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Gender Roles In Marjane's Persepolis

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Everything can be viewed from two perspectives; A fist fight, a murder, bullying, just to name a few situations. This is still the case with Iran and it’s people. Iran and its neighboring countries are often portrayed negatively as terrorist, or failed nations. This is not always the truth, however, and one can learn that through Marjane’s coming of age story, Persepolis. The personal nature of the story is told through Marjane’s loss of innocence, her opinions on religion, and her observation of the prominent gender roles. This photograph shows a young girl smoking a cigarette. She represents the loss of innocence because smoking a cigarette is a very mature behavior and is not intended for young children. Also, her face portrays the hard …show more content…

This photograph depicts a housewife serving her working husband’s meal. This is a representation of gender roles because it is traditional, as well as expected, for the woman to stay home and work in the house or cook while the man will go to work and come home to his dinner. Similar gender roles are observed by Marjane throughout Persepolis. The first suggestion of gender roles shown in Persepolis is when Marjane’s school separates the boys from the girls. “We found ourselves veiled and separated from our friends” (Satrapi 4). For the rest of her Iranian education, Marjane is separate from boys except for when she plays with them at home. Another way that gender roles play into Persepolis is the fact that all of the leaders mentioned were male. Marjane’s great Grandfather, Reza Shah, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi (“the Shah”), and Mohammed Mossadegh are just to name a few male Iranian leaders who ruled during or just before Marjane’s time. Another manner of gender roles in Persepolis is the way women are treated by men. For example, the incident where two men bombarded Marjane’s mother and told her that women like her should be raped against a wall and thrown in the garbage (Satrapi 74). It is later that Marjane and her family watch a man decree on television that “Women’s hair emanates rays that excite men. That’s why women should cover their hair” (Satrapi 74). Women of Iran and around the …show more content…

With all things considered, the personal nature of the story is expertly expressed through Marjane’s loss of innocence, her beliefs and opinions on her religion, and her experiences with gender

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