Persepolis War Essay
How does Marjane Satrapi use repetition to explore the theme of war?
War and the threat of war is a continuous aspect of life in Iran, as it has been for “2500 years” (Satrapi 11). The Iranian people have suffered tremendously, and this immense anguish is both articulated, and illustrated by Marjane Satrapi in her 2003 graphic novel Persepolis. Through Satrapi’s use of repetition, in both her illustrations and narrative, she is able to not only explore the theme of war, but allow the reader to view war from the alternate perspective of a child witness, rather than that of a hardened veteran.
War is a multifaceted labyrinth is which no one comes away unscathed. It is behind the front lines, and in the streets and homes of the invaded that the unimaginable oppression and enforced conformity is prevalent. On page 95, Satrapi depicts an image of veiled, young …show more content…
This final image marks the end of Marjane’s childhood in Iran, and her new, and somewhat safer life in Austria, however, it also illustrates the sacrifice of the parents of the children of war. In Warsan Shire’s poem Home she embodies and personifies the pain a parent feels for their child, declaring “no one puts their children in a boat / unless the water is safer than the land” (24-25), directly relating to the imagery used by Satrapi of Marjane’s mother, unconscious in her husband’s arms as he walks away from the glass barrier, from his daughter. This young girl’s parent absolutely recognised that Marjane would be “safer” (Shire 25) in the “water” (Shire 25) than to remain with them in Iran. This repetition of the image of the literal barrier follows and haunts the reader throughout the graphic novel, and Satrapi’s decision to end her novel so abruptly and with this image, imposes a sense of uncertainty and ambivalence on the audience that follows them after the turn of the final
War and the threat of war is a continuous aspect of life in Iran, as it has been for “2500 years” (Satrapi 11). The Iranian people have suffered tremendously, and this immense anguish is both articulated, and illustrated by Marjane Satrapi in her 2003 graphic novel Persepolis. Through Satrapi’s use of repetition, in both her illustrations and narrative, she is able to not only explore the theme of war, but allow the reader to view war from the alternate perspective of a child witness, rather than that of a hardened veteran.
War is a multifaceted labyrinth is which no one comes away unscathed. It is behind the front lines, and in the streets and homes of the invaded that the unimaginable oppression and enforced conformity is prevalent. On page 95, Satrapi depicts an image of veiled, young …show more content…
This final image marks the end of Marjane’s childhood in Iran, and her new, and somewhat safer life in Austria, however, it also illustrates the sacrifice of the parents of the children of war. In Warsan Shire’s poem Home she embodies and personifies the pain a parent feels for their child, declaring “no one puts their children in a boat / unless the water is safer than the land” (24-25), directly relating to the imagery used by Satrapi of Marjane’s mother, unconscious in her husband’s arms as he walks away from the glass barrier, from his daughter. This young girl’s parent absolutely recognised that Marjane would be “safer” (Shire 25) in the “water” (Shire 25) than to remain with them in Iran. This repetition of the image of the literal barrier follows and haunts the reader throughout the graphic novel, and Satrapi’s decision to end her novel so abruptly and with this image, imposes a sense of uncertainty and ambivalence on the audience that follows them after the turn of the final