and Persepolis

62 Pages·2017·4.29 MB·English

Persepolis
 Introduction
› Persepolis: Graphic Fiction & Film
› Review: Purdah from different perspectives
› Purdah/the veil in Persepolis
 Discussion Questions
 A child’s perspective on religious
fundamentalism and war
 The cultural identity of an exile
 Next Week
• The books have sold over a million copies worldwide;
• the film won the Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival in
2007 and was nominated for Best Animated Film at the
2008 Academy Awards.
History Autobiography in Film
Shah period Childhood
The Revolution 1) Believer in Shah
in 1979 2) A Revolutionary
Iran-Iraq war Teenage Year
(1980-1988) 3) Westernized, Rebellious at School
Dissidents killed Vienna
4) Westernized,
1990s Young Adulthood
5) In Love
Tehran
6) College Years
7) Wedding
8) Leaving Home again for France
9) At the airport
 Persepolis 1: The Story of a Childhood,
Ending w/ the death of uncle Anouche
 Persepolis 2: The Story of a Return (1984 in Austria ~
leaving Iran again)
 Our selection: Convocation, The Socks , and the
Wedding
~ Maraji and the other women’s responses to their
limitations
~ Marji as an art student –at school and in private
lessons //their “discrete struggles”; about having sex
~ Marji telling the story of her wedding and explaining
why it does not work.
 Graphic Fiction: chronological; Film:
flashbacks
 both 2 D, but film with movie-style editing
(e.g. jump cuts, zooming-in-and-out, close-
up)
 “With graphic novels, the relationship
between the writer and the reader is
participatory. In film, the authence is
passive. It involves motion, sound, music, so
therefore the narrative's design and
content is very different” (Satrapi qtd in
Quigley).
 Different ways of “framing” the narrative
Narrative Methods & Graphic/Filmic Techniques
1.
› of personal stories
› of political events
Marji’s Rebellion and growth in the three
2.
periods
› 2-1 presentations of martyrs and dissidents
› 2-1 responses to authorities (Gods, nuns, teachers,
landlord)
› 2-2 responses to Western cultures
› 2-2 family, love and friends
Women & Women’s positions: mother,
3.
grandmother, Marji (& her husband)
Exile and Home
4.
Symbols: cigarette (Harris), Jasmine (Monica)
5.
 As a woman, Marjane experiences lots
of restriction from her religion, as well as
other Muslim women do. In the comic,
one way to express her genuine thoughts
is to take off her veil and hold party with
her friends (which violates some religious
codes). I wonder if it means that women
liberation is contradictory to being a
reverent Muslim? (Vivienne)
 Purdah深閨制度 -- Purdah is the
practice that includes the seclusion
of women from public observation by
wearing concealing clothing from
head to toe and by the use of high
walls, curtains, and screens erected
within the home. Purdah is practiced
by Muslims and by various Hindus,
especially in India.
(http://departments.kings.edu/wome
ns_history/purdah.html )
 Burqa = body-covering, head-
covering + face veil
 types of sartorial hijab
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_types_of
_sartorial_hijab )
 Mostly believers in Islam see purdah as a very
positive and respectful practice that actually
liberates women.
 Different Views: e.g. – 《回教女性的面紗》
› Muslim girls in UK – a choice and a source of pride
› in Iran --depends on which generation of women
› In Egypt –not required; some elites proposed to
ban it.
› Indonesia – optional
› in Nigeria, Afghanistan.--required
 In France, 2004 -- a law was set to prohibit students
to wear any clearly visible religious symbols; thus
wearing the burqa has been banned in public
schools.