Persepolis: Leaving us behing

Marjane Satrapi’s graphic novel Persepolis was absolutely amazing. It is thought provoking and touching as we follow the life of a young girl growing up in the middle of the revolution in Iran. On page 29 Marji’s father has been out taking pictures of the revolution. His family is worried because he has been gone so long. The illustration provided for his picture taking is incredibly unique on this page as opposed to any other illustration through the book. He is standing off to the side with a camera while photographs are piled randomly next to him. This is one of the best illustrations in the book in my opinion. The photos he has taken show many different things from the revolution. He manages to capture the true hurt and power behind some of the forces. On page 102 there are a few more illustrations that seem to jump right out of the novel. The one on top is the one where the young boys had been given the Key to Paradise. The picture shows fallen young men with their keys hanging from their necks. The illustration is not very detailed with sharp edges. This makes us as readers feel badly for the young boys that have died. Right underneath that picture, however, is the picture of Marji at her first party. This picture has much more detail than the last and gives us as readers a sense of real life amongst the life of war. With the previous picture, none of the young boys were given faces. They were merely shadows fallen and scattered amongst others just the same. The picture of the party, however, gives everyone a face, giving each of them life. This picture really shows how Marji is growing up and her world is changing. Although there is war and revolution around her, she is still able to have some sort of normal childhood life. In this she says, “Punk rock was in. I was looking sharp.” This shows a great progression from the little girl she was into the person she is becoming. By the end of the novel Marji is sent away by her parents. The last frame of the novel leaves it really open ended and makes us feel lost almost. She turns one more time to look at her parents. It is then that she says, “It would have been better to just go.” She sees her father carrying her mother off who we are to believe as just fainted from the loss of sending her child away. This last frame is one of the most emotionally moving frames in the entire novel to me. It is so sad and undetermined that you really just don’t know how to fell anymore. Marji is left and her life is going to be taken in a completely different direction now. She is on her own, and her parents are stuck with their old life. They believed they were giving their daughter a better life, but with sending her away they have just broken up their family. How do you feel anything but sad and abandoned?

Is the search over?

For the duration of the novel, Binx claims he is on a search for something. There is never a direct answer as to what his search might be, but it appears to be the ultimate search, the search for meaning in everyday life. Binx is asking the age old question of, “Why are we here and what is our purpose?” This question has been raised by many throughout the history of the world. Binx feels isolated in the world, like there is no real place for him. By the time we get to the epilogue, Binx says, “As for my search, I have not the inclination to say.” This leaves us as readers to ponder over whether his search is over or if his search is continuous.

Binx, as a character, changes through the course of the novel. By the end of the novel, he no longer has the same (almost sarcastic) tone that he had in the beginning. Binx is nothing else than what I call a “watcher.” He is one of those people who does not know how to create a real space for himself among the rest of the people. For Binx, everydayness is his ultimate goal, but his ultimate fear and torture. He continually speaks openly about the everydayness of others and how he does not want to fall into that, yet, is it not everydayness that he himself seeks?

Being a “watcher” is one of the worst places a person can be in. With no real way of pushing oneself into any real situation, the “watcher” keeps on watching. Being a “watcher” means that no matter how hard you try to push yourself to fit into any situation, there is nothing you can do besides sit on the sidelines and watch as others pass you by in life. Being a “watcher” is never any fun after the first little while. In the beginning, you feel as though you are onto something, like you are that much closer to the greater meaning if you could just understand why the surrounding people act the way they do. Instead, this idea of watching to understand really does not work out that well. There is no happiness in being a mere spectator on life, trying to figure out the greater meaning behind everything. True happiness comes from being a part of life; trying to constantly question it is depressing when you find that the meaning you were looking for is completely and forever unreachable.

Binx appears to have proclaimed a short end to his search almost in the epilogue, but we all know it is a never ending cycle for him. He cannot just quit looking for his greater meaning, because that is what he is, a “watcher” and an analyzer. He analyzes everyone around him, although he claims he is not very good at research or analyzing anything. This constant obsession of watching others to find meaning in them is a way to find meaning in himself. He is unable to function in normal situations like normal people, so he watches them, trying to understand how they do it. His cycle of being a “watcher” is never over. His search for true, meaningful happiness will never be complete until he can let go of being the “watcher” and actually live.