Persepolis Book Vs Movie Essay

Marjane Satrapi’s graphic novel, Persepolis, is an autobiography about her life during the Iranian Revolution and war. The film version of Persepolis is quite similar, however, the intention of the film is slightly different than the book. The book has many detailed panels that tell more of a dramatic story of Marjane’s life, while the film is less dramatic and detailed. The graphic narrative Persepolis uses black and white comics to tell the story of Marjane’s life. The drawings in the pictures are cartoons, however the pictures have lots of meaning and purpose behind them for the reader to think about. For example, in the chapter, “The Sheep”, the last panel in the chapter on page 71 shows young Marjane floating through space. This picture
The book is entirely black and white, while the film has some scenes in color. The film is more about the Iranian revolution and less emotional than the novel. It lacked details that were included in the novel. The film left out many scenes when Marjane was in Austria. This is a pretty big part in the book, because it shows Marjane’s transition from childhood to adulthood and all the challenges she endured while in Austria. The film also left out a few characters from the book. The family’s maid, Mehri, who was a good friend of Marjane’s, was never mentioned in the film. Mehri was not a main character, but she had a purpose. She showed the reader the issues of social classes in Iran. She falls in love with Marjane’s neighbor, and when he finds out she is a maid, he never wants to see her again. Mr.Satrapi explained to young Marjane that “You must understand that their love was impossible. Because in this country you must stay within your own social class.” Also, many of the characters were sort of “minimized” in the film, such as her uncle Anoosh. He was a important person in Marjane’s life that influenced her. In the film, he didn’t seem as important of a person to