What Connections Did You Find Between the Work and Your Own Cultural Experiences in Persepolis
What connections did you find between issues in the work and your own culture(s) and experience?
Family and Extended Family
Greek Culture:
- Dominant figure - The Father – Very important
- Open family – Always big dinners, people come around unannounced
- Feeling secure/safe in the culture - Very open, leave your doors open at night
- Traditions – Very important (Christmas, easter etc.), Family always has to be together
- Same Household/ area – Same house through the generations, passed on
Similarities and Contrasts with Iran:
- Statuses of Marjane’s parents – Both intellectuals, make joint decisions – However, ultimately the father tells the rest of the family ‘how it is’
- A lot of people do come over to Marjane’s house – open and welcoming family
- Felt unsafe – Because of the war, they felt they couldn’t work with the culture
- Traditions – don’t seem to be very evident – war acted as a barrier toward tradition of the culture. However, they had to wear the veil as a forced tradition.
- Same Household – Grandma frequently seemed to be around the house – Her uncle came straight to the house after coming out of prison. Trusting relationship with her grandma (only one who knows about the book) – Shows they are close and frequently see each other.
Freedom vs. Rebelling
Greek Culture:
- Father figure – strict to daughter, very protective over her actions. Contrast to the way he treats son, more relaxed, “father son” relationship, teach them “how to be a man”
- Mother – tried to help daughter, hid stuff from father so that she could be free (see friends), tries to give freedom to learn – Knows what it feels like to be undermined by the father
- Daughter action - tries to rebel because they are given less freedom to start with then sons
- Role of woman – Can’t talk back to the male, very rude, never done in public – Woman rebel at home (secretive)
- Freedom is given to a certain extent to girls; nowhere near as much as the boys
Family and Extended Family
Greek Culture:
- Dominant figure - The Father – Very important
- Open family – Always big dinners, people come around unannounced
- Feeling secure/safe in the culture - Very open, leave your doors open at night
- Traditions – Very important (Christmas, easter etc.), Family always has to be together
- Same Household/ area – Same house through the generations, passed on
Similarities and Contrasts with Iran:
- Statuses of Marjane’s parents – Both intellectuals, make joint decisions – However, ultimately the father tells the rest of the family ‘how it is’
- A lot of people do come over to Marjane’s house – open and welcoming family
- Felt unsafe – Because of the war, they felt they couldn’t work with the culture
- Traditions – don’t seem to be very evident – war acted as a barrier toward tradition of the culture. However, they had to wear the veil as a forced tradition.
- Same Household – Grandma frequently seemed to be around the house – Her uncle came straight to the house after coming out of prison. Trusting relationship with her grandma (only one who knows about the book) – Shows they are close and frequently see each other.
Freedom vs. Rebelling
Greek Culture:
- Father figure – strict to daughter, very protective over her actions. Contrast to the way he treats son, more relaxed, “father son” relationship, teach them “how to be a man”
- Mother – tried to help daughter, hid stuff from father so that she could be free (see friends), tries to give freedom to learn – Knows what it feels like to be undermined by the father
- Daughter action - tries to rebel because they are given less freedom to start with then sons
- Role of woman – Can’t talk back to the male, very rude, never done in public – Woman rebel at home (secretive)
- Freedom is given to a certain extent to girls; nowhere near as much as the boys