Losing one's innocence, is a common theme in many novels and movies. This theme is present in both Tim O'Brien's, The Things They Carried, and Marjane Satrapi's, "Persepolis." Both novels main characters who struggle with the lose of innocence are female. Mary Ann and Marjane are faced with situations that do not arise in normal childhood. Because of these incidents, each is changed and forced to grow up a little too fast.
Mary Jane is flown over to the Vietnam, during the Vietnam war to be with her boyfriend. When she arrives there, she is seen as a typical American girl. She is bubbly, and comes off as ditsy and completely unaware of what is going on around her. Mary Ann is described as, "she was seventeen years old, fresh out of Cleveland Heights Senior High. She had long white legs and blue eyes and a complexion like strawberry ice cream. Very friendly, too"(93). But after a couple weeks in Vietnam and being shown the true essence of war, Mary Ann grew curious and began to explore her surroundings. In time she completely lost that young girl trance, and frankly lost her innocence. She turned almost wild, and joined the Greenies, who were in charge of the extreme missions.
Marjane was very similar to Mary Jane but also very different. Marjane also grew up in a time of turmoil and war, the Islamic Revolution. Marjane rebels against the Shah's rules for women. She faced her lose of innocence when her friends apartment building is bombed and her friend is killed. Marjane describes the experiences, "No scream in the world could have relieved my suffering and my anger"(142). Also at the end of the novel, Marjane is shipped to Australia to escape the danger that living in Iran has brought. She turns back to see her parents, and she is forced to suddenly grow up in that one moment.
Both of these characters are viewed as strong femine roles in the novels they are present in. But that strength comes with a price, a end to being naive, a loss of childhood fun and innocence. Through terrible events these characters are forced to grow up way to fast and lose a part of themselves.
Sunday, April 29, 2007
Choice Book Reader Response
Plainsong, by Kent Haruf is a delicate, simple novel that reveals around life in the small town of Holt, Colorado. Although, this novel is not one of my favorites it is well written and offers a glimpse of life in a small town. Each new chapter is a different character story, and Haruf does an excellent job of connecting each one. This book focuses on loneliness, friendship, and hope.
The most heartwarming story in this novel involves the McPherons. These two brothers who never married, and simply stayed together and worked their farm are full of compassion and warmth. Raymond and Harold bring not only a kindness to the novel, but also a distinct sense of humor, that is followed by a complete lack of knowledge of teenage girls. Haruf writes"They wondered privately if all seventeen-year-old girl disappeared after eating supper"(132). After time passes, though, they begin to really care for the girl, the McPherons take it upon themselves to help this young girl out and protect her from harms way, whether that involves buying her a crib, harassing the doctor, or kicking out Dwayne.
On the opposite end, Ike and Bobby's story was the most heartbreaking. These boys are only nine and ten, yet their mother leaves them because she is mentally unstable. Their father is never around and when he is he often seems distant. Haruf writes, "...they were alone much of the time"(291).Everyone they grow close to seems to become ill or die. The two boys find strength in each other and learn to weather whatever comes, together.
This novel uses very simply language, the author uses much detail to describe the setting and place;but overall it was hard to adjust to the delicate use of language. Each new setting is described fully and clearly offers the reader a picture of the small town of Holt. Whether it be main street, a neighborhood, or the farms that lay on the outskirts of town, everything is well described and intriguing.
One thing I did notice that started to annoy me towards the end, is the author never uses quotation marks for dialogue. Sometimes the dialogue is in the middle of a paragraph, or sometimes it has its own paragraph,but no matter what Haruf never use quotations. At times, this makes it very difficult to distinguish when someone is talking and whom is talking.
Although this novel was some what slow in plot development, the characters help to pull the reader in and feel more attached to the novel. Along with wonderful set descriptions, Plainsong, is a straightforward novel depicting life in a small town.
The most heartwarming story in this novel involves the McPherons. These two brothers who never married, and simply stayed together and worked their farm are full of compassion and warmth. Raymond and Harold bring not only a kindness to the novel, but also a distinct sense of humor, that is followed by a complete lack of knowledge of teenage girls. Haruf writes"They wondered privately if all seventeen-year-old girl disappeared after eating supper"(132). After time passes, though, they begin to really care for the girl, the McPherons take it upon themselves to help this young girl out and protect her from harms way, whether that involves buying her a crib, harassing the doctor, or kicking out Dwayne.
On the opposite end, Ike and Bobby's story was the most heartbreaking. These boys are only nine and ten, yet their mother leaves them because she is mentally unstable. Their father is never around and when he is he often seems distant. Haruf writes, "...they were alone much of the time"(291).Everyone they grow close to seems to become ill or die. The two boys find strength in each other and learn to weather whatever comes, together.
This novel uses very simply language, the author uses much detail to describe the setting and place;but overall it was hard to adjust to the delicate use of language. Each new setting is described fully and clearly offers the reader a picture of the small town of Holt. Whether it be main street, a neighborhood, or the farms that lay on the outskirts of town, everything is well described and intriguing.
One thing I did notice that started to annoy me towards the end, is the author never uses quotation marks for dialogue. Sometimes the dialogue is in the middle of a paragraph, or sometimes it has its own paragraph,but no matter what Haruf never use quotations. At times, this makes it very difficult to distinguish when someone is talking and whom is talking.
Although this novel was some what slow in plot development, the characters help to pull the reader in and feel more attached to the novel. Along with wonderful set descriptions, Plainsong, is a straightforward novel depicting life in a small town.
Persepolis Extended Journal
I am making a poster with information about Persepolis, the movie and the author's role in the movie. I will present it in class on tuesday.
Monday, April 23, 2007
Persepolis Reader Response
I have never read a graphic novel before, and was surprised to find out that I really enjoy it. Persepolis, by Marjane Satrapi, is a story that brings together different pieces of the author's childhood. The novel takes place during the Islamic Revolution in Iran, between the years of 1979 and 1983. From Satrapi's story, the reader gets a glimpse of what growing up was like in a time of confusion and revolt. Although I thought this was an excellent book, which opened my eyes to a new genre, at times I felt that I was unable to connect with the text because I am not very familiar with the Middle East and its history.
One thing that caught my attention was the information given dealing with the social classes. In Iran it was forbidden to marry outside your social class. When Satrapi's maid falls in love with the neighbors son, she doesn't see anything wrong with it. Although, after Satrapi's father finds out he tries to explain to her "that their love was impossible"(37), in their country people must "stay within [their] own social class"(37). I know that social classes are present wherever you go, yet this novel sheds light on the extreme split between classes in some cultures, it opened my eyes to how divided a nation can be. After thinking about this, Satrapi states, "The reason for my shame and for the revolution is the same: The difference between social classes."(33). Through this quote, the author reveals how social classes can split a nation.
Another thing that I found interesting was the depiction of some of the characters unrealistic views of the revolution. While walking down the street Satrapi's family had a conversation with their neighbors about the revolution. The neighbor pointed to his wife's cheek and stated, "a bullet almost hit my wife's cheek, liberty is priceless"(44). When in contrast she always had that marking, she only wanted to feel like part of the action. It is interesting because when things seem to be progressing or doing well, everyone wants to say they had some part in it. It also shows how easy people are pressures or persuaded to believe a certain thing, or take a certain stance.
This novel brought up many difficult issues, and the Islamic Revolution is not something to be taken lightly, yet Satrapi does a great job of weaving humor in just the right places, which keep the flow light and easy to follow. Whether is is with her illustrations or simple dialogue, I would find myself laughing as I went along with parts of her story. When Satrapi's uncle shows a picture of his family, she questions why the woman's face is crossed out. Her uncle replies, "Russians aren't like us..."(59), leaving Satrapi to question, "What? Don't they have heads"(59)? Simple humor like this can be found throughout the novel, and helped to keep the readers attention.
The graphics in this novel helped to enhance both the dialogues meaning and emotions. Many pictures stuck out and helped me, as a reader, to better understand the text. The veil is an important topic through the entire novel. There is a strain on the women who are forced to wear the veil, this is greatly enhanced by the the graphic on page 6, where it shows the two sides of Satrapi, and how she feels torn between wearing the veil or not wearing it. After Satrapi's uncle Anoosh is executed, she feels lost and confused. The illistration of her floating in space on page 71, amplified the emotions the character was feeling at the time.
Overall I was very impressed with this novel, and it has encouarged me to read other graphic novels. Between the dialgoue and graphics, Satrapi portrays a powerful story of childhood, change, and growing up in a nation that is torn and battered.
Some questions...
I looked up Persepolis in the dictionary, and it states that is an ancient city of Persia. Why is this book titled Persepolis? What is the meaning behind it?
I was a little confused when Satrapi mentions her grandfather, and him being a prince and then a communist?
One thing that caught my attention was the information given dealing with the social classes. In Iran it was forbidden to marry outside your social class. When Satrapi's maid falls in love with the neighbors son, she doesn't see anything wrong with it. Although, after Satrapi's father finds out he tries to explain to her "that their love was impossible"(37), in their country people must "stay within [their] own social class"(37). I know that social classes are present wherever you go, yet this novel sheds light on the extreme split between classes in some cultures, it opened my eyes to how divided a nation can be. After thinking about this, Satrapi states, "The reason for my shame and for the revolution is the same: The difference between social classes."(33). Through this quote, the author reveals how social classes can split a nation.
Another thing that I found interesting was the depiction of some of the characters unrealistic views of the revolution. While walking down the street Satrapi's family had a conversation with their neighbors about the revolution. The neighbor pointed to his wife's cheek and stated, "a bullet almost hit my wife's cheek, liberty is priceless"(44). When in contrast she always had that marking, she only wanted to feel like part of the action. It is interesting because when things seem to be progressing or doing well, everyone wants to say they had some part in it. It also shows how easy people are pressures or persuaded to believe a certain thing, or take a certain stance.
This novel brought up many difficult issues, and the Islamic Revolution is not something to be taken lightly, yet Satrapi does a great job of weaving humor in just the right places, which keep the flow light and easy to follow. Whether is is with her illustrations or simple dialogue, I would find myself laughing as I went along with parts of her story. When Satrapi's uncle shows a picture of his family, she questions why the woman's face is crossed out. Her uncle replies, "Russians aren't like us..."(59), leaving Satrapi to question, "What? Don't they have heads"(59)? Simple humor like this can be found throughout the novel, and helped to keep the readers attention.
The graphics in this novel helped to enhance both the dialogues meaning and emotions. Many pictures stuck out and helped me, as a reader, to better understand the text. The veil is an important topic through the entire novel. There is a strain on the women who are forced to wear the veil, this is greatly enhanced by the the graphic on page 6, where it shows the two sides of Satrapi, and how she feels torn between wearing the veil or not wearing it. After Satrapi's uncle Anoosh is executed, she feels lost and confused. The illistration of her floating in space on page 71, amplified the emotions the character was feeling at the time.
Overall I was very impressed with this novel, and it has encouarged me to read other graphic novels. Between the dialgoue and graphics, Satrapi portrays a powerful story of childhood, change, and growing up in a nation that is torn and battered.
Some questions...
I looked up Persepolis in the dictionary, and it states that is an ancient city of Persia. Why is this book titled Persepolis? What is the meaning behind it?
I was a little confused when Satrapi mentions her grandfather, and him being a prince and then a communist?
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