The Complete Persepolis By Marjane Satrapi

After the empowerment of the Islamic Regime, the treatment of women turned tables in Iran. Before the Regime, Iranian women were much like the average American woman during that time. They were able to dress in modern clothes, associate with male counterparts, and have a role in society. But most of this was drastically changed, especially the dress code. Around 1980, the women of Iran were forced into the wearing of a veil. A veil is a piece of cloth used to cover the hair and part of the face. Many women were against the veil and took to the streets to protest. After many protests, the women were still forced to wear the veil. In the graphic novel Persepolis, Marji goes the store and bought some modern clothes. She decided to wear them out to go buy tapes. In the last frame, Marji is approached by two women wearing chadors: “They were the Guardians of the Revolution, the women's branch. This group had been added in 1982, to arrest women who were improperly

Although in Iran it’s different. The first chapter of Persepolis entitled “the veil” opens up to how women in Iran was obligated to wear the veil meaning they don’t have no choice but rather to obey. If one disobeys this obligation they face consequences and this is shown in the chapter entitled “Kim Wilde” where Marjane goes out in public wearing modernized clothes such as punk shoes, leather jackets, tight jeans, and a Michael Jackson pin which the guardians of the revolution symbolized as a decadence called her out to be sent to the committee for dressing inappropriately. Unlike in America, if one woman decides to wear tight jeans and a crop top that shows her belly, no one would call her out as Americans have all the freedom to wear what they

Marjane Satrapi’s Persepolis introduces the Islamic veil as an attempt by the Iranian government to control women. Islamic radicals promised safety and security for those who abided by their rules. Rebels who refused to wear the headscarf were threatened with beating, rape or death. These modern women who fought against religious oppression met the minimal requirements of the government rules to safely live in the hostile environment. Through being forced to wear the veil, the control of the Islamic government drives its people to a rebellion.

Marjane Satrapi’s Persepolis recounts the conflicts and disillusionment as a result of living through the tyrannies of the Shah’s and the Islamic regimes. Her main motive was to keep alive the spirit of those Iranians who lost their lives in wars fought for freedom, suffered under repressive regimes or who were forced to leave their families. It highlights the daily conflict between tradition and modernity, West and East, dictatorship and individual freedom. Marjane has used several motifs, such as the veil, the mirror, background panels to emphasize on the situation in Iran and this essay focuses on how the veil becomes the dominant motif for portraying the suppression of individual freedom, knowledge

Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood by Marjane Satrapi is a graphic novel that provides insight into a young girl living in Iran during the hardship of war. Persepolis takes place during the childhood of Marjane Satrapi. It gives a background of the Islamic Revolution and the war in Iran. Satrapi attempts to guide herself in a corrupted world filled with propaganda. She tries to develop her own morality concerning religion, politics, and humanity. Satrapi was blessed enough to have high class status and parents who had an open mindset about the world around them. Thanks to her slightly alternative lifestyle, she is able to reconstruct gender norms that society has set by depicting the different ways women resist them. “Do Muslim Women Really Need Saving? Anthropological Reflections on Cultural Relativism and Its Others” by Lila Abu-Lughod is an essay detailing the misconceptions surrounding the veil. Through this essay we can see how colonial feminism, the form of feminism in which western women push for a western way of living on their third world counterparts, has shined a negative light on cultures all around the world - particularly Islamic women. The essay shows how women who don’t conform to American societal structures are labeled as women who urgently require saving. Through this essay one can develop a thorough understanding of the veil itself and the many representations it holds to different entities. Although in Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood Satrapi

One of the most controversial topics concerning Muslim women’s rights is the idea of the veil. It is believed by some Muslims that the veil is an Islamic obligation that all Muslim women must adhere to. But nowadays, the veil can have different meanings that are not necessarily religious. In her article “Reinventing the Veil,” Leila Ahmed addresses some of the different meanings that the veil can have. Marjane Satrapi explores one of those meanings in her animated autobiography Persepolis (2008). In Persepolis, Marjane tells the story of her rebellion against the Iranian Islamist regime that takes over Iran, oppresses women, and forces them to wear the veil. What was interesting to me was seeing Marjane wear the veil without being oppressed, although she does not believe in it, and is being forced to wear it. In Persepolis, Marjane Satrapi escapes being a subject to the Iranian Islamist ideology by establishing her individual identity through transforming the veil from a means of oppression into a means of feminist rebellion.

Abayas, shailas, burkas, and chadors: all are forms of veiling in the Middle East, and all are perceived as symbols of oppression and patriarchy by the West. The veil worn by a Middle Eastern woman is striking and beautiful in its simplicity and elegance. The hijab, the most common form of veiling, leaves only the face visible with the neck and hair completely covered. Onlookers are in awe at the mystery and symbolism associated with the many veils created out of fine, exotic silk. But such notions of oppression and patriarchy often associated with veiling are not only inherently biased and ironic – it would be interesting to explore the symbolism behind a mini-skirt or a pair of five-inch heels, no? – but they are also inaccurate. Although veiling has most definitely been used in the Middle East as a “mechanism in the service of patriarchy, a means of regulating and controlling women’s lives” (Hoodfar, 5), it has also been used as a mode for rebellion and self-expression. Marjane Satrapi, an Iranian woman who grew up during the Islamic revolution, resisted the regime and the universalizing nature of the veil in the hope that she could maintain her individual identity whilst communicating her political ideologies. By examining the way in which the veil is represented in Satrapi’s graphic memoir, Persepolis, while also considering the history of veiling in Iran, it will become evident that the veil is not just a political tool used by male chauvinists; it also presents an

A veil is an article of clothing that is intended to cover some part of the head, face, or physical feature that may hold some significance. It is especially associated with women and sacred objects. Not only does it conceal a person’s physical appearance, but it contributes to stifling one’s individuality. In Marjane Satrapi’s graphic novel Persepolis, Marjane, the main character, lives in Iran and is required, by fear of punishment, to wear a veil that only leaves her face uncovered. The veil becomes an important symbol and throughout the novel, the reader can see the lasting impact the veil has on Satrapi. It begins as something foreign and detestable to young Marjane; a simple piece of clothing that deprived her of her free will,

In the book, “The Complete Persepolis” written by Marjane Satrapi every woman had a prescribed role. The role of Marji’s maid was to show that social class differences do exist and to show what happens within these social class differences. Marji’s mother’s role was to support Marji and make sure that she was well off, while her grandmother’s role was also to support her and give her words of wisdom. Her school teachers’ role was to make sure that the female children, attending the school, wore their veils, while the guardians of the revolution’s role were to arrest females that were improperly veiled. The younger Marji’s role was to show us how the Iranian Revolution/ the mandatory wearing of the veil affected

In Gilead everyone was supposed to dress alike depending on the social status they belonged to, masking their individuality, which was highly discouraged. This actually stripped the girls of their actual identities made them all look identical to their class. Similarly the veils impact on women’s life in Persepolis was enormous. She always wondered as to ‘why did the women have to wear it?’ and the reasoning the fundamentalist gave was “so to protect women from all the potential rapist, they decreed that wearing the veil was obligatory” (74). Satrapi says because of this backward thought process and the rules of the Islamic religion, women were forced to wear veil. However one would argue why wouldn’t these people deal with the rapist than have every women and every girl child were a veil.

In Persepolis, the Islamic state makes the wearing of veils compulsory, under the assertion that it is a symbol of both Iranian culture and Islamic religious law. While Marjane accepts the veil as part of her life, she rebels against the ideology it represents. When Iran begins to enforce stricter dress codes to ensure modesty, Marjane sees that the veil is a form of controlling the female population, a form of suppression. She rejects the double standard that allows Iranian men more freedom: “You don’t hesitate to comment on us, but our brothers present here have all shapes and sizes of haircuts and clothes. Sometimes, they wear clothes so tight that we can see everything” (299).

In The Complete Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi, the genre choice of the graphic novel vividly portrays the life-experience that Satrapi herself gone through as a youth growing up in Iran back in the 1980s. Satrapi utilizes a unique drawing style to emphasize the influence that the Islamic Republic has brought to her. The recurring action of teachers implanting Islamic values in children throughout Marjane’s education in Iran is demonstrated through a set of related images, which implicitly reflect on the destruction of childhood that is caused by a totalitarian regime. For instance, the teachers force the girls to wear veils on page1 and tells the parents that “either [girls] obey the law, or [they are] expelled” (Satrapi, 98) later on. Also, the background of these images takes place where Iran is involved in both revolution and war; it contributes to children’ miserable situation even more.

Readers are told the story of Persepolis through the eyes and journey of Marjane (Marji). One example of the social reality of Iran that Persepolis presents to readers is women’s mode of dress. In the beginning of the novel, Marji states, “Then came 1980: the year it became obligatory to wear the veil at school” (1.4). At this time, Marji is only ten years old, yet she still resists the veil and somewhat realizes the gender inequalities present in her reality. Although both boys’ and girls’ clothes change within their separate schools, girls are the only ones who are required to wear the veil. The hijab is a piece of fabric that women are required to wear -- concealing parts of their face and all of their hair. Not only is this a significant part of the social reality, but this is a legal requirement of all women in Iran. Men are not legally bound by what they wear, nor are they required to conceal their

Readers are told the story of Persepolis through the eyes and journey of Marjane (Marji). One example of the social reality of Iran that Persepolis presents to readers is women’s mode of dress. In the beginning of the novel, Marji states, “Then came 1980: the year it became obligatory to wear the veil at school” (1.4). At this time, Marji is only ten years old, yet she still resists the veil and somewhat realizes the gender inequalities present in her reality. Although both boys’ and girls’ clothes change within their separate schools, girls are the only ones who are required to wear the veil. The hijab is a piece of fabric that women are required to wear -- concealing parts of their face and all of their hair. Not only is this a significant part of the social reality, but this is a legal

The Complete Persepolis paints a descriptive and complex picture of Iranian society and its transition from a progressive and Westernized state to a new fundamentalist regime following the 1979 Islamic Revolution. The graphic novel cleverly uses a blend of images and text to tell her story from different perspectives throughout her life, exemplifying and questioning the ideologies accompanying the revolution. Specifically, Satrapi focuses on the role of the veil to challenge the new regime and its ideals of feminine oppression. Throughout the novel, Marjane Satrapi attempts to navigate through the abrupt shift of culture in her world, strategically utilizing different perspectives of the veil as both a young girl and an adult woman to do so. Readers follow Satrapi’s journey with her veil, from her initial conformation to her eventual rebellion and freedom.