Persepolis
Unit Overview
Click the image to access a PDF copy of Satrapi's graphic memoir. I encourage you to print a copy of this out in order to make notes as you read. This PDF contains the complete Persepolis, including Part One and Part Two. Part One finishes on page 158 of this PDF document.
For a full video summary of Book 1, click here.
Analyzing Graphic Novels
Click the button to the left below to access the Writer's Toolbox page on how to analyse graphic novels and their specific stylistic elements including visual metaphors, bleeds, graphic weight, use of colour, etc.
Alternatively, click the button to the right to access an InThinking resource on how to analyse graphic novels.
This TedEd by Dartmouth College Associate Professor of English Michael Chaney teaches us how to approach contemporary graphic novels. He highlights the ways in which the graphic novel is a complicated medium that makes abstractions visible through distortion and caricature. In other words, Chaney reveals that a panel is not always what it seems. I strongly encourage you to watch this video.
This video provides a full close reading of the first chapter and is a great example of how you might wish to annotate your copy of Persepolis. As you read, make sure you are making notes of your analysis; remember, you are not reading to simply understand the story, but to deconstruct visual and linguistic choices to find various interpretations. You can also find Part Two here.
Questions to Consider
In what ways does the text treat men and women? How does the text depict the empowerment or disempowerment a particular gender?
What roles do class systems, as well as the power relationships between classes, play in the text? Is one class privileged over another, and in what ways?
How is power depicted as being maintained? Is it through purely repressive means, ideological means, or a combination of the two?
How does the text highlight the relationship between Western culture and non-Western culture? Is one seen as better than the other? How are the peoples of previously colonised states depicted?
Are there any examples of Othering in the text? Who is Othered and how are they viewed & treated? Conversely, what is seen as normative?
What role does religion play in Marjane’s life (the character)? How does this compare or contrast to the role religion plays within her community (the setting)?
Click the image above to see some example answers for a few of these questions, taken from the first three chapters of the graphic memoir.
In what ways does the author recreate the memories of her childhood? How realistic are depictions and what effect does this have?
What themes are explored? How are these themes introduced? What ideas does the text convey about these themes?
What global issues are present within the text? What is the text saying about these global issues?
How do various stylistic choices enhave the storytelling within the text?
What is the narrative structure of the text?