Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Narration in "Persepolis"
I think the obvious narrator in the book "Persepolis" is Marji as the first person, mainly because the subject explaining the information of development usually beginning from "I" of "my." On the other hand, I think the readers can obtain numerous information from a lot of the other characters who appeared through the story, not just from Marji. For example, Siamaki Jaari and Moshen Shakiba explained about the consequence of torture against their other friend, Ahamdi, who was assassinated. I feel like most people think that the story is strictly illustrated through the narration of Marji, whether she was a little girl or a more mature women looking back. I believe that at numerous parts of the story, not only do other characters take over narration, but they become more centralized as characters in the book. Then you have to realize that overall, the book mainly consist of the two major characters, Marji as a child and Marji looking back on her childhood. The two narrators slowly grow together I think because as Marji gets older it helps us relate more to her character. For me at least, alot of the book is confusing for me because, I feel the narration is kind of all of the place. I might be wrong, but that's what I feel. Eventually when the two "Marji's" are in the same place in a way, we feel as an audience like we are finally growing a story and we feel invested into the narrator of Marji.
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I definitely agree with you about how the narration can be confusing sometimes. Because Marji is so naive and young for most of the story, it is hard to understand exactly what is going on, because her parents and relatives don't want to let her know the magnitude of the horrors occurring in Iran. This can be seen when Uncle Anook comes to visit. From Marji's point of view, Anook is simply a hero, someone that she can brag about to her friends. However, the reader does not find out what Anook's reason for visiting is, or why the full reason his Russian ex wife is marked out of the picture. All Anook offers as explanation is "Russians do not know how to love." Later on, we read that Anook has been executed, from an image of a newspaper with a headline that reads, "Russian Spy Executed." But the reader is left wondering whether Anook is actually a Russian Spy, or is the government making it up? Also, I also think that there is an obvious progression of Marji as a narrator throughout the story. As she grows older, it becomes easier to see what Satrapi is meaning to say and the points she is trying to convey. However, although Marji's young, naive narration can be confusing, I believe it is more effective as a way of convincing the reader of the hardships during her time. It makes a direct appeal to pathos, especially because it is from the point of view of a child. It also makes it much more riveting and complex as a story.
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