The Molding Hand of Oppression Forming an Identity in...

Ruby Instructor Bachman Writing Across the Arts (Porter 80A-21) 2 November 2012 (1278 words) The Molding Hand of Oppression: Forming an Identity in Persepolis Every person is unique. However, there are many similar parts that go into creating every person’s identity. Of course, there is the biology, the genetics. Then there are outside forces, the nurturing of a person. When trying to form an identity, there are numerous outside factors that contribute, such as gender, culture, and environment. For Marji, the protagonist of the Persepolis series, being an Iranian woman is absolutely a factor that featured prominently in the shaping of her personality. She was not allowed to experiment with her identity by her clothing or style,†¦show more content†¦For example, Marji takes a long bath in the water tub to feel like to be in a cell filled with water, when God appears to her. She is trying to experience what it feels like to be tortured, like her captured relatives and countrymen. God just randomly appears to her to ask, â€Å"What are you doing?† (Persepolis 1, 25). In that panel, The main color is white. White is a co lor like purity and spirituality, which makes sense, because God is in it. However, in the next panel, the background is entirely black. This panel does not have God in it. Instead, it is just Marji almost connecting to the pains of her grandfather. So the simplicity of the black background helps show the beginning of her internal conflict (McCloud 192). Marji is learning about how cruel the government truly is, and even God cannot help her understand why. Because Iran was very connected to religion, she always has a spirituality about her. The government forced a certain religion on Marji. Even though she did not always believe in that religion, she was still shaped by her conversations with God. Even though God doesn’t appear later on, believing in a religion as a child was able to lay the foundation for a spirituality that would last her the rest of her life. Living through war is very difficult. Because of war, many of Marji’s families and her neighbors met death. Satrapi’s graphic style, which is mainly composed of black and white, depicts violent