Persepolis And Nervous Conditions: Character Analysis

Superior Essays
Two female characters, Marji from Persepolis, and Tambu from Nervous Conditions, go through struggles to overcome entrapment and ultimately escape. Throughout these two novels, Marji and Tambu both embody most of the ten characteristics of an archetypal female hero. Marji and Tambu both experience gender expectations, become an outcast, and go on a journey to create a better life. Also, in the beginning of both novels, Marji and Tambu live an ordinary life, then confront gender oppression, decide to act, and finally create a new beginning. Marji, from Persepolis, is forced to go through these experiences because of the circumstances of her society. On the other hand, Tambu, from Nervous Conditions, is able to make a choice on how she wants …show more content…
If one does not follow these expectations, they stand out and soon becomes an outcast. In Persepolis, Marji becomes an outcast when she stops wearing the veil and starts to wear modern clothing that was not supposed to be worn in her society. She knows she is outcasting herself from her world when she admits, “I had already broken the rules once by going to the Demonstration in ‘79. This was the second time” (Satrapi 111). Marji starts to break the rules by ditching school, rebelling against her teachers, and dressing against the law. These actions cause her to be an outcast in her school and society. Similarly, Tambu also becomes an outcast because she gets the opportunity to receive an education which is frowned upon for women. Unless someone is part of a high class family, girls do not usually get the chance to be educated in this time period. Even though Tambu is not of the high social class, her uncle, Babamukuru gives her family opportunities to do what they cannot do. Babamukuru gives Tambu an opportunity when he says, “Tambudzai––must be given the opportunity to do what she can for the family before she goes into her husband’s home” (Dangarembga 77). Society’s expectations involve women staying home and taking care of the husband and children. Tambu goes against these expectations and tries to create a better future for herself.Tambu’s unnatural personality fulfills the outcast trait of the female archetypal …show more content…
One main step of the hero’s journey is to create a new beginning. In Persepolis, Marji’s parents decide it is better for her to move to Austria to stay safe and receive an education there instead of in Iran. This is shown when Marji’s father says, “Your mother and I have decided to send you to Austria” (Satrapi 147). Since Iran is in a war, Marji’s parents thought it would be best if they send Marji away. This move will be the start of Marji’s journey to create a better life. She will be safer in Austria and will be able to express herself in ways she was not able to before. Moving to Austria is forced upon Marji by her parents even though she does not want to leave. However, Tambu has an opportunity to leave and go to Young Ladies of Sacred Heart by her own choice. Tambu’s efforts to exceed past society’s expectations gives her the opportunity she is looking for. This is shown when Babamukuru says to Tambu’s father, “It is Tambu who worked hard for that scholarship” (Dangarembga 246). Tambu gets the opportunity to leave and go to Rhodesia and attend Sacred Heart unlike many other women in her society and family. All her actions and choices led to this better life for herself. Tambu has put in the effort to start a journey for a better life. Marji’s actions help shape her into an archetype, however, her parents were the ones who forced her to have these characteristics of an archetypal hero. On

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    Some characters in the novel conform to the roles that are given to them, but even though they followed what was normal they did not end up happy. The characters that conformed to their gender roles had their lives negatively impacted. This theory can be applied by analyzing the characters: Dede Mirabal, Mama, and Jaimito Fernandez.…

    • 1133 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Solar Women Analysis

    • 1561 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Throughout the course of human history and during many different societies, women have been treated as subordinates to men. A recurring theme between civilizations is that men are the superior sex, and a woman’s main role in society was to bare offspring. Although Muslim societies are not the first societies to have a patriarchal hierarchy, they have some of the most prominent male-dominated societies that persist into modern times. The role of real women in a genuine Islamic society can be observed through Rafea Anad’s life in the documentary Solar Mamas; however, Disney’s Aladdin also provides another fictional yet sometimes accurate depiction of a women in a similar Islamic society but from a different socioeconomic background. Muslims live…

    • 1561 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    This again is reinforced when the son brings up the failed firm. The father repetitively says how his partner Watanabe was “a man of honour and principle, [and that he] respected him very much”, but the son does not respond much to these prideful traits that his father respects. The father still does not approve of the son’s western views. It is shown when he states, “I’ve come to believe now that there were no evil intentions in your mind” and that the son was “swayed by–certain influences” The father believes that the daughter, Kikuko, is a pure and nice girl. However, this traditional view of how a girl should act pressures the daughter into pretending to…

    • 671 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Self Esteem And Oppression

    • 1184 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Tia Tamos, Amal’s biggest bully, finds pleasure in demoting Amal’s culture and religious practices, as it makes her feel…

    • 1184 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Decent Essays

    At the end of the journey the hero realizes they must live in the moment in order to be truly happy. If one excessively desires and/or fears, they restrain themselves from satisfying their current needs. However, the hero should live freely without worrying about death because the best part of human life is our mortality. Therefore, Kingston values herself and rejects certain Chinese traditions, loving on her own without a husband or children. She breaks stereotypes pushed by her family and becomes a contemporary Fa Mulan or “female avenger” of those who treat minorities without respect and dignity.…

    • 340 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The two main female roles in Marji’s life are her mother and grandmother. Both of these influences strongly represent the importance of female independence in Marji’s life as she grows up. As a child, Marji is enchanted with how her grandmother holds herself together with independence and dignity. Her grandmother encourages her in her pursuit of happiness, independence and justice for the people of Iran. This also encourages Marji to act without her sense of integrity which at times gets her into trouble.…

    • 1042 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The characters in Persepolis feel the need to rebel since they believe it is the only way to escape the feeling of being controlled by someone else’s authority. In the novel, Marji smoked her first cigarette to rebel against her mother’s dictatorship, and to prove that she does not have all the power. On page 113, Marji yells to her mother, “Dictator! You are the guardian of the revolution of this house!” Marji compared her and her mother’s situation to the government and the people during the Iran-Iraq war.…

    • 887 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Marji feels special because God comes to talk to her when she is alone. In Persepolis Marji says she “was born with religion,” and that at the age of six she was sure that she was the last prophet. God helps to reinforce Marji's belief that she is a prophet. Marji feels she was born with her faith, and her dreams of being close to God and fulfilling a prophecy are her purpose for living.…

    • 809 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Persephone Research Paper

    • 747 Words
    • 3 Pages

    The myth of Persephone is an ancient Greek myth used to explain the change of the seasons. Persephone was the sweet daughter of Greek goddess Demeter who was kidnapped by Hades and later became the Queen of the Underworld. When she was with her mother, the land would be fertile and fruitful, the period of spring and summer. When she was away from her mother, the land was not fertile and would not produce crops, the period of autumn and winter. This was the myth that explained the change of seasons and the cycle of nature’s death and rebirth (Encyclopaedia Britannica).…

    • 747 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Persepolis Theme Essay

    • 892 Words
    • 4 Pages

    There are few things that traditional western culture values more than protecting the innocence of a child. It is not often considered, but many go to great lengths to guard this intangible element of childhood. “The Shabbat”, an excerpt from Marjane Satrapi’s graphic memoir Persepolis, chronicles young Satrapi’s loss of innocence in a terrible way. This comic tells the story of a little Iranian girl who is living through the Islamic Revolution, all from a first-person retrospective point of view. In other words, this story recounts the horrors that a little girl faces in a war zone.…

    • 892 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    People were rioting, being killed, and as a child, she didn’t understand why. An internal conflict that Marji had to face while growing up in that situation is her trying to learn who she is while living in a tough environment. That situation causes Marji to question her family’s status and how they live. Marji doesn’t know what to think or believe because her teachers, parents, God, and friends are all telling her different things. On frame 6 of page 37 Marji just learned about how social classes were separating people based on money and Marji asks her dad “But is it her fault that she was born where she was born???…

    • 1418 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Scott McCloud contemplates the idea of the layout and design of the graphic novel as something that can have as much of an impact on the story as the text and content itself. In both Ethel and Ernest and Persepolis the uniform panels and use of color unconsciously reveal elements of the characters that would not otherwise have been fully communicated. In a graphic novel it is more difficult to explain a character’s personality, but it is easy to depict it through the visuals included. These visuals can include their body language or facial expressions, but a more unique method is to have the artistic layout of the page reflect the characters…

    • 113 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Marji 's mother is revolutionary and she is resourceful. She demonstrates to Marji what it means to fight for what you believe in.…

    • 1194 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In the novels Things fall apart written by Chinua Achebe and Persepolis written by Marjane Satrapi both novels have to similar themes, which is political repression and how the main character goes about fighting it. In Things fall apart British invaders are repressing the Nigerian villagers and in Persepolis the people of Iran are being forced by Islamic Fundamentalist to abide by Islamic law. Each novel does have a protagonist that rebel against their oppressors, in Things fall apart we meet Okonkwo and in Persepolis we meet Marjane, two strong characters that are fighting to be freed from their oppressors. Each character fought and rebelled for freedom but the way they went about to make a point were complete opposites. Even though they did…

    • 1181 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Marjane’s relationship with her parents is caring and compassionate yet full of stress and tension. The author uses this relationship between Marjane and her parents to portray the impact that a parent or guardian has on a young child. When Marjane attempts to go to the rallies with her parents, her parents refuse to let her come along. According to the text, Persepolis, “For a revolution to succeed, the entire population must support it.” The author uses this to show Marjane’s interest in politics and what goes on in her country even at a young age.…

    • 1349 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays