IMPORTANT: DIGITAL COMMONPLACE DIRECTIONS FOR UNIT 3
Rather than posting quotations and asking a question (as we did in the first unit), or gathering quotations and making a claim (as we did in the last unit) for the Digital Commonplaces in "Writing the Self: Biographical Approaches," you'll be asked to reflect on how each author’s writing choices interact with your own interpretive processes as audience members.
Please do the following:
1) Post at least two quotations (or in the case of Satrapi, you may want to describe the visual rhetoric on specific panels). If applicable, one quotation should be from the book itself and one should be from the secondary literature assigned with it. Please note the page numbers in your edition/from the article.
2) Then, using the following questions to help guide you, step back and reflect: o How has this autobiographical text--and these particular passages-- enhanced your own understanding of women's roles in society? o Does this author's choice to write about these personal experiences challenge any preconceived notions you had as a reader? o How does the author’s writing choices—or, in the case of Satrapi, her visual rhetoric—help forward the feminist notion that the personal is political?
The Complete Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi “As for me, I sealed my act of rebellion against my mother’s dictatorship by smoking the cigarette I’d stolen from my uncle two weeks earlier. / Kofff! Kofff! Kofff! / It was awful. But this was not the moment to give in. / With this first cigarette, I kissed childhood goodbye. Now I was a grown-up.” (The Complete Persepolis, 117). This text is taken from four small frames that line the bottom of the page. Marjane is at the center of each frame, in front of a black backdrop, attempting to smoke a cigarette for the first time. Readers see her from the torso up. Tears role down her eyes in the second and third frames as she chokes on the cigarette smoke. In the fourth frame, she faces the reader directly, making eye contact, a determined expression on her face.
Unveiling: Persepolis as Embodied Performance by Jennifer Worth "[Satrapi] demonstrates the complex interplay of political and personal history that serves to construct – or obstruct – the formation of identity itself, ultimately breaking away from a marginalized, ‘caught-between’ identity, ironically, through an embrace of her liminal status” (144).
In this passage of Persepolis, Marjane has just left a quarrel with her mother and escaped into their basement. She thinks about the executions of those who opposed the regime in Iran, then pulls a cigarette out of her pocket. A few pages prior to this, she concludes that her mother is the Guardian of the Revolution of their household, likening her to a dictator, an oppressive figure. When she goes to smoke this cigarette as an act of rebellion, she likens herself to the courageous opposition. For Marjane, this is an empowering moment. She feels that she is crossing over from childhood into adulthood, through this rebellious act.
As a child, Marjane feels oppressed by her parents’ authority, but she understands how her country’s government is oppressing her as a woman as well, at such a young age. By smoking this cigarette, she attempts to establish an identity for herself, both as a grown woman and as a member of the opposition. She makes her personal quarrel with her mother reflective of their larger political struggle. She also demonstrates her own confinement, in that she is only able to carry out this act of rebellion in secrecy. This too is reflective of all Iranian women, who could often only protest their oppression in subtle ways.
I like your emphasis on agency here despite oppression here, Diana. Your analysis pushes back at the dominant notion we have in the U.S. that veiled women are necessarily submissive or oppressed.
“They were Guardians of the Revoulution, The Women’s Branch. This group had been added in 1982, to arrest women who were improperly veiled. Their job was to put us back on the straight and narrow by explaining the duties of Muslim woman” (132 – 133). In these panels, Satrapi is stopped, and almost arrested, by the Guardians for wearing “punk” shoes and a denim jacket with a Michael Jackson pin, and she is almost taken to the committee to be punished until she escapes by lying that if she doesn’t return home soon that her stepmother will punish her and send her away.
“As an art student who is asked to draw a male model without looking at him (looking at the opposite sex being restricted by the moral code), and later stopped from running because her physical movement draws men’s attention, she comes to realize how bodies, and particularly female bodies, operate as a site of power struggles, and how a government can utilize that power to achieve its own ends” From Booth’s Unveiling
Satrapi shows this to depict how women in this society were restricted from wearing clothes that were considered to be “westernized.” The women in this society have no control over what they can wear because of the social restrictions, which dictate what women should wear and how they should wear it. And if they didn’t conform to these rules, they would be punished since it was considered a sign of revolution. By doing this, Satrapi is supporting the notion that the personal is political because she not only challenges the aspects of this systemic oppressive society but she is exposing how it works through her own experiences since one voice usually represents the voice of thousands.
You do an excellent job of emphasizing how Satrapi showcases the very real oppression that women face in Iran, Tramel. You might also consider what her decision to wear what she does--despite this oppression--suggests about veiled women.
“As an art student who is asked to draw a male model without looking at him (looking at the opposite sex being restricted by the moral code), and later stopped from running because her physical movement draws men’s attention, she comes to realize how bodies, and particularly female bodies, operate as a site of power struggles, and how a government can utilize that power to achieve its own ends” (Worth, 150).
The graphics where the teacher at Marjane’s school is yelling about how the girls need to be well behaved and wear their veils correctly and Marjane’s father says “If hair is as stimulating as you say, then you need to shave your mustache” (98) is a very important part of how bodies are controlled in this society. Also the scene when Marjane’s mother is harassed and threatened by the men on the street for not wearing a head covering shows the power struggle of keeping women’s bodies covered. They tell her mother, “Women like me should be pushed up against a wall and fucked. And then thrown in the garbage” (74).
The women in this society are expected to cover their bodies so they do not tempt men or cause them to feel any way toward the women’s bodies. By making these rules about head coverings and women not being able to move in particular ways, like running, it shows that these women have been overpowered by the rules of the government and this does not allow for any equality. It starts at a young age with the girls in school having to wear veils as well which takes away from their freedom of being children. It also shows a power struggle when men are threatening women on the street for not dressing appropriately and telling them they are essentially garbage for going against the government.
You do a great job of highlighting how Satrapi shows the very real oppression that women face in Iran, Felicity. You might also consider what it means that her father pushes back at this power--and her mother too--when considering Satrapi's textual choices.
"You say that we don't have political prisoners anymore, but we've gone from 3,000 prisoners under the Shah to 300,000 under your regime. How dare you lie to us like that?" "Oh, Satrapi!" - Satrapi, 144
During these three panels, Marjane is speaking out to her new teacher. The background is empty, aside from Marjane in the first two panels. The third has the teachers, and her fellow students clapping in agreement with her.
"In life you'll meet a lot of jerks. If they hurt you, tell yourself that it's because they're stupid. That will help keep you from reacting to their cruelty. Because there is nothing worse than bitterness and vengeance... always keep your dignity and be true to yourself." - Satrapi, 150
This is from the bottom panel on the page. Just before this her grandmother says “Oh, I’ll come see you” since Marjane leaves for Austria soon after this, and she knows that those words are lies. Her grandmother is giving her some last bit of wisdom in person.
"Satrapi’s narrative voice (which is distinct from Marjane’s) indicates how frequently she is lied to – by her parents, her friends, her government. Knowing that words can be used to manipulate, she comes to regard embodied experience as more reliable." - Worth, 150
Marjane sticks her neck out, and refuses to listen and obey the propaganda told to her. The personal is very political, when she speaks out to her teacher she calls it "your regime." She rebels with music, clothes, smoking, but she also rebels by actively speaking out against the lies told to her. She goes against her teachers, and family, and tries to be her own self. She tries to be true to herself with what she knows and what she learns. She is constantly evolving and growing, trying to put herself, or think about people in awful situations she hears about so she can be compassionate and empathetic about what is going on around her.
Good job highlighting Marjane's agency despite the oppressive regime, Mari. It seems like even though her grandmother is hiding the truth, she, too, is telling Marjane to push back at stupid people. I'm curious, too, how the visuals you highlight work into Worth's claims about "embodied experience" and the graphic novel.
“So, my great dream went up in smoke. I wouldn’t be able to go to the United States. . . . / No more university, and I wanted to study chemistry. I wanted to be like Marie Curie. / I wanted to be an educated, liberated woman. And if the pursuit of knowledge meant getting cancer, so be it. . . . / Misery! At the age that Marie Curie first went to France to study, I’ll probably have ten children” (72-73).
Marji’s dream for education shows her drive towards wanting equal opportunity and freedom for women. She sees Maris Curie, the first woman physics professor who was educated in science, medicine, and law, as her motivation, which only enhances her belief in the success of women. The fact that Marji is willing to be independent and educated at a risk of physical harm shows her strength and determination towards gender equality. Though her freedom may come at a price, she is willing to pay to get it. The final panel demonstrates the reality of the society Marji is faced with though, as she realizes she is not Marie Curie, and has different things expected of her in her community.
This notion is also describes in the next scene involving her mother:
“They insulted me. They said that women like me should be pushed up against a wall and fucked and then thrown in the garbage. / … and if I didn’t want that to happen, I should wear the veil” (74).
When this happened to Marji’s mom, it stressed the fact that their society is based off of men’s rules and judgement. Since the men were not punished for their offence, it reinforces rape culture and ideas that people should blame the victim for not covering their bodies. This turns women into sexual objects.
Good job analyzing how the oppressive Iranian regime denies women agency. You might also consider how these passages highlight agency despite oppression as well.
"It's Anwar Al-Sadat who will accept [the Shah] into his country." "Who's he?" "He is the President of Egypt." "And why is he taking in the Shah?" "They've been friends for a long time. They both betrayed the countries of our region by making a pact with Israel." "?" "In any case, as long as there is oil in the Middle East we will never have peace. "Let's talk about something else. Let's enjoy our new freedom!" "Now that the devil has left!" (Satrapi 43).
"Throughout both volumes, Satrapi’s narrative voice (which is distinct from Marjane’s) indicates how frequently she is lied to – by her parents, her friends, her government. Knowing that words can be used to manipulate, she comes to regard embodied experience as more reliable" (Worth 150).
In the panels by Satrapi, Marji is being told about the Shah's flee into Egypt after his regimine fell. However, in the panels where her mother and father are speaking, the background is black and both adults are standing above Marji; in the last panel in the middle row, Marji's father looks rather menacing compared to his presentation earlier on the page. So, while their words are being used to reassure her at such a young age, Satrapi especially foreshadows the negative outcomes of their actions by including a demon-snake in the final panel of the passage.
Some days later... What are you thinking?... About Taher. His son leaving him has done him in. I've never seen him like that./ Can you imagine? A thirteen, fourteen-year-old child, alone, in a country where he doesn't even speak the language?... Tch. At fourteen you don't need your parents anymore!/ Get real. Up to a certain age, you need your parents, then later, they need you./You'd be better off without nail polish. You could get arrested... I'll put my hands in my pockets./Pretty stubborn girl, huh?... Where do you suppose she gets that?/Sometimes it scares me how blunt she is... It'll help her later on, you'll see.../ (119)
"Although it may seem strange to mix Adorno and Kristeva with a popular cultural form like the graphic novel, Satrapi’s text is at heart about the creation of the self. Satrapi deals in detail with the serious issues of identity and subjectivity these theorists engage, but she does so in an accessible, frequently humorous way." (Worth 154)
Worth refers to Satrapi's text as being about the creation of the self, which is emphasized in the panels described above. Despite the fact that women have no control over how they are allowed to appear, Marji rebels in any way she can without getting in trouble for it. Here, she decides to wear nail polish because she likes the way it looks; it is becoming a very small part of her identity that represents a much greater push-back against the necessity to conform. Women clearly do not have agency over their own bodies, but in a very small way here, Marji is attempting to reclaim that. Marji is attempting to "create" herself, despite her existence in a society that forces her to do otherwise.
Excellent analysis, Emily. I love how you acknowledge the oppressive society, while also acknowledging Marjane's situated agency and ability to fight back, if only incrementally.
Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi “For me, I sealed my act of rebellion against my mother’s dictatorship by smoking the cigarette I’d stolen from my uncle two weeks earlier./ Kofff! Kofff! Kofff!!!/ It was awful. But this was not the moment to give in. / With this first cigarette, I kissed childhood goodbye.” (Satrapi, 117)
“You say that we don’t have political prisoners anymore. But we’ve gone from 3000 prisoners under the Shah to 300,000 under your regime./ How dare you lie to us like that?” (144)
Unveiling: Persepolis as Embodied Performance by Jennifer Worth “Throughout both volumes, Satrapi’s narrative voice (which is distinct from Marjane’s) indicates Ihow frequently she is lied to – by her parents, her friends, her government. Knowing that words can be used to manipulate, she comes to regard embodied experience as more reliable. During a visit from her mother, Marjane has difficulty verbally expressing the troubles she has faced in Vienna, but finds relief that ‘when words failed us, gestures came to our aid’.16 Several times Satrapi entirely forgoes written text to tell parts of her story, such as the death of a friend, entirely in images, as if to suggest that words are a poor substitute for some experiences” (Worth, 8).
By beginning the narrative in 1980, Satrapi offers us a lens through which to watch not only her country’s revolution, but her own. However, as this does shift between the political and the personal, blending the two (as they were then, as they are now, very closely linked), it can sometimes feel as though you’re looking through a kaleidoscope. Shortly after the second quote I chose by Satrapi, Marjane is scolded by her mother when she points out criticizing the regime in the way that she did could get her put in an extremely precarious position. It’s in moments such as those that Marjane comes to realize just how delicate her place in society is.
"As if my natural deformity wasn't enough, I tried a few new haircuts. A little snip of the scissors on the left. And a week later, a little snip of scissors on the right. I looked like Cosette in 'Les Miserables.' So I coated my hair with gel, I added a thick line of eyeliner, a few saftey pins, which were replaced by a scarf. It softened the look. It was beginning to look like something" (Satrapi, 190).
"For Satrapi, the veil – and all it represents – is a means to hide and control women. While in her homeland, Marjane must wear the veil, as ordered by the Islamic Guardians of the Revolution, but later finds that, even while pursuing her education in presumably free Austria, she hides herself under a succession of various symbolic ‘veils’, cloaking herself beneath different, physically distinct manifestations, none of which bring her the satisfaction of subjecthood. Rather, they do the opposite" (Worth, 155).
I really liked Worth's anaylsis of Satrapi's various identites as another form of veil. When we see the veil in the graphic novel, it has obvious implications, both historical and symbolic. While many women may find freedom in veiling themselves by personal choice, as a systemic rule it oppresses personal freedom. However, women do not just have the physical veil of identity that marginalizes and oppressions them, but the various identites forced upon them. A women cannot just be "herself," as Satrapi realizes throughout her book. She must have a veil of identity: a statement made by clothing, hair, or personality that can tell a person who she is. She cannot just be a person, but a multitude of different identities. In essence the "veil" is not just within Islamic culture, but within the wordly culture as well.
"The Complete Persepolis" Marjane Satrapi “After the death of Neda Baba-Levy, my life took a new turn. In 1984, I was fourteen and a rebel. Nothing scared me anymore … I had learned that you always need to shout louder than your aggressor.” (143)
"Unveiling: Persepolis as Embodied Performance" Jennifer Worth "Throughout both volumes, Satrapi’s narrative voice (which is distinct from Marjane’s) indicates how frequently she is lied to – by her parents, her friends, her government. Knowing that words can be used to manipulate, she comes to regard embodied experience as more reliable." (150)
Throughout the book, Marjane is depicted as independent, curious, and brave. Despite the oppression she has been facing as a woman and as an Iranian, she does not let all of the trauma her and her family have been through stop her from developing into an intelligent and independent woman. Even after she blacks out from shocking sight of Neda’s death, she uses her anger towards society and acts out in rebellion. The quote, “nothing scared me anymore” is shocking and powerful, it expresses just how much Marjane has been through at such a young age and how she uses it to her advantage when it comes to standing up for herself. Satrapi expresses that personal is political through her/Marjane’s voice by taking all of the death and destruction she has faced and using that pain to stand up for what she believes is right.
12. The Complete Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi & “Unveiling Persepolis as Embodied Performance” by Jennifer Worth - Quote from Satrapi: Grandma: “IN LIFE YOU’LL MEET A LOT OF JERKS. IF THEY HURT YOU, TELL YOURSELF IT’S BECAUSE THEY’RE STUPID. THAT WILL HELP KEEP YOU FROM REACTING TO THEIR CRUELTY. BECAUSE THERE IS NOTHING WORSE THAN BITTERNESS AND VENGEANCE. . . ALWAYS KEEP YOUR DIGNITY AND BE TRUE TO YOURSELF” (150).
- Quote from Worth: “Satrapi is not simply concerned with recounting the difficulty of resolving an identity caught between two worlds . . . . Rather, she demonstrates the complex interplay of political and personal history that serves to construct – or obstruct – the formation of identity itself . . . “ (144).
- These passages help to emphasize the point that “the personal is political.” With Marjane and her family so effected by the war, from a very early age, the reader sees how every decision they make is influenced by their political surroundings. This has to do with the war and then tyranny that they live in. It highlights how political and personal experiences are based; for example, later in the novel, Marjane’s sexual modesty stems from her personal background and Persian roots. However, this is caused by the political structure she is used to where even a woman showing her ankles could be considered indecent exposure. It is interesting to see the images and the dialogue which Satrapi presents which bluntly and truthfully present the connection between one’s thoughts, one’s history, and one’s actions.
"Then came 1980: The year it became oobligatory to wear the veil at school. We didn't really like to wear the veil, especially since we didn't understand why we had to" (3).
"'They insulted me. They said that women like me should be pushed up against a wall and fucked, and then thrown in the garbage. And that if I didn't want that to happen, I should wear the veil...'" (74).
The veil in this novel immediately reminds me of The Handmaid's Tale, especially in the quote I chose from page 74. I understand that the veil could be part of their religion, which I admit to not fully understanding, but it seems to me that the women in this novel very much find it to be oppressive. It is used to control women, rather than trying to control men that harm them. I find it interesting that Satrapi opens her graphic novel with a chapter about the enforcement of the veil, before going back in time to describe the events leading up to 1980. I think by starting the novel this way, Satrapi is not only establishing the veil as one of the book's more important symbols, but also the enforcement of the veil being a point of no return for Marj: when she is forced to where the veil, she is experiencing the first real effects of the war, and a lose of freedom and identity as a woman as a result.
As an art student who is asked to draw a male model without looking at him (looking at the opposite sex being restricted by the moral code), and later stopped from running because her physical movement draws men’s attention, she comes to realize how bodies, and particularly female bodies, operate as a site of power struggles, and how a government can utilize that power to achieve its own ends” (Worth, 150).
The women in this particular society was governed by the government as to what they could do and not do, therefore limiting there ability of having freedom and equality. The women had to cover themselves in order for men to not "draw attention" and if they went against the rule of what the government ordered men in particular would cast explicit degrading words to them.
In life you'll meet a lot of jerks. If they hurt you, tell yourself that it's because they're stupid. That will help keep you from reacting to their cruelty. Because there is nothing worse than bitterness and vengeance... always keep your dignity and be true to yourself" (Satrapi, 150).
Marjanes grandmother was leaving and told Marjane that she would see her later, in which Marjane know that it is all a lie.
The information I chose to highlight from Satrapi's text was the moment when Marjane felt/knew her grandmother was lying about coming to see her while in Austria.
In a way I would say I had a single story outlook on veiled women, in particular due to the media setting that in session and filling people's mind with senseless stereotypes.
Understanding that veiled women may be interpreted incorrectly and that veiled women at the same time our some of our brightest future entrepreneurs, doctors etc that alone set the notion for me to understand that the stereotypes that are set out against them barely holds any truth to it but to understand that there is more to just a veiled women.
"I agreed with my mother. I too tried to think only of life. However, it wasn't always; at school, they lined us up twice a day to mourn the war dead. They put on funeral marches, and we had to beat our breasts" (95). This is a particularly effective piece of visual rhetoric because although all of the girls are in the same veiled uniform, they still have different features and faces. This challenges former notions of Orientalism the reader may have had about Middle Eastern countries/women.
“Satrapi is not simply concerned with recounting the difficulty of resolving an identity caught between two worlds . . . . Rather, she demonstrates the complex interplay of political and personal history that serves to construct – or obstruct – the formation of identity itself" (144).
Satrapi exposes identity within a world where everyone seems to be in complete uniform. This challenges Orientalist views of the Middle East and allows the reader to change their perception. Instead of creating an "other" we are allowed to see people for who they are.
"Satrapi is not concerned simply with documenting her past, but with performing – that is, actively re-creating – her quest for identity through the mimetic acts of showing and telling her personal history" (Worth, 144)
On page 61 of Persepolis there's a panel where Satrapi is walking in to a forest that almost looks like flames with two friends bragging about how heroic her family members are.
Worth's assertion about this memoir being a reenactment of identity seems true to me. Satrapi is primarily concerned with in this section with the loss of innocence and how identity is formed. Her depiction of childhood in wartime is uses humor as brutal realism. War and idealism isn't ever as romantic as we make it out to be, adults and children both have selfish motives, and Satrapi is able to depict that without demonizing anyone.
This section focused more on women towards the end but primarily, because Satrapi is still a child, showed the restrictions of freedom for everyone. Is not until Satrapi begins to grow up that her differences are really spotlighted, and her freedoms as a women limited.
"[Satrapi's Father]: Let's talk about something else. Let's enjoy our new freedom! [Satrapi's Mother]: Now that the devil has left!" (43) (There is a demon creature coiled around the panel, glancing maliciously back at the family and foreshadowing that the worst is yet to come)
"Satrapi’s choice to tell her own story through a graphic novel is a well-thought-out strategy that uses the liminality of the form to effectively underscore her subject matter. In the field of cultural production, comics are considered at best a marginal art form, and among both artists and readers women are a minority." (Worth)
Satrapi's choice to give us her autobiography/memoir in graphic novel form, much like Alison Bechdel's (brilliant!) "Fun Home," is an embodiment of the feminist belief that the personal as political. She not only gives us her words, but she lays her life out for us on the page in her illustrations, bringing us in to see her perception of her own life as a political device. There's nothing more personal than that.
Satrapi "I wanted to be an educated, liberated woman, and if the pursuit of knowledge meant getting cancer, so be it" (73).
Worth "Hearing other stories of family friends tortured with a hot iron, she begins to relate to her peaceful domestic environment in a different way - even, in a short-lived attempt to appropriate some of this terrible power for herself, inventing her own methods of physical torture to try out on her playmates" (148).
In terms of the personal as political, "Persepolis" in uncensored. No detail is spared - rather, no detail that is important to the story is spared. Nothing useless is thrown into the text, nothing without purpose. She doesn't just shove things into the story that are irrelevant; everything is intentional. So by putting a lot of personal experience into the political sphere of what's happening, by actively putting herself into this position, she showcases what it's like to be a person in this area at the time, and not just herself: her parents, maid, friends, uncle, etc. More than just her own story is incorporated, so it's an active sphere of different perspectives.
"In life you will meet a lot of jerks. If they hurt you, tell yourself that it's because they are stupid. That will help keep you from reacting to their cruelty. Because there is nothing worse then bitterness and vengeance...Always keep your dignity and be true to yourself"(150).
This is the night before MarJane leaves for Austria. Her grandmother gives her this advice. The words spoken by her grandmother are true even in todays world. It must have been harder then. I can't even imagine what it must have been like growing up in Iran during this time. While reading this novel a lot of what is happening only seems to be happening to the women alone. I find myself thinking of Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale, especially when the Islamic Republic starts telling women to wear the head scarfs as "protection" from men. Or when women can't wear anything but the full covering and are attacked by the women's section of the Islamic Republic like Marjane is on pages 132-134. Women had freedom until the Islamic Republic took over. Its almost as if Women where at fault for the way men acted.
IMPORTANT: DIGITAL COMMONPLACE DIRECTIONS FOR UNIT 3
ReplyDeleteRather than posting quotations and asking a question (as we did in the first unit), or gathering quotations and making a claim (as we did in the last unit) for the Digital Commonplaces in "Writing the Self: Biographical Approaches," you'll be asked to reflect on how each author’s writing choices interact with your own interpretive processes as audience members.
Please do the following:
1) Post at least two quotations (or in the case of Satrapi, you may want to describe the visual rhetoric on specific panels). If applicable, one quotation should be from the book itself and one should be from the secondary literature assigned with it. Please note the page numbers in your edition/from the article.
2) Then, using the following questions to help guide you, step back and reflect:
o How has this autobiographical text--and these particular passages-- enhanced
your own understanding of women's roles in society?
o Does this author's choice to write about these personal experiences challenge any
preconceived notions you had as a reader?
o How does the author’s writing choices—or, in the case of Satrapi, her visual
rhetoric—help forward the feminist notion that the personal is political?
The Complete Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi
ReplyDelete“As for me, I sealed my act of rebellion against my mother’s dictatorship by smoking the cigarette I’d stolen from my uncle two weeks earlier. / Kofff! Kofff! Kofff! / It was awful. But this was not the moment to give in. / With this first cigarette, I kissed childhood goodbye. Now I was a grown-up.” (The Complete Persepolis, 117).
This text is taken from four small frames that line the bottom of the page. Marjane is at the center of each frame, in front of a black backdrop, attempting to smoke a cigarette for the first time. Readers see her from the torso up. Tears role down her eyes in the second and third frames as she chokes on the cigarette smoke. In the fourth frame, she faces the reader directly, making eye contact, a determined expression on her face.
Unveiling: Persepolis as Embodied Performance by Jennifer Worth
"[Satrapi] demonstrates the complex interplay of political and personal history that serves to construct – or obstruct – the formation of identity itself, ultimately breaking away from a marginalized, ‘caught-between’ identity, ironically, through an embrace of her liminal status” (144).
In this passage of Persepolis, Marjane has just left a quarrel with her mother and escaped into their basement. She thinks about the executions of those who opposed the regime in Iran, then pulls a cigarette out of her pocket. A few pages prior to this, she concludes that her mother is the Guardian of the Revolution of their household, likening her to a dictator, an oppressive figure. When she goes to smoke this cigarette as an act of rebellion, she likens herself to the courageous opposition. For Marjane, this is an empowering moment. She feels that she is crossing over from childhood into adulthood, through this rebellious act.
As a child, Marjane feels oppressed by her parents’ authority, but she understands how her country’s government is oppressing her as a woman as well, at such a young age. By smoking this cigarette, she attempts to establish an identity for herself, both as a grown woman and as a member of the opposition. She makes her personal quarrel with her mother reflective of their larger political struggle. She also demonstrates her own confinement, in that she is only able to carry out this act of rebellion in secrecy. This too is reflective of all Iranian women, who could often only protest their oppression in subtle ways.
I like your emphasis on agency here despite oppression here, Diana. Your analysis pushes back at the dominant notion we have in the U.S. that veiled women are necessarily submissive or oppressed.
Delete“They were Guardians of the Revoulution, The Women’s Branch. This group had been added in 1982, to arrest women who were improperly veiled. Their job was to put us back on the straight and narrow by explaining the duties of Muslim woman” (132 – 133). In these panels, Satrapi is stopped, and almost arrested, by the Guardians for wearing “punk” shoes and a denim jacket with a Michael Jackson pin, and she is almost taken to the committee to be punished until she escapes by lying that if she doesn’t return home soon that her stepmother will punish her and send her away.
ReplyDelete“As an art student who is asked to draw a male model without looking at him (looking at the opposite sex being restricted by the moral code), and later stopped from running because her physical movement draws men’s attention, she comes to realize how bodies, and particularly female bodies, operate as a site of power struggles, and how a government can utilize that power to achieve its own ends” From Booth’s Unveiling
Satrapi shows this to depict how women in this society were restricted from wearing clothes that were considered to be “westernized.” The women in this society have no control over what they can wear because of the social restrictions, which dictate what women should wear and how they should wear it. And if they didn’t conform to these rules, they would be punished since it was considered a sign of revolution. By doing this, Satrapi is supporting the notion that the personal is political because she not only challenges the aspects of this systemic oppressive society but she is exposing how it works through her own experiences since one voice usually represents the voice of thousands.
You do an excellent job of emphasizing how Satrapi showcases the very real oppression that women face in Iran, Tramel. You might also consider what her decision to wear what she does--despite this oppression--suggests about veiled women.
Delete“As an art student who is asked to draw a male model without looking at him (looking at the opposite sex being restricted by the moral code), and later stopped from running because her physical movement draws men’s attention, she comes to realize how bodies, and particularly female bodies, operate as a site of power struggles, and how a government can utilize that power to achieve its own ends” (Worth, 150).
ReplyDeleteThe graphics where the teacher at Marjane’s school is yelling about how the girls need to be well behaved and wear their veils correctly and Marjane’s father says “If hair is as stimulating as you say, then you need to shave your mustache” (98) is a very important part of how bodies are controlled in this society. Also the scene when Marjane’s mother is harassed and threatened by the men on the street for not wearing a head covering shows the power struggle of keeping women’s bodies covered. They tell her mother, “Women like me should be pushed up against a wall and fucked. And then thrown in the garbage” (74).
The women in this society are expected to cover their bodies so they do not tempt men or cause them to feel any way toward the women’s bodies. By making these rules about head coverings and women not being able to move in particular ways, like running, it shows that these women have been overpowered by the rules of the government and this does not allow for any equality. It starts at a young age with the girls in school having to wear veils as well which takes away from their freedom of being children. It also shows a power struggle when men are threatening women on the street for not dressing appropriately and telling them they are essentially garbage for going against the government.
You do a great job of highlighting how Satrapi shows the very real oppression that women face in Iran, Felicity. You might also consider what it means that her father pushes back at this power--and her mother too--when considering Satrapi's textual choices.
Delete"You say that we don't have political prisoners anymore, but we've gone from 3,000 prisoners under the Shah to 300,000 under your regime. How dare you lie to us like that?"
ReplyDelete"Oh, Satrapi!"
- Satrapi, 144
During these three panels, Marjane is speaking out to her new teacher. The background is empty, aside from Marjane in the first two panels. The third has the teachers, and her fellow students clapping in agreement with her.
"In life you'll meet a lot of jerks. If they hurt you, tell yourself that it's because they're stupid. That will help keep you from reacting to their cruelty. Because there is nothing worse than bitterness and vengeance... always keep your dignity and be true to yourself." - Satrapi, 150
This is from the bottom panel on the page. Just before this her grandmother says “Oh, I’ll come see you” since Marjane leaves for Austria soon after this, and she knows that those words are lies. Her grandmother is giving her some last bit of wisdom in person.
"Satrapi’s narrative voice (which is distinct from Marjane’s) indicates how frequently she is lied to – by her parents, her friends, her government. Knowing that words can be used to manipulate, she comes to regard embodied experience as more reliable." - Worth, 150
Marjane sticks her neck out, and refuses to listen and obey the propaganda told to her. The personal is very political, when she speaks out to her teacher she calls it "your regime." She rebels with music, clothes, smoking, but she also rebels by actively speaking out against the lies told to her. She goes against her teachers, and family, and tries to be her own self. She tries to be true to herself with what she knows and what she learns. She is constantly evolving and growing, trying to put herself, or think about people in awful situations she hears about so she can be compassionate and empathetic about what is going on around her.
Good job highlighting Marjane's agency despite the oppressive regime, Mari. It seems like even though her grandmother is hiding the truth, she, too, is telling Marjane to push back at stupid people. I'm curious, too, how the visuals you highlight work into Worth's claims about "embodied experience" and the graphic novel.
Delete“So, my great dream went up in smoke. I wouldn’t be able to go to the United States. . . . / No more university, and I wanted to study chemistry. I wanted to be like Marie Curie. / I wanted to be an educated, liberated woman. And if the pursuit of knowledge meant getting cancer, so be it. . . . / Misery! At the age that Marie Curie first went to France to study, I’ll probably have ten children” (72-73).
ReplyDeleteMarji’s dream for education shows her drive towards wanting equal opportunity and freedom for women. She sees Maris Curie, the first woman physics professor who was educated in science, medicine, and law, as her motivation, which only enhances her belief in the success of women. The fact that Marji is willing to be independent and educated at a risk of physical harm shows her strength and determination towards gender equality. Though her freedom may come at a price, she is willing to pay to get it. The final panel demonstrates the reality of the society Marji is faced with though, as she realizes she is not Marie Curie, and has different things expected of her in her community.
This notion is also describes in the next scene involving her mother:
“They insulted me. They said that women like me should be pushed up against a wall and fucked and then thrown in the garbage. / … and if I didn’t want that to happen, I should wear the veil” (74).
When this happened to Marji’s mom, it stressed the fact that their society is based off of men’s rules and judgement. Since the men were not punished for their offence, it reinforces rape culture and ideas that people should blame the victim for not covering their bodies. This turns women into sexual objects.
Good job analyzing how the oppressive Iranian regime denies women agency. You might also consider how these passages highlight agency despite oppression as well.
ReplyDelete"It's Anwar Al-Sadat who will accept [the Shah] into his country." "Who's he?"
ReplyDelete"He is the President of Egypt."
"And why is he taking in the Shah?" "They've been friends for a long time. They both betrayed the countries of our region by making a pact with Israel." "?"
"In any case, as long as there is oil in the Middle East we will never have peace.
"Let's talk about something else. Let's enjoy our new freedom!" "Now that the devil has left!" (Satrapi 43).
"Throughout both volumes, Satrapi’s narrative voice (which is distinct from Marjane’s) indicates how frequently she is lied to – by her parents, her friends, her government. Knowing that words can be used to manipulate, she comes to regard embodied experience as more reliable" (Worth 150).
In the panels by Satrapi, Marji is being told about the Shah's flee into Egypt after his regimine fell. However, in the panels where her mother and father are speaking, the background is black and both adults are standing above Marji; in the last panel in the middle row, Marji's father looks rather menacing compared to his presentation earlier on the page. So, while their words are being used to reassure her at such a young age, Satrapi especially foreshadows the negative outcomes of their actions by including a demon-snake in the final panel of the passage.
Interesting visual analysis, Kassie. I wonder how her father's embodiment (as Satrapi sees and thus draws him) is linked to dominant gender norms?
DeleteSome days later... What are you thinking?... About Taher. His son leaving him has done him in. I've never seen him like that./ Can you imagine? A thirteen, fourteen-year-old child, alone, in a country where he doesn't even speak the language?... Tch. At fourteen you don't need your parents anymore!/ Get real. Up to a certain age, you need your parents, then later, they need you./You'd be better off without nail polish. You could get arrested... I'll put my hands in my pockets./Pretty stubborn girl, huh?... Where do you suppose she gets that?/Sometimes it scares me how blunt she is... It'll help her later on, you'll see.../ (119)
ReplyDelete"Although it may seem strange to mix Adorno and Kristeva with a popular cultural form like the graphic novel, Satrapi’s text is at heart about the creation of the self. Satrapi deals in detail with the serious issues of identity and subjectivity these theorists engage, but she does so in an accessible, frequently humorous way." (Worth 154)
Worth refers to Satrapi's text as being about the creation of the self, which is emphasized in the panels described above. Despite the fact that women have no control over how they are allowed to appear, Marji rebels in any way she can without getting in trouble for it. Here, she decides to wear nail polish because she likes the way it looks; it is becoming a very small part of her identity that represents a much greater push-back against the necessity to conform. Women clearly do not have agency over their own bodies, but in a very small way here, Marji is attempting to reclaim that. Marji is attempting to "create" herself, despite her existence in a society that forces her to do otherwise.
Excellent analysis, Emily. I love how you acknowledge the oppressive society, while also acknowledging Marjane's situated agency and ability to fight back, if only incrementally.
ReplyDeletePersepolis by Marjane Satrapi
ReplyDelete“For me, I sealed my act of rebellion against my mother’s dictatorship by smoking the cigarette I’d stolen from my uncle two weeks earlier./ Kofff! Kofff! Kofff!!!/ It was awful. But this was not the moment to give in. / With this first cigarette, I kissed childhood goodbye.” (Satrapi, 117)
“You say that we don’t have political prisoners anymore. But we’ve gone from 3000 prisoners under the Shah to 300,000 under your regime./ How dare you lie to us like that?” (144)
Unveiling: Persepolis as Embodied Performance by Jennifer Worth
“Throughout both volumes, Satrapi’s narrative voice (which is distinct from Marjane’s) indicates Ihow frequently she is lied to – by her parents, her friends, her government. Knowing that words can be used to manipulate, she comes to regard embodied experience as more reliable. During a visit from her mother, Marjane has difficulty verbally expressing the troubles she has faced in Vienna, but finds relief that ‘when words failed us, gestures came to our aid’.16 Several times Satrapi entirely forgoes written text to tell parts of her story, such as the death of a friend, entirely in images, as if to suggest that words are a poor substitute for some experiences” (Worth, 8).
By beginning the narrative in 1980, Satrapi offers us a lens through which to watch not only her country’s revolution, but her own. However, as this does shift between the political and the personal, blending the two (as they were then, as they are now, very closely linked), it can sometimes feel as though you’re looking through a kaleidoscope.
Shortly after the second quote I chose by Satrapi, Marjane is scolded by her mother when she points out criticizing the regime in the way that she did could get her put in an extremely precarious position. It’s in moments such as those that Marjane comes to realize just how delicate her place in society is.
"As if my natural deformity wasn't enough, I tried a few new haircuts. A little snip of the scissors on the left. And a week later, a little snip of scissors on the right. I looked like Cosette in 'Les Miserables.' So I coated my hair with gel, I added a thick line of eyeliner, a few saftey pins, which were replaced by a scarf. It softened the look. It was beginning to look like something" (Satrapi, 190).
ReplyDelete"For Satrapi, the veil – and all it represents – is a means to hide and control women.
While in her homeland, Marjane must wear the veil, as ordered by the Islamic Guardians
of the Revolution, but later finds that, even while pursuing her education in presumably
free Austria, she hides herself under a succession of various symbolic ‘veils’, cloaking
herself beneath different, physically distinct manifestations, none of which bring her the
satisfaction of subjecthood. Rather, they do the opposite" (Worth, 155).
I really liked Worth's anaylsis of Satrapi's various identites as another form of veil. When we see the veil in the graphic novel, it has obvious implications, both historical and symbolic. While many women may find freedom in veiling themselves by personal choice, as a systemic rule it oppresses personal freedom. However, women do not just have the physical veil of identity that marginalizes and oppressions them, but the various identites forced upon them. A women cannot just be "herself," as Satrapi realizes throughout her book. She must have a veil of identity: a statement made by clothing, hair, or personality that can tell a person who she is. She cannot just be a person, but a multitude of different identities. In essence the "veil" is not just within Islamic culture, but within the wordly culture as well.
"The Complete Persepolis" Marjane Satrapi
ReplyDelete“After the death of Neda Baba-Levy, my life took a new turn. In 1984, I was fourteen and a rebel. Nothing scared me anymore … I had learned that you always need to shout louder than your aggressor.” (143)
"Unveiling: Persepolis as Embodied Performance" Jennifer Worth
"Throughout both volumes, Satrapi’s narrative voice (which is distinct from
Marjane’s) indicates how frequently she is lied to – by her parents, her friends, her
government. Knowing that words can be used to manipulate, she comes to regard
embodied experience as more reliable." (150)
Throughout the book, Marjane is depicted as independent, curious, and brave. Despite the oppression she has been facing as a woman and as an Iranian, she does not let all of the trauma her and her family have been through stop her from developing into an intelligent and independent woman. Even after she blacks out from shocking sight of Neda’s death, she uses her anger towards society and acts out in rebellion. The quote, “nothing scared me anymore” is shocking and powerful, it expresses just how much Marjane has been through at such a young age and how she uses it to her advantage when it comes to standing up for herself. Satrapi expresses that personal is political through her/Marjane’s voice by taking all of the death and destruction she has faced and using that pain to stand up for what she believes is right.
12. The Complete Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi & “Unveiling Persepolis as Embodied Performance” by Jennifer Worth
ReplyDelete- Quote from Satrapi:
Grandma: “IN LIFE YOU’LL MEET A LOT OF JERKS. IF THEY HURT YOU, TELL YOURSELF IT’S BECAUSE THEY’RE STUPID. THAT WILL HELP KEEP YOU FROM REACTING TO THEIR CRUELTY. BECAUSE THERE IS NOTHING WORSE THAN BITTERNESS AND VENGEANCE. . . ALWAYS KEEP YOUR DIGNITY AND BE TRUE TO YOURSELF” (150).
- Quote from Worth: “Satrapi is not simply concerned with recounting the difficulty of resolving an identity caught between two worlds . . . . Rather, she demonstrates the complex interplay of political and personal history that serves to construct – or obstruct – the formation of identity itself . . . “ (144).
- These passages help to emphasize the point that “the personal is political.” With Marjane and her family so effected by the war, from a very early age, the reader sees how every decision they make is influenced by their political surroundings. This has to do with the war and then tyranny that they live in. It highlights how political and personal experiences are based; for example, later in the novel, Marjane’s sexual modesty stems from her personal background and Persian roots. However, this is caused by the political structure she is used to where even a woman showing her ankles could be considered indecent exposure. It is interesting to see the images and the dialogue which Satrapi presents which bluntly and truthfully present the connection between one’s thoughts, one’s history, and one’s actions.
Satrapi- The Complete Persepolis
ReplyDelete"Then came 1980: The year it became oobligatory to wear the veil at school. We didn't really like to wear the veil, especially since we didn't understand why we had to" (3).
"'They insulted me. They said that women like me should be pushed up against a wall and fucked, and then thrown in the garbage. And that if I didn't want that to happen, I should wear the veil...'" (74).
The veil in this novel immediately reminds me of The Handmaid's Tale, especially in the quote I chose from page 74. I understand that the veil could be part of their religion, which I admit to not fully understanding, but it seems to me that the women in this novel very much find it to be oppressive. It is used to control women, rather than trying to control men that harm them. I find it interesting that Satrapi opens her graphic novel with a chapter about the enforcement of the veil, before going back in time to describe the events leading up to 1980. I think by starting the novel this way, Satrapi is not only establishing the veil as one of the book's more important symbols, but also the enforcement of the veil being a point of no return for Marj: when she is forced to where the veil, she is experiencing the first real effects of the war, and a lose of freedom and identity as a woman as a result.
As an art student who is asked to draw a male model without looking at him (looking at the opposite sex being restricted by the moral code), and later stopped from running because her physical movement draws men’s attention, she comes to realize how bodies, and particularly female bodies, operate as a site of power struggles, and how a government can utilize that power to achieve its own ends” (Worth, 150).
ReplyDeleteThe women in this particular society was governed by the government as to what they could do and not do, therefore limiting there ability of having freedom and equality. The women had to cover themselves in order for men to not "draw attention" and if they went against the rule of what the government ordered men in particular would cast explicit degrading words to them.
In life you'll meet a lot of jerks. If they hurt you, tell yourself that it's because they're stupid. That will help keep you from reacting to their cruelty. Because there is nothing worse than bitterness and vengeance... always keep your dignity and be true to yourself" (Satrapi, 150).
Marjanes grandmother was leaving and told Marjane that she would see her later, in which Marjane know that it is all a lie.
The information I chose to highlight from Satrapi's text was the moment when Marjane felt/knew her grandmother was lying about coming to see her while in Austria.
DeleteIn a way I would say I had a single story outlook on veiled women, in particular due to the media setting that in session and filling people's mind with senseless stereotypes.
Understanding that veiled women may be interpreted incorrectly and that veiled women at the same time our some of our brightest future entrepreneurs, doctors etc that alone set the notion for me to understand that the stereotypes that are set out against them barely holds any truth to it but to understand that there is more to just a veiled women.
"I agreed with my mother. I too tried to think only of life. However, it wasn't always; at school, they lined us up twice a day to mourn the war dead. They put on funeral marches, and we had to beat our breasts" (95).
ReplyDeleteThis is a particularly effective piece of visual rhetoric because although all of the girls are in the same veiled uniform, they still have different features and faces. This challenges former notions of Orientalism the reader may have had about Middle Eastern countries/women.
“Satrapi is not simply concerned with recounting the difficulty of resolving an identity caught between two worlds . . . . Rather, she demonstrates the complex interplay of political and personal history that serves to construct – or obstruct – the formation of identity itself" (144).
Satrapi exposes identity within a world where everyone seems to be in complete uniform. This challenges Orientalist views of the Middle East and allows the reader to change their perception. Instead of creating an "other" we are allowed to see people for who they are.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDelete"Satrapi is not concerned simply with documenting her past, but with
ReplyDeleteperforming – that is, actively re-creating – her quest for identity through the mimetic
acts of showing and telling her personal history"
(Worth, 144)
On page 61 of Persepolis there's a panel where Satrapi is walking in to a forest that almost looks like flames with two friends bragging about how heroic her family members are.
Worth's assertion about this memoir being a reenactment of identity seems true to me. Satrapi is primarily concerned with in this section with the loss of innocence and how identity is formed. Her depiction of childhood in wartime is uses humor as brutal realism. War and idealism isn't ever as romantic as we make it out to be, adults and children both have selfish motives, and Satrapi is able to depict that without demonizing anyone.
This section focused more on women towards the end but primarily, because Satrapi is still a child, showed the restrictions of freedom for everyone. Is not until Satrapi begins to grow up that her differences are really spotlighted, and her freedoms as a women limited.
"[Satrapi's Father]: Let's talk about something else. Let's enjoy our new freedom!
ReplyDelete[Satrapi's Mother]: Now that the devil has left!" (43)
(There is a demon creature coiled around the panel, glancing maliciously back at the family and foreshadowing that the worst is yet to come)
"Satrapi’s choice to tell her own story through a graphic novel is a well-thought-out strategy that uses the liminality of the form to effectively underscore her subject matter. In the field of cultural production, comics are considered at best a marginal art form, and among both artists and readers women are a minority." (Worth)
Satrapi's choice to give us her autobiography/memoir in graphic novel form, much like Alison Bechdel's (brilliant!) "Fun Home," is an embodiment of the feminist belief that the personal as political. She not only gives us her words, but she lays her life out for us on the page in her illustrations, bringing us in to see her perception of her own life as a political device. There's nothing more personal than that.
Satrapi
ReplyDelete"I wanted to be an educated, liberated woman, and if the pursuit of knowledge meant getting cancer, so be it" (73).
Worth
"Hearing other stories of family friends tortured with a hot iron, she begins to relate to her peaceful domestic environment in a different way - even, in a short-lived attempt to appropriate some of this terrible power for herself, inventing her own methods of physical torture to try out on her playmates" (148).
In terms of the personal as political, "Persepolis" in uncensored. No detail is spared - rather, no detail that is important to the story is spared. Nothing useless is thrown into the text, nothing without purpose. She doesn't just shove things into the story that are irrelevant; everything is intentional. So by putting a lot of personal experience into the political sphere of what's happening, by actively putting herself into this position, she showcases what it's like to be a person in this area at the time, and not just herself: her parents, maid, friends, uncle, etc. More than just her own story is incorporated, so it's an active sphere of different perspectives.
"In life you will meet a lot of jerks. If they hurt you, tell yourself that it's because they are stupid. That will help keep you from reacting to their cruelty. Because there is nothing worse then bitterness and vengeance...Always keep your dignity and be true to yourself"(150).
ReplyDeleteThis is the night before MarJane leaves for Austria. Her grandmother gives her this advice. The words spoken by her grandmother are true even in todays world. It must have been harder then. I can't even imagine what it must have been like growing up in Iran during this time. While reading this novel a lot of what is happening only seems to be happening to the women alone. I find myself thinking of Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale, especially when the Islamic Republic starts telling women to wear the head scarfs as "protection" from men. Or when women can't wear anything but the full covering and are attacked by the women's section of the Islamic Republic like Marjane is on pages 132-134. Women had freedom until the Islamic Republic took over. Its almost as if Women where at fault for the way men acted.