Persepolis And God Of Small Things Analysis

The characters of the two novels Persepolis and The God of Small Things are portrayed in such a way that it is evident for the reader that their personalities are high influenced by other characters of the story. Persepolis, written by Marjane Satrapi is an autobiographical graphic novel while The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy is pure fiction though the setting is in the village she was born in. The significant thing that relates these novels is that both Arundhati and Marjane are women authors and the central characters in both these novels are women who have lived through hard situations in life. Ammu in The God of Small Things and Marji in Persepolis depict lives of women in different cultural context. The former character and her …show more content…
The distinction between being an “individual” and a “rebel” is unclear in many situations. This rebellious side of Marji comes into play in later years of her youth. In the beginning the unconscious need to be out of the ordinary can be observed in different instances. Once she is asked by her teacher what she wants to become when she grows up and she says she wants to be a prophet. At this the teacher calls Marji’s parents and tells them what their daughter thinks. And of course her parents wouldn’t want her to be a “Prophet.” The idea is childish but her teacher picks on it as if it’s something wrong. Hence begins the play of influential people in Marji’s life. The chapter The bicycle talks about the intensification of Islamic revolution in Iran. Marji’s parents are the so-called “revolutionaries.” Hence they want to demonstrate against the increasing atrocities. Marji also wants to demonstrate with them but her parents, for reasons of her daughter’s safety say no to that. It is understandable how one’s parents don’t want their kids to be harmed. But the initial fire of individuality in Marji is doused by her parents. However, after she is sent to Austria she becomes a different person altogether. She meets new people, makes new friends and tries to fit in among her new companions. She doesn’t lose her individuality but the individual that she has become was because of the people …show more content…
Because Persepolis only talks about a woman and how her life is, all through the book, it can be said that the tone of the book is somewhat feministic. It explores female characters in a male-dominated sphere of society. On the same note, The God of Small Things is equally feministic. The injustices faced by a woman in a patriarchal society are observed through Roy’s novel. For example, while Ammu’s brother Chacko sleeps with the women workers of the factory, the family turns a blind eye at it. In her case, she’s faced with contempt and anger. These protagonists are, however, changed to their ‘self’ not because of choice, but because of various influences from people in their lives. Hence, ‘where other people exist, genuine individuality is a difficult thing to