Persepolis: An investigation of Mari’s identity formation in the novel

Garnering immense critical praise, Persepolis is an iconic autobiographical graphic novel.

The concept of identity is complex and fluid for everyone. Marjane Satrapi’s novel illustrates what

growing up during political turmoil within Iran looks like and portrays how these events shape her

identity. Throughout the novel, Marji’s social identity is a mere product of external influences as

she is enforced to adapt to her surroundings. In the narrative, Marji explores how her identity is

compromised, this struggle manifests itself through the symbol of the veil, the effect of the nation,

and childhood trauma. This essay seeks to explore how these aspects have shaped Marji’s identity.

Marji begins her novel by introducing the veil: something that physically covers her body

and symbolically conceals her identity. Through the clever use of a gutter in between the panels,

Marji intentionally crops herself out of the class photo and expresses how the veil made her feel

isolated from her friends. In this panel, all the girls look similar, this highlights how none of them

had their own identity with the veil on.

She states “I really don’t know what to think about the veil”1, the veil figuratively divided the

modernism instilled by her parents and her traditional sense of self. In this panel, the world that

she was brought up in is depicted using hammers and scales: which represented logic, and the other

half of the panel depicts a religious world using traditional Muslim art.

Even though she was unsure of the reason for wearing the veil, Marji was fully aware that the veil

represented unity in the country, and not wearing it would cause alienation. Marji was conscious

of the fact that by choosing the veil, she would embrace her religious side and demonstrate her

devotion to the country. Her fragmented identity is further highlighted when she tells the readers

1
Satrapi, Marjane. Persepolis: the Story of a Childhood. Pantheon Graphic Library, 2004. Accessed on 15 April,

2021.
“I put on my 1983 Nikes and my denim jacket with the Micheal Jackson button, and of course, my

headscarf2. The combination of both western and traditional clothes represents how Marji is split

in between her identities. When Marjane is released by Guardians of the Revolution, it

symbolically foreshadows her eventual freedom from the veil and Iran. The juxtaposition of

women who are either for or against the veil symbolized Marji’s conflicted perception of the veil.

The women who are wearing the veils have their eyes shut, this hyperbole shows how they are

blinded by their faith. The colour palette for the novel is solely done in black and white, this

colour choice also helps contrast fundamentalists and modernists.

The veil not only concealed Marji’s identity but also symbolically marked the distinction between

a man and a woman. From the beginning of Marji’s life, we see how a man who represents the

2
Satrapi, Marjane. Persepolis: the Story of a Childhood. Pantheon Graphic Library, 2004. Accessed on 15 April,

2021.
education system separates Marji and her friends. The man's placement in the center of the panel

illustrates his dominance in society. The veil was proclaimed to protect women from the men in

the country and transformed a women’s identity into a sexual object. This reinforces the

differences in identity between women and men in society.

Veiling in Persepolis is a symbolic form of seclusion, not only in distinguishing gender but also in

separating Marji from recognizing her own identity.

The effect of the nation can cause Marji’s identity to become diasporic. In effect, the

identities constructed by the nation was achieved at the price of reducing Marjis’s personal

identity. Muslim men and women were called upon to unite Iran under an Islamic religious

identity. For Marji, the veil became the site of unification in the call for an Islamic nation. When
women voluntarily wore the black chador, it was to show their support for overthrowing the Shah

and their opposition to mimic western ideologies. Marji faces the first-hand consequences of not

wearing the veil when her mother was attacked by the fundamentalists. Marji’s mother explains

“They insulted me. They said women like me should be pushed up against the wall… the veil”3.

Marji reveals to her audience the misogynistic nature of the fundamentalist Islamic regime that

deprived women of their own individuality and identity. Forced to either conform with wearing

the veil or abandoning the country left Marji’s identity to remain diasporic. In the chapter “The

Trip”, the physical differences between traditional and modern women become less noticeable.

Marji portrays the new version of modern women who now showed resistance by “letting a few

strands of hair show”4 while the fundamentalists continued to wear the black chador.

3
Satrapi, Marjane. Persepolis: the Story of a Childhood. Pantheon Graphic Library, 2004. Accessed on 15 April,
2021
4
Satrapi, Marjane. Persepolis: the Story of a Childhood. Pantheon Graphic Library, 2004. Accessed on 15 April,
2021
During the revolution in Iran the religious people necessitate everyone to be religious and forced

even young girls like Marji to wear the veil and conceal their own identity. This makes Marji

realize how their identities are still constrained under the regime. The nation controlled Marji’s

choices and lessened her personal identity.

Trauma can negatively affect one’s identity, due to the traumatic events that occurred in

Marji’s life her identity is ruptured. Marji faced trauma from a very young age, in the chapter The

Water Cell, her mother tells Marji about her grandfather who was a communist. She says the that

the regime “put him in a cell filled with water for hours5”. 12 panels later, we see Marji with a

blank stare while taking a bath, and saying: “I wanted to know what it felt to be in a cell filled with

water”. The panel after that depicts Marji's understanding of the situation as she believed her

grandfather’s hands were wrinkled as he spent too much time in the water. Knowing her

grandfather was tortured could have affected her identity and how she perceived herself in society.

5
Satrapi, Marjane. Persepolis: the Story of a Childhood. Pantheon Graphic Library, 2004. Accessed on 15 April,
2021
In the chapter Shabbat, Marji recalls the bombing of the neighborhood and tries to convey the

impossibility of visually depicting the emotions she felt. The first panel with the narration “ The

bracelet was still attached to … I don’t know what….”6 with Marji in the frame with tears in her

eyes and the next panel showing Marji covering her eyes to prevent herself from seeing the body,

highlights the trauma she went through after the loss of her friend. The last frame used was

completely black, this stylistic feature symbolized how empty she felt. As Marji lost more and

more people who were close to her, her concept of identity faded.

6
Satrapi, Marjane. Persepolis: the Story of a Childhood. Pantheon Graphic Library, 2004. Accessed on 15 April,
2021
As she witnessed more trauma in her life, the personified icon of “god” who would appear

constantly stopped visiting Marji. As Marji screamed at god, it served as a metaphor for her

separation from faith. Her trauma affected her identity negatively, Marji’s unresolved past had

become detrimental to her construction of self. After a failed suicide attempt, Marji decides to

reclaim her identity and heal from the trauma. This required her to move away from her homeland.

Iran was a reminder of the identity that was imposed on her and did not allow her to be her authentic

self. Marji finally revisits her past in the form of a narrative, writing her story helped her recognize

her traumas and revisit how they shaped her identity. Through publishing her narrative, Marji

symbolically unveils her narrative from a private to a public one. Using both text and images in

the narrative, Marji provides context to the audience and also helps them relive her journey. The

images not only demonstrate a child growing up in pre-revolutionary Iran but also illustrate

character and identity. Through this portrait of her daily life, she reveals a lot about her struggle

for identity.

In conclusion, Marji used the veil as a mask for her true identity, she constantly found new

ways to disguise her individuality and fit in with the crowds. The constant pressure of the regime

caused Marji’s identity to fragment more as she did not feel she belong. When Marji finally

understood the detrimental effect of her trauma on her identity, she began to reconstruct her

identity. By revisiting her past in the form of a narrative, Marji was finally able to remove her false

identity and reconstruct herself via the process of writing. By abandoning the veil, Marji could

reflect and peel the layers of her identity both literally and figuratively. Marji’s journey is veiled

and layered with uncertainty and trauma, by reliving her past she gained a deeper understanding

of her identity through the medium of art and words.

Word count: 1498

Bibliography

Dalacqua, K, Ashley. Students as Critics: Exploring Readerly Alignments and Theoritical

Tensions in Satrapi’s Persepolis. Sane Jounral, Volume 2, Issue 1, 2015,

https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1167190.pdf . Accessed on 16 April 2021

Identity, Culture, and Self-Expression Theme Analysis. Litcharts,

https://www.litcharts.com/lit/persepolis-2-the-story-of-a-return/themes/identity-culture-and-self-

expression . Accessed 15 August, 2021

Persepolis Themes. Litcharts, https://www.litcharts.com/lit/persepolis/themes . Accessed on 14

September 2021.

Persepolis: The Veil. Litcharts, https://www.litcharts.com/lit/persepolis/the-veil . Accessed on 14

May 2021.

Satrapi, Marjane. Persepolis: the Story of a Childhood. Pantheon Graphic Library, 2004.

Accessed on 15 April, 2021.