Summary Of Imperialism In Persepolis

Have you ever told a story about events that happened to you, but then someone else tells the same story with minor different details? This is because everyone has a perspective, and maybe one person saw someone throw spaghetti at a light while another person saw the same person throw an entire lunch at a light. However, both of these are still a valid perspective, even if one of the truths might have been stretched a little. In the book, Persepolis, Marjane lives in Iran during the 1970s, and she took part in the Iranian Revolution that was going on. The perspective of Marjane Satrapi as a child influences the historical accuracy of imperialism, nationalism, and gender roles of her autobiography, Persepolis. All three are important themes …show more content…
The photo below shows imperialism because it shows a giant shark intimidatingly looking at two fish, as if the shark will eat the fish. According to the Webster’s New World dictionary, the definition of imperialism is, “The policy of seeking to dominate the affairs of weaker countries” (295). In the picture, the shark resembles a large country and the fish resemble a smaller country being taken over, or “eaten” by the bigger fish. The theme of imperialism is shown in Persepolis because the book said, “We shall conquer Karbala” (Satrapi 115). This shows Iran’s government was trying to take the city of Karbala, just like how the giant shark wants to take the fish. Previously mentioned, the war between Saudi Arabia and Iran …show more content…
Not only is imperialism and nationalism shown in Persepolis, but gender roles controversy is just as important in the book. Gender roles are still an epidemic problem in modern day. One of the stereotypical types of gender roles is the domestic behaviors. According to the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, “some people expect that women will take care of the children, cook, and clean the home, while men take care of finances, work on the car, and do the home repairs.” (Planned Parenthood Federation of America Online) To emphasize, the photo shows the man in a masculine form, looking strong while the woman looks feminine as she takes care of children while holding baby bottles and feeding them. In Persepolis, the theme of gender roles is shown when Marjane’s mother gets assaulted in a grocery store. An effects of Marjane’s mother being assaulted in the grocery store is that it introduces Marjane to the stereotypical gender role where men disrespect women in Iran. Marjane’s perspective is changed because she does not see the wider picture of how women are treated compared to how men are treated. She has to learn the different class types in Iran as she gets older. Marjane’s point of view becomes affected for how she saw the gender roles in Iran because she did not understand what