Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi is a graphic novel that depicts the author’s own childhood as she uncovers her identity during the trying times of the Iranian revolution in the 1980s. The title has great symbolic meaning as it means “the city of Persians”, which is the place Marjane’s tales take place, depicting some of its histories. Her story describes the overthrow of the Shah, the power change to Iran’s oppressive fundamental regime, and finally the devastating effects of the Iraq war. Marjane begins her story by describing some restrictions the regime imposes: In 1980, girls were required to wear veils, they had to be separated from boys, and bilingual schools were forced to shut down. Young Marjane, having witnessed many injustices in the world, set a goal to be a prophet someday so that she could help vanquish these inequities. She describes how she protests in her garden to show her support for the revolution, hoping it will help salvage the nation from the Shah’s oppressive rule. Marjane tells a truly extraordinary story of her struggles as she comes of age in this violent and unpredictable world.

Iranians faced daily hardships ever since the start of their emperor-dominant ruling system. In her story, Marjane builds up the background of the revolution by describing that the Shah ruled with tyranny, never keeping his promises when he was first crowned. Then she explains how the burning down of the Rex Cinema in 1978 especially triggered the revolution as it resulted in many casualties. The Shah was blamed for this “accident” and was dethroned soon after. Marjane describes how the Iranians were over the moon with this news, celebrating all day. However, the long-expected freedom was short-lived. A more repressive rule of the Iranian regime began in 1980. Where the people who were released from prison during the reign of the Shah were again hunted down and executed, including anyone who dared to go against the orders. Universities were closed down for two years in order to force administrators to revise the content to align with the beliefs and values of the regime. Marjane depicts scenes of frustration and anger as the citizens’ lives get worse, resulting in many fleeing from Iran. After a three week trip with her parents to take their minds off their deteriorating situation, young Marjane discovers that Iran is at war with its neighboring country Iraq. Many have died and the bombings are occurring more often. Marjane growing up in these unpredictable and brutal situations developed her character as she finds her confidence.

This poignant story portrays Marjane as a righteous, intelligent, and curious person. She reveals her value of social class justice when she says, “I finally understood why I felt ashamed to sit in my father’s Cadillac” (33), as others could only dream of having one. Marjane by describing her experience standing in others’ shoes and considering how their life might be impacted by her high-status, the reader can see that she is very considerate of others, displaying her aversion to the social caste system being forced upon her people. Another instance that shows her detestation for social classes is when her maid, Mahri, whom she considers a close friend, falls in love with the neighbor’s son. To show her compassion and friendship, Marjane helps Mahri write the letters as she dictates. Despite her effort to help, when the neighbor boy realizes that Mahri is not from the same class as his, he rejects her. Not even bothering to apologize, he breaks Mahri’s heart and Marjane becomes sad and frustrated that social classes are such a great problem. Furthermore, Marjane’s intelligence is depicted through many events along her journey-- from understanding deep topics like Marxism and Communism to following the events of the war as a child, Marjane is exposed to many profound topics at a very young age. Marjane describes her curiosity in one instance after a bomb destroys their neighbor’s house. She explains how she and her mom were passing by its ruins, and she couldn’t help turning around to look at the disaster. She gasps when she sees her neighbor’s bracelet lying in the ruins, implying that she was home when the bomb landed. This realization causes Marjane to feel unspeakable anguish. The reader can see Marjane’s curiosity and heartfelt compassion as she witnesses firsthand the absurdity and devastation of the war that took so many innocent lives like her neighbor’s. After this impactful experience, Marjane begins to challenge daily ideas and rules and becomes more confident to stand up for the truth. Marjane provides an example depicting her strength: when her teacher says that the Islamic Republic is better than Shah’s rule since “we no longer have political prisoners” (144), Marjane does not hesitate to refute this misleading notion, using her uncle’s execution as an example. Marjane’s journey portrays how she uses her knowledge and courage to communicate the thoughts of all the unheard voices for greater justice.

As the war drags on, thousands of young poor boys are sent to the battlefields with the promise of a better afterlife. As Iran sinks into more and more chaos, Marjane’s parents make a deliberate decision to send Marjane to Austria to continue her studies, hoping that she can have a “normal” teenage life without the daily struggles of war. In the end, Persepolis is a true childhood story of growing up during the Iranian revolution, a war that deprives Marjane part of her childhood as she faces dangers and violence all around her. It also shows us those devastating and challenging times, the heaviness that fills every goodbye, every parting. Some people die for what they believe in, while others conform to the rules of the government. The poorer kids die on battlefields while the more privileged don’t seem to be impacted much at all. However, no matter where you live in, there will always be societal injustices. We learn from Marjane that curiosity, knowledge, courage, and compassion will make the most impact. When more people’s voices are heard, the world would be more aligned to righteousness instead of creating inhospitable circumstances.