Similarities Between The Shah And The Islamic Regime

According to the perspective of Marjane, both the Shah and the Islamic fundamentalist regime are characterized as bad rulers of the Iranian people and it is difficult to say which was worse for the Iranian people. Satrapi seems to say that each regime is one side of the same coin. The Shah was brutal to his people, imprisoning many of the political revolutionists, in his attempt to maintain power and to serve Western interests. The Islamic regime used the same brutality for the same reasons in order to propagate a pure Islamic state. Marjane sees the policies of the Islamic regime to be more brutal compared to the Shah mostly due to the fact that she was very young at the time the Shah was in power. At the same time her parents who understood
The Shah had begun a process of Western reform in the country but had also inculcated a culture of brutality against his people, especially those that would politically dissent from his rule. This corruption caused unrest amongst the middle and lower classes which soon revolted and overthrew the Shah. Ten-year old Marjane's family is initially in favor of the revolution to overthrow the oppressive government headed by Iran's ruler, the Shah. Marjane is swept up in the revolutionary enthusiasm, believing that an end to the Shah will mean an end to social class differences that make her feel guilty about her family's well-off financial situation.”For a revolution to succeed, the entire population must support it” (pg. 17), in this quote, the young Marjane argues that she should be allowed to attend revolutionary demonstrations with her parents. Her parents do not want her to attend any demonstrations because the Shah is taking violent action against protesters. This shows that the policies of the Shah restrained the citizens of Iran from voicing their opinions and if they did, they would be imprisoned in order to maintain his power. During the rule of the Islamic regime, Marjane’s parents still went to protests to fight against these unfair policies just as they did against those of the Shah. But it was at the time of the Islamic regime that Marjane expressed fear for her family. She says “I thought my
Effort to suppress Western cultural influence, and, facing persecution and violence, led many of the Western-educated elite too flee the country. The fast change in policies such as mandatory wear of veils, closure of bilingual schools led Marjane to experience the cultural revolution first hand. The disobedience to follow the strict policies of the Islamic regime led to harassment and often violence for the people of Iran. “They said a women like me should be harassed for not wearing a veil” (pg. 74), tells Marjane mother to her. This event happens to Marjane's mother when she is assaulted by a group of men angry with her for not wearing a veil. This quote demonstrates the ill-nature of the fundamentalist Islamic regime that took power after the 1979 Revolution. This quote also shapes how Marjane views the turn Iran is taking terms of the policies due to the cultural revolution. Marjane’s family experiences many horrors after the Islamic regime’s rule such as Mohsen’s murder and Anoosh’s