Comic

I think it is interesting that Marjane Satrapi decided to tell her story through a comic book version. Doing a comic book is a very dramatic change versus a regular format. The comic format brings a lot to the table though. I think it gets the sense of humor across better and also sets an almost sarcastic tone throughout the book because comics are normally seen as read by children yet the book is about a very adult issue. Comics are also much more simple than regular stories, where the issue they address is not simple at all. It is extremely complicated.

Comics have changed a lot since they were first published. They used to be mainly about the artwork with the story coming second. In the "gold age" of comics, the story became the most important part, with works like Watchmen. Now, in the modern age, comics are used a lot to demonstrate a sort of dark humor, much like in Persepolis. Here is a link to a short website with some further information about the history of comics:

http://www.sugarbombs.com/comics/cpart4.html

Fighting Iraq vs Iran

During the Iraq/Iran war the to oppossing sides used to different fighting styles. Iraq relied on forighn assistance in the form of jets and modern weapons to fight Iran. What Iran lacked in technology and weapondry it made up for in the number of men sent to the front lines. Irans stratedgy was to basically send over so many people that they overwelmed Iraq. These two fighting styles resulted in 500k casulaties for both sides throughout the war.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran%E2%80%93Iraq_War

Iran/Iraq War = Modern WWI

Throughout the book the author refers to the war with Iraq. This war is considered by many to have been a modern WWI because of the trench warfare style. Since Iran and Iraq just sat on either side of an open nomans land filled with mines and other devices and took shots at eachother moving the battle lines back and forth.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran%E2%80%93Iraq_War

Keys to Paradise

On page 99 Persepolis talks about how the young boys in Iran were each given a plastic "key to paradise". The reason the boys were given these keys was to symbolize there entrance to heaven by dying in Jihad. The war with Iraq had turned to trench warfare with each side shooting across an open mine field. To get through the mines Iran sent thousands of young boys across the minefield to clear out the mines. It is said not a single child made it across to the other side alive.

http://www.andrewbrel.com/paradisekey/

Islamic Revolution

Persepollis lightens up the seriousness of the Islamic Revolution. The main character Marji is a child who tells the story and tells it as someone would expect a child to interpret the war. The novel makes the revolution seem less dramatic than it actually was. The revolution brought upon unnecessary violence in Iran. But dwelling on that you could really question the motivation of the revolution.

Usually in history we see some sort of revolution happen because of disagreements in politics. The politics of this revolution is questionable. Religion is the main focus of why fundamentalist have started a revolution. Revolutions in the past like the ones in France and Russia have happened because of the reform wanted by the people. Iran however finds that there are flaws in their society. Flaws that concern people's personal rights to do what they feel in respect to their religion. Some of the people felt that traditional islam method were sacred and use authority to make sure that this was kept sacred. The revolution happened because of extremist alternative motives.

http://www.nybooks.com/articles/archives/1988/jan/21/islamic-revolution/?pagination=false

Persepolis the City

Throughout the book, Marjane mentions several times her [and her people's] connection to Persia. To further emphasize this point, she named the book after the capital of Persia in the ancient world. In 1971, Iranians celebrated the 2500th anniversary of the founding of the Persian [Iranian] monarchy by Cyrus the Great. What is interesting is that this idea of a monarchy continued with Iran for thousands of years, and whenever Marjane became old enough to be aware of her surroundings, she recognized the horrors of her government and the people who wanted to change them even though the previous decade had celebrated such a government. However, even when the people got their change, the government seemed to only get worse. Like Persepolis, a foreign invasion practically destroyed the unity of her country, the government, and the educational system.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2,500_year_celebration_of_Iran%27s_monarchy

Inevitability of Death

I found the ending of Persepolis interesting. The author manages to escape her war torn home country, and the oppression and violence that she grew up surrounded by. Though her departure is bittersweet, one would expect an ending pointing towards hope for a better future outside of Iran. Yet the ending illustration shows Marji looking back, pressed against the glass partition that separates her from her parents. Her father looks grave, his face dark, as he carries his seemingly unconscious wife.
In the pages leading up to the end I did not expect such a dark ending. But if you follow the patterns of the book it makes sense. Taher sends his son to Holland, and though his son remains safe, Taher tragically dies without ever seeing him again. Satrapi focuses on the death of the father rather than the survival of the son. She grows up in a country that mourns the dead from the war twice a day, and embellishes their funerals and glorifies them as "martyrs." And despite her efforts to "think only of life" (95), I believe that Satrapi falls into the same belief as most of those in Iran- that the inevitability of death prevails over the continuity of life. This belief erases all hope for the future. This helps to explain the unusually dark ending of Persepolis. Though a brighter opportunity awaits Marji, all she can do is look back and mourn the life she thinks she is losing.

http://www.notablebiographies.com/newsmakers2/2006-Ra-Z/Satrapi-Marjane.html

After reading this book, I thought it would be interesting to see what Satrapi did after leaving Iran. As it turns out, she returned to Iran at the age of eighteen.