa Claus until that year they see mommy putting the presents under the tree. They believe because , in their young mind , no other option exists.
ReplyDelete* I think the main reason the main character's faith changed so drastically is because her life experiences didn’t match up to the idea of what her religion was. I recall one episode in the book where Marji was angry about the death of her uncle and refused to talk to God after that. In her mind, God was supposed to protect her and her family and when he failed to do that her faith was shattered.
Also , I defiantly think that her refusal of the cultural transmission was adolescent rebellion. However , I think that she was so devoted and steadfast in her rebellion because of her parents. Most parents discourage children from rebelling against society, Marji parents, however , not only encouraged it but actually exposed her to it. I think if Marji had different parents , ones who were no so liberal, she would have accepted the changing culture.
ReplyDeleteI feel like marji didn't go along with the cultural changes because they were unpleasant. It wasn't the way she was brought up to go along with things just because everyone else is. In the book you see a lot hatred and judgement coming from the characters that accepted the changes and I think if I was a teenager in that time period, when expressing yourself seems of the utmost importance, I know for sure that I would go against the change. Especially if it was against the rules. So I feel like it was a mixture of two things that influences marji's decisions. Also the way the book is depicted is relevant because it ties into it being a childhood story. Marji is a child and the illustration puts that spin on it, kind of relieves a little bit of the blow. But the content is still very heavy and obviously not for children. In that way I think Satrapi is a genius, it was a serious event told through a child's eyes in a interesting way. It definately added to the story.
ReplyDeleteShantaya, I think your mention of Santa Claus is a perfect example of why we shouldn't trust a child's faith. Santa doesn't exist, so how does a child's faith in him prove its own authenticity? A child will believe almost anything you tell him.
ReplyDeleteIf we're debating how strong a child's faith is, that's another thing. Clearly children believe deeply in whatever ideas they may have. But that does not mean their faith is trustworthy.
I completely agree with Shantaya. Children always have an honest opinion about mostly everything they witness in their lives. Children will pick up what they learn from their parents and what they learn at their schools and hold onto those ideas. Their minds absorb quickly and they formulate ideas about what they learn, just like adults. But unlike adults, they do not have years of life experience which can make their ideas and opinions seem naive. Marji’s rebellion was just an example of her holding onto the ideas that she learned while she was younger and what she had witnessed in life. She didn’t like what was happening and decided to take matters into her own hands.
ReplyDeleteThe Faith of a child may be authentic but what does that really mean? At a certain time during human existence people were sold on the idea that the earth was flat. This belief or faith in the idea that the world was flat may have been genuine but it does not make it anymore truthful. Fervor does not compensate for fallacy. Just because one believes in something passionatley doesnt mean the belief holds more weight than anothers belief.(*)I feel that a childs faith is inherently naive. You could tell a child (lets say 3-7 years of age) almost anything and they would believe it sincerely. You could tell a child that there is a spaghetti monster that lives under the bed of children who dont finish their vegetables. The kid believes in the spaghetti monster and you now have a kid who finally eats his vegetables. A kid may believe in the spaghetti monster or a fat man in a red coat but because there is authenticity in their belief does not make it anymore truthful
ReplyDeleteI think that people are intimidated by Marji's honesty and that is the problem. Her parents accept it at first and seem to be proud of her, then they begin to grow scared because her thoughts oppose the beliefs of their religion and they are worried she is going to be killed. I think Marji was ahead of her generation. Her honesty and persistence to know the answers to questions is authentic and real and she refuses to conform to any other belief. In a time of war, that lifestyle is admirable.
ReplyDeleteMarji has been undoubtedly courageous from the start of this book. I am amazed how such a young child can experience such a close connection with God. Her beliefs in protecting her homeland are so passionate at such a young age.I feel its a tragedy that due to the radical situation that occurred in Iran,people just like Marji were driven out of the country that they treasured!
ReplyDeletePeter, I totally agree with what you are saying. I think your sentence, "fervor does not compensate for fallacy," is not only very well put, but sums this up perfectly. Just because a child believes whole-heartedly in something does not mean that it is any more truthful. A child can believe without a doubt in their mind that they have a[n imaginary] friend named Sir Nicholas III who is 12 feet tall and only eats peas, but it's not true simply because the child believes it. Yes, children are often extremely honest about how they feel about something, but a child's honesty and belief is not necessarily truthful.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I don't think that Marji's faith was genuine. I don't think she was necessarily rebelling against her parents, but she was believing what she was hearing in school and from her friends. Children tend to believe what they hear in school from their trusted teachers whom they look up to and from their friends. Skepticism is not a trait that many children have. If her parents were not dissuading her from her beliefs then she was going to continue to believe them until she became skeptical, which, in this case, came about when her parents friends and her uncle were murdered.
First off, thank you Hannah. I thought it was pretty good myself, Im thinking about turning it into a bumpersticker. And although Marjane may have had thoughts of God and revolution in her head she didnt embrace the cultural transformation that was occuring because Marj's conceptions of God and revolution were very different from the one of the Islamic Revolution. Marj's rejection of the revoltuion that was taking place is more than a simple case of adolescent rebellion. I feel that we have to give Marj a bit more credit because she had a firm that her families liberal (liberal to Iran)lifestyle was worth not only maintaning but fighting for.
ReplyDeleteI like to think that Marjane's choice of black and white was to represent the black and white perspective she had as a child. Her government was telling her one side of the story while her parents were telling her the other. There isn't much nuance in her experience. But her observations are as honest as can be. I agree with Shantaya and Victoria's recent posts. Children do give honest opinions (often times the most brutally honest--I remember a younger friend of mine calling my acne boils!). I think it is often easy to discredit a child by saying they aren't reliable witnesses. I could see this argument, but I also recognize that kids often times tell you as they see it.
ReplyDeleteI would agree that children definitely tell it as they see it. Often children are painfully honest, but that doesn't mean that what they believe to be true is in fact true to the standards of non-children. Marji may have whole-heartedly believed in God as she knew him, and that sort of faith is beautiful in its own way. I'm not trying to discount her faith. The faith she has in the beginning of the book is great, but it can't exactly be trusted.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Hannahs statement of children saying whatever rolls off their tongue. They dont have any sensory skills yet. I believe Marjanes faith was a figment of what she thought her country stood for. After experiencing what real violence and hate is, she knew that her nation was not preaching the religion that she had so much passion for.
ReplyDeleteI do not think that Marji's rebellion was merely due to adolescent behavior. What Marji was seeing of the revolution did not agree with her vision of a comforting God. Marji was seeing the revolution and seeing people hurting themselves (that doesn't appeal to me as an adult, it would have terrified me as a child). She's also being told that hair is too sexual so she can no longer wear what she wants to wear, along with other new rules. The Islamic Revolution goes against everything that she had been learning up until then. She liked her old school and all of sudden she is being told something completely different. Of course she is going to question why. Also we have to take into consideration her parents. Most adolescent rebellions are acted against parents, Marji's parents usually accept her actions. She believes what her parents believe.
ReplyDeleteAs for how authentic her belief is. Children are impressionable. If someone they respect tells them something they easily believe it. Peter's example of the Spaghetti monster is a perfect example. Yes her faith in it may be complete and authentic but is it proof for the Spaghetti Monster's existence, I don't think so. Marji was young and the idea of a powerful being that would always take care of her, especially with all the violence going on around her, is comforting. Her faith is serious for her at that time, but I don't think it's valid as a religious belief until she is old enough to question it.
To Diana
ReplyDeleteGood Point. What I meant to say is that a child's faith might not always be placed in something real BUT to that kid it is true as the the fact that the sun rises and sets everyday. If a child has belief in something and honest beleives it to be true , then their faith should be considered trustworhy. The fact that the object of faith is or is not real says nothing about the nature of the child's faith.