Reading Lolita In Tehran Essay

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Women all over the world are kept cages, on display, preventing them from being what they are supposed to be. That’s is what Nazar Afasi demonstrated in her book, Reading Lolita in Tehran. This book is about the struggles women during the new regime in Tehran. After the revolution women were very restricted. Women had to wear a hijab in front of any men and most of the women no longer wear it for religion but as a symbol of the oppressive regime. They couldn’t really talk to the opposite gender nor could they wear western clothes like blue jeans or tank tops. What is most important to the story is that Tehran was banned from reading western classics. This is where the story starts. A simple literature teacher in Tehran is a woman living in everyday struggles. She did not want to wear her hijab to her teaching job which resulted in the school becoming angry. She turns in a letter of resignation but the school refuses to let her go. She stops going to classes and ends up creating a small book group of female students that are interested in the western classics. They read western classics such as Lolita and Great Gatsby that have tales of love and adventure. These books teach them many things like the rights they should have as women.
I digitally painted a girl trapped in a cage, holding a book outside of the cage, in …show more content…

Educating women allows everyone to see different perspectives which help us progress into a more understanding society. Through education, women can have more opportunities for jobs and a better life. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Article 1) states, “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood,” which means even women are equal. However, the problem is not many people are helping. We must use our privilege and power to help those in