paper 2
Marjane “Marji” Satrapi is an intelligent, spirited, and very modern girl living with her parents in Iran’s capital of Tehran during the eventful period of Iranian history from the late 1970s into the early 1980s. In Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood, Marji remembers her life during those years, mostly from when she was about ten to age fourteen. This account includes how Marji and her family lived through and were affected by turbulent events that included the overthrow of the autocratic Shah of Iran by the Islamic revolution, the oppressive fundamentalist regime that replaced the Shah, and the devastating Iran-Iraq war.
The nation’s wealth has long made it a target of outside invaders, but the Islamic revolution of 1979 pushed out the Western-backed government of the Shah. The revolution ushered in a new Islamic regime that brought massive societal changes impacting how people were supposed to behave—including Marji and her family. Marji struggles to adjust to the changes at her liberal French bilingual school, which has become increasingly stricter. Girls are required to wear veils, and female and male students are now separated. Marji’s wealthy and modern parents—her father, Ebi, and her mother, Taji—take part in the massive protests against the new regime’s strict rules on behavior (just as they had previously protested against the Shah’s regime). Marji’s parents worry when a photo of Marji’s mother protesting appears in newspapers and magazines. Later, after a demonstration they are at turns violent, the Satrapis decide that openly protesting is too dangerous to continue.
Marji feels conflict between her spiritual beliefs and the stark modernism of her parents. She talks to God at night and has believed she will become a prophet one day since she was six years old, but the revolution leads Marji to set aside these ambitions while she studies and imitates protestors and revolutionaries. She mimics protestors in the garden of her house, studies books about famous revolutionaries and philosophers given to her by her parents, and fantasizes about becoming a hero. Marji’s relationship with God becomes strained, as she finds that she and God have less to talk about—although God does still come by to see her from time to time.
Marji thrills when she learns that rebels fill her family history. She learns that her grandfather was a prince and later a communist whom the Shah removed from power, and that her uncle Anoosh, also a communist, spent nine years in prison during the Shah’s regime. Marji spends a short time with Anoosh, learning about his life. After the Shah fell from power in 1979, Anoosh was released from prison, but when Islamic fundamentalists consolidate their grip on power, they hunt Anoosh down, imprison him, and later execute him. Her new idol killed, Marji feels crushed. She completely abandons her faith in God and increasingly questions the pro-regime propaganda she hears—especially at school.
People had rejoiced when the Shah was forced out, but as the Islamic fundamentalists retain power, Marji and her family watch as their neighbors’ behavior shifts to coincide with the current political winds. The neighbors go from wearing short skirts and drinking alcohol to covering themselves and denouncing alcohol. Marji’s mother persuades Marji to lie and say she prays every day, a lie they hope will keep Marji safe, but acknowledge that the rules seem foolish. Marji grows more rebellious as she increasingly views the rules at school and elsewhere as hypocritical and difficult to follow. Marji’s encounter with the Guardians of the Revolution at the end of the book shows her that life as a woman in Iran comes with the daily threat of losing everything.
The war with Iraq had originally inspired Marji to vocal patriotism in protecting her country against another invasion, but Marji begins to realize there are greater forces behind the war. She sees how the Islamic regime needs the war to survive and keep power. The war promotes a sense of nationalism and pride in the public, and those who die in the war are hailed as “martyrs.” Marji sees thousands of poor boys lured into war without proper training. She becomes increasingly uncomfortable and aware of class differences within society. Poor young boys are lured into the army with gold-painted keys to the “kingdom of heaven” to help them enter paradise after dying on the battlefield, while children in her wealthy neighborhood are left alone.
More and more people try to escape Iran as the borders tighten and Iraqi forces bomb Tehran and other Iranian cities. Realizing that Marji’s chances of escaping Iran are narrowing, her parents make the difficult decision to send her abroad alone to finish school in Vienna, explaining that only a good education will free her of Iran. Marji feels heartbroken. She spends one last night with her grandmother, who gives her warm advice and inspires her to be compassionate and understanding while in Vienna. Marji gives away all of her prized contraband to her friends, including a Kim Wilde poster. At the airport, as Marji turns to say goodbye to her parents one last time, she sees that her mother, devastated by her only child’s departure, has fainted.
In Persepolis 2: The Story of a Return, Marji resumes the autobiographical account of her life. As it begins, Marji is in Vienna preparing to enter a French-language school to resume her studies, but she is not living with the émigré family of her mother’s best friend, Zozo, as was planned. Zozo didn’t want Marji living with her family, so she quickly moves Marji to a boarding house run by Catholic nuns, where Marji knows no one and feels very alone.
Marji’s displacement to a boarding house is just the first of many challenges that strong-spirited but vulnerable Marji will face in Vienna over the next four years as she navigates being a teen-aged refugee adjusting from traditionalist Iran to the very Western city of Vienna. In the second half of Persepolis 2, Marji will return to Tehran and face the reverse challenge: she will try to readjust to life back in Iran after four formative years in Vienna. These dual challenges will take a heavy toll on Marji’s psyche as well as severely test, strain, and in some cases destroy her relationships with her family and friends—including her parents, her grandmother, fellow students, childhood acquaintances, boyfriends, and her fiancé and eventual husband.
Marji’s stay at the Viennese boarding house gets off to a mixed start. Her roommate, Lucia, is a friendly girl from the Tyrol region of Austria, but communication is an issue since Marji and Lucia don’t share a common language and because Lucia is somewhat oblivious to Marji’s sensitivities. Her sensitivities are tested by the communal living arrangements, which Marji has trouble adjusting to after her comfortable home life with her well-off parents. But Lucia comes to Marji’s rescue when she invites her to spend Christmas break with her hospitable family in Tyrol. During the next school break, Marji stays at the boarding house and has a run-in with the mother superior that results in Marji getting kicked out. The mother superior insults Marji’s Iranian heritage, and Marji responds with an insult questioning the nuns’ virtue.
At school, Marji experiences ups and downs as well. After being ignored by the other students, Marji gains some popularity with her mathematical and tutoring abilities. Her artistic talents garner attention when she draws caricatures of the teachers. But it’s Marji’s status as a refugee who has “known war” that attracts a set of friends who give Marji her first taste of belonging in Vienna. The group is led by an older French girl named Julie, and its most conspicuous member is a mildly obnoxious punk boy named Momo whom Marji tolerates through gritted teeth as he spouts pseudo-intellectual ideas.
After Marji is evicted by the nuns, Julie and her mother Armelle invite her to live with them and share Julie’s bedroom. Marji, who comes from a society that reveres parents, and who deeply misses her own mother, is shocked to see Julie ignore and disrespect Armelle. Marji spends time with Armelle and likes her, especially when she learns that Armelle knows Iranian culture, which is rare among Westerners. Julie’s worldliness (she’s sexually active and takes birth control pills) has a big impact on Marji, who envies and judges Julie simultaneously. While Armelle is traveling, Julie throws a party that is unlike any Marji has ever seen. Rather than eating or talking, the guests smoke and make out. When one guest stays and has sex with Julie, an astonished Marji calls it her first step into being assimilated into Western culture.
Under her friend’s influence, Marji increasingly adopts the ways of Western youth and culture and worries that she’s losing her Iranian identity. At the same time, Marji undergoes significant physical changes in a growth spurt. She changes her hair, make-up, and clothes style as well. Trying to fit in, Marji now smokes and does drugs. When Julie and Armelle move away from Vienna, Marji sublets a room in a house. During that time, the now sixteen-year-old Marji is visited by her mother. Marji, who now towers over her mother, limits what she tells her mother about her life in Vienna, and her mother doesn’t divulge much about what her family’s life is like back in Iran either. The visit gives Marji a much-needed boost that at least temporarily forestalls more emotional spiraling.
Marji takes a room in the home of a Frau Doctor Heller, a horrible person who adds stress to Marji’s life. Marji finds some solace in being with her boyfriend, a student named Markus. They will date for two years, but it’s never the idyllic relationship Marji wants. After Markus’s mother insults Marji by saying that she’s using him to get a passport, and then cuts off Markus’s allowance, Marji has to finance their dates. Marji also buys the drugs they smoke together, an arrangement that leads to Marji buying and then reselling drugs to other students at their school. Still, Marji grows increasingly dependent on Marcus for emotional support. Marji’s drug dealing ends when the school principal threatens her with expulsion. Her relationship with Markus also ends abruptly when she finds him in bed with another girl.
At this moment of extreme emotional vulnerability, and with right-wing, anti-immigrant sentiments on the rise in Austria, Marji’s landlady accuses her of theft. Marji storms out and spends the next two months on the streets until she ends up in a hospital. Soon after, her parents call and arrange for her to come back to Iran. Marji puts on a veil for the first time in four years and heads to the airport.
When Marji returns to Iran in 1988, the long war with Iraq has ended, but the fundamentalist Islamic regime continues to oppress Iranians with strict social and religious rules and severe punishments. Still recovering from her breakdown in Vienna, Marji tries to recede into the shadows, but her parents, family, and old friends won’t allow it, and Marji is gradually coaxed back into social interactions. Marji’s relationship with her parents has matured, but she still relies on them for advice and for emotional and financial support. Marji’s close relationship with her grandmother resumes, although there is a period when her grandmother won’t speak to her after Marji commits a selfish act that offends her.
Marji won’t mention her problems in Vienna since she feels deep guilt over having fled Iran while others faced the war and other difficulties. Marji feels that her problems in Vienna were inconsequential in comparison. Marji is keenly aware that Iran changed for the worse while she was away. Reminders of the war are everywhere, and the people are now too tired and fearful to stand up to the authorities. Women have it particularly bad in male-dominated Iran, and Marji has difficulty tolerating her old friends who seem vapid and obsessed with Western superficialities. Publicly, women are obliged to hide themselves physically (behind the veil) and intellectually.
Marji’s mother persuades her to seek the help of a psychoanalyst, and Marji tries several before one suggests that she take medication to combat her depression. The anti-depressants make her feel more hopeless, and Marji attempts suicide by swallowing a lot of pills. When Marji unexpectedly survives, she decides it’s a sign that she needs to make big changes in her life, so she alters her look, takes up aerobics, and feels vital for the first time in years. She goes to a party where she meets Reza, an ex-soldier who is now an artist. They’ll eventually marry, but first they decide to go back to school.
Like all institutions in Iran, the art school that Marji and Reza attend is tightly controlled by the regime. Over time, the couple become part of a faction of students that react to the repression by violating rules on social behavior in private places—particularly by holding alcohol-fueled parties at each other’s homes. The parties are sometimes raided, resulting in arrests and stiff fines that the students’ parents must pay. When a friend of Marji and Reza’s dies in a fall while fleeing the authorities after a raid, Reza vows to stop going to parties, but Marji decides to party more. Marji and Reza haven’t ever been a very compatible couple, and they argue endlessly. For a while, Marji chooses to celebrate their differences as opposites attracting, but their rifts only increase over time.
In spite of their disagreements, when Reza proposes to Marji, she accepts. Marji’s father supports this arrangement even though he believes they aren’t compatible, since he knows that living together is the only way couples can get to know each other in their repressive society. Marji’s parents throw a huge wedding for their only daughter, but when Marji and Reza continue to disagree, Marji realizes their marriage is probably doomed. They stay married, although unhappily and with separate bedrooms, as they continue at school. Toward the end of their four-year program, Marji and Reza are assigned to work together on the final project. For seven months they happily collaborate without arguing on an ambitious theme park plan for Tehran based on figures from Persian mythology. Once the plan is completed and earns them perfect scores, Marji tries to make the plan a reality. But the authorities reject the plan because it is Persian, not Islamic. Marji realizes that she and Reza must divorce, and she must leave Iran.
Marji informs her parents, and they agree. Her father reflects by saying that as Iranians they are crushed, “not only by the government, but by the weight of our own traditions.” Marji is accepted into an arts program in Strasbourg, France, then must wait three months for a student visa. She cherishes her final months with her mother, father, and grandmother in the country that she instinctively loves but cannot remain in. This story ends like the prior book, with Marji at the Tehran airport saying goodbye to her family.
Themes
The Loss of Innocence in Coming of Age
Persepolis is largely a story about a young woman coming of age, and for Marji, this process is punctuated by incidents that gradually chip away her innocence. Her father acknowledges this process when he tells Marji in “The Water Cell” that he thinks she is old enough to understand certain things. Young Marji innocently believes the Shah was chosen by God, because that is the story her teacher told her. When her father tells her the truth, it is a watershed moment for Marji in her coming of age. She not only learns the harsh reality of geopolitics in the Middle East, but she also must contemplate the power dynamics that would cause her teacher to “lie” to her about this. This incident chips away at Marji’s innocence and teaches her to think more critically going forward. The same process plays out over and over again. Her mother’s run-in with men who threaten to rape her shows Marji just how cruel and opportunistic people can be. Uncle Anoush’s execution teaches Marji that her heroes are fallible. Marji’s encounter with the Guardians of the Revolution at the end of the book shows her that life as a woman in Iran comes with the daily threat of losing everything. Each one of these incidents erodes Marji’s innocence and pushes her forward on her path to independence. Though Marji’s coming of age is perhaps more challenging than most, her story suggests that the loss of innocence is a painful but necessary experience on the path to adulthood.
The Cannibalizing Nature of the Iranian Regime
A theme that comes up time and again in Persepolis is the way the Iranian regime’s tactics for staying in power cannibalizes its own society. The regime depends upon its citizens for survival, yet it feeds off of and destroys them at the same time. In order to keep tabs on its citizens, the regime relies upon information from the general populace. The Guardians of the Revolution police the streets. Neighbors spy on neighbors for any signs of forbidden behavior. In other words, the regime turns Iranians against other Iranians in order to maintain its control over the population. The regime’s tactics have a terribly destructive effect on individuals and society as a whole. The same is true of the regime’s conduct in the war with Iraq. It knows that Iran’s much larger population can outlast a war of attrition against the much less populous Iraq. So, the regime launches a propaganda campaign, aimed at the poor and uneducated, to encourage Iranians to join the military. It stays in the fight by sending wave after wave of young Iranians to die on the battlefield. As Marji shrewdly observes, the regime also uses the cover of the war and the nationalism the war helps to stir up in order to shore up support and crack down on its detractors. The awful cannibalizing nature of the Iranian regime is best summed up in a bit of the regime’s own propaganda that makes several appearances in the story: in order to die as a martyr, one must inject their own blood into society’s veins.
Moral Compromise as a Means of Survival
The characters in Persepolis must often compromise their values in order to survive. It is notable that the characters in the story whom Marji thinks of as true heroes are the ones who risk or give their lives for their ideals. Iranians who protest the Shah’s regime are physically attacked and even massacred. Siamek and Moshen endure years of torture in the Shah’s prisons because of their activism. Anoush is exiled from his homeland and later imprisoned and killed for fighting for his ideals. These incidents teach Marji that holding powerful ideals can be dangerous. But it is her parents that drive the point home. Marji wants to go to the protest and take part in the movement she believes in, but her parents won’t allow her. They make it clear that her safety is more important. The countless Iranians who flee the country they love is another indication that survival is more important than fighting for what you love. Taji believes fiercely in women’s rights, but she frequently chastises Marji for speaking up and not keeping her head down. The message is crystal clear: ideals are all well and good, but safety is more important. Sometimes one must compromise one’s values in order to stay alive. Once the Iranian regime takes power and clamps down, Iranians of conscience have little choice but to compromise their morals.
Nickel Boys Summary and Analysis
Prologue & Chapters 1–3
The prologue introduces Elwood Curtis, now an adult living in New York City, who reflects on his time at Nickel Academy, a reform school in Florida. He learns of a discovered “secret graveyard” and feels compelled to return to Florida to share his story. The prologue sets the tone for the themes of trauma, memory, and the struggle for justice. In Chapter 1, Elwood, as a child, receives a recorded album of Martin Luther King, Jr. speeches for Christmas, instilling hope and a belief in equality. Raised by his grandmother, Harriet, Elwood faces manipulation by older men at a hotel kitchen and learns the harsh truth that hard work doesn’t always yield just rewards.
Chapter 2 covers the aftermath of Brown v. Board of Education and Elwood's quest for fairness. Tensions rise when he confronts neighborhood boys stealing candy, leading to a confrontation and a black eye. Chapter 3 introduces Mr. Hill, his new teacher in high school, who becomes a mentor and fosters Elwood's interest in the Civil Rights Movement. Encouraged to participate in protests, Elwood dreams of college, but his journey takes a tragic turn when he is wrongfully incarcerated at Nickel Academy.
Analysis: Prologue & Chapters 1–3
Elwood’s attempts to suppress his childhood trauma reveal a central conflict: whether to confront the painful past or remain silent. The discovery of the graveyard forces Elwood to face haunting memories and the broader implications of injustice within marginalized communities. His early belief in integration highlights the contrast between hope and systemic racism. The blank encyclopedias symbolize the betrayal of trust and the harsh reality that hard work does not always lead to success. Elwood's optimism remains, even in a system designed to break him down.
Chapters 4–6
Chapter 4 details Elwood’s harsh realities at Nickel Academy, where he undergoes dehumanization and strives to adapt to the oppressive environment. He meets newcomer Turner, who becomes his closest friend. Chapter 5 paints a stark picture of Nickels's inadequacy as an educational institution, as Elwood and Turner navigate the treacherous halls filled with overt racism. In Chapter 6, after attempting to help another boy, Elwood faces brutal punishment from the staff, highlighting the cruel nature of the reform school system.
Analysis: Chapters 4–6
Elwood’s imprisonment symbolizes the struggle against an unjust system that prioritizes punishment over rehabilitation. The brutality endorsed by authority figures fosters a culture of fear that reinforces racial hierarchies. Elwood's attempt to do the right thing illustrates the conflict between personal values and survival instincts, showing the devastating impact of systemic oppression that children face in reformatories.
Chapters 7 & 8
Chapter 7 delves into Elwood’s familial relationships, exploring the generational trauma felt by his grandmother due to racism and loss. The visit to the Nickel hospital reveals further injustice when Elwood is unable to share the truth of his suffering during visits. In Chapter 8, Elwood’s disillusionment grows as he witnesses pointless punishment and learns of the corrupt merit system contrived by Nickel Academy.
Analysis: Chapters 7 & 8
Elwood’s familial trauma underscores the cyclical nature of violence across generations, as Harriet's experiences with racism echo within Elwood’s own life. The inability to talk about suffering between generations reveals the obstacles faced by victims of systemic abuse. The false merit system serves as a critique of societal promises of upward mobility, exposing the unjust realities of race and class within the educational system.
Chapters 9 & 10
Chapter 9 introduces the predatory nature of the school as it presents a boxing match with deadly stakes. Griff, the Black student, is coerced into losing to avoid punishment. Chapter 10 captures Elwood and his friends as they engage in acts of rebellion, highlighting their yearning for agency and normal childhood experiences amidst oppression.
Analysis: Chapters 9 & 10
The boxing match serves as a microcosm of racial tensions during the Civil Rights Movement, exposed under systemic rigging that prioritizes racism. The culture of terror promoted by school authorities reinforces the characters' struggle for identity while also highlighting their camaraderie, which provides some measure of hope against despair.
Chapters 11 & 12
In 1975, as an adult in New York, Elwood’s life reflects the scars of his past as he struggles with his reality amid social unrest. Chapter 12 reveals the harsh realities of justice in Nickel, dissecting the precarious nature of survival shaped by systemic abuse. Elwood’s nostalgia is overshadowed by his continued fight against the injustices of Nickel Academy.
Analysis: Chapters 11 & 12
Elwood’s adulthood emphasizes the long-term impact of childhood trauma, portraying the difficulty of moving past systemic injustices. The societal complexities surrounding racial tensions and personal grievances illuminate the timeless nature of civil rights, demonstrating the lasting consequences of institutional failure.
Chapters 13–15
Chapter 13 jumps to the 1980s when Elwood unexpectedly encounters Chickie Pete, a fellow former student. Their conversation reflects the ongoing trauma shared by Nickel Academy survivors and the continuing challenges they face. Throughout Chapters 14 and 15, Elwood’s search for justice culminates in confronting the systemic corruption at Nickel and his ultimate wish for redemption through testimony.
Analysis: Chapters 13–15
Elwood’s encounter with Chickie Pete amplifies the significance of connection and survival among survivors of trauma. The enduring struggle to bring attention to injustices underscores Elwood’s commitment to truth-telling, while also epitomizing the chance for healing through community.
Chapters 16 & Epilogue
In Chapter 16, Elwood's overdue confrontation with his trauma leads to the tragic climax of the narrative when he attempts to escape with Turner but suffers a fatal consequence. The epilogue reveals Turner’s living legacy as he takes Elwood’s name to honor him, framing Elwood’s death as part of a larger story of injustice.
Analysis: Chapters 16 & Epilogue
Elwood’s death starkly illustrates the cyclical nature of violence inherent in institutional racism. Turner’s decision to adopt Elwood’s identity signifies a merging of lives and the continued fight for visibility as a testament to resilience in the face of systemic oppression.
Themes
Hope versus Reality
Both Persepolis and The Nickel Boys explore the conflict between characters’ aspirations and the stark realities of their environments. Marji’s struggle for a sense of identity amid revolution reflects Elwood’s fight against systemic injustices, where their hopes often clash with painful truths. The vicissitudes of life lead to both characters confronting the harsh consequences of hope within oppressive systems.
Racism and Injustice
The theme of institutional racism runs deeply throughout both narratives, with Elwood and Marji faced with systems that perpetuate discrimination. The characters’ experiences offer illuminating insights into the pervasive nature of prejudice, illustrating the ways society structures injustice through both systemic and interpersonal dynamics.
The Personal and the Political
Both narratives contend with the intersection of personal experiences and broader political landscapes. Characters grapple with personal traumas while navigating the social upheavals of their respective societies, highlighting how deeply personal experiences reflect and contribute to larger historical narratives.
Motifs
Identity
The continual exploration of identity plays a significant role in both Persepolis and The Nickel Boys, as Marji and Elwood grapple with their positions within their respective societies. Both characters face the challenges of reconciling their sense of self amidst societal expectations that often conflict with their inner truths.
Family
Family dynamics significantly influence both characters’ growth in their individual narratives. In Persepolis, Marji’s relationship with her parents and grandparents reflects the rich tapestry of culture, identity, and history that shapes her perspective, while Elwood’s interactions highlight the lasting impact of familial love against a backdrop of trauma.
Resistance and Rebellion
Acts of resistance and rebellion manifest across both stories, as Marji and Elwood confront oppressive systems. Marji’s youthful defiance against the regime’s restrictions and Elwood’s quest for justice demonstrate the human spirit’s resilience amid crushing circumstances.
The Veil
In Persepolis, the veil serves both as a literal and symbolic representation of the regime's repression, marking the boundaries of personal freedom while demonstrating the divisive nature of adherence to strict societal codes. This motif resonates with Elwood's experience at Nickel Academy, where the constant threat of violence underlines the metaphorical veils of discrimination and injustice both characters must navigate.
Violence
Violence serves as a recurrent motif in both works, illustrating the impact of systemic oppression in society. Through personal experiences of brutality—whether at the hands of a regime or authority figures—both Marji and Elwood grapple with the emergence of violence as a tool for exerting control and suppressing dissent.
In Persepolis, Marjane "Marji" Satrapi navigates her childhood in Iran during significant historical changes, while in The Nickel Boys, Elwood Curtis experiences the harsh realities of a reform school in Florida. Both narratives explore profound themes of identity, trauma, and societal oppression, making them ripe for comparison.
Enhanced Themes
1. The Loss of Innocence in Coming of Age
Persepolis showcases Marji’s evolution from innocence to awareness as she confronts the complexities of political unrest and personal beliefs. In contrast, Nickel Boys illustrates Elwood’s childhood innocence shattered by systematic racism and abuse in an oppressive institution. - Tip: Highlight specific incidents in each story that signify this transition.
2. Systems of Oppression
Both texts critique oppressive regimes—Marji against the Iranian regime's suppression of women and free expression, while Elwood grapples with the dehumanizing practices at Nickel Academy.
Marji's opposition is visible through her family’s protests and Marji's personal rebellion, whereas Elwood's resistance is often internal and calculated. - Trick: Use quotes from both texts to support your comparisons around how characters respond to these systems.
3. Identity and Belonging
Marji struggles with her Iranian identity against a backdrop of western ideologies, while Elwood faces the challenge of being a Black boy in a racially charged reform school. Both must navigate dual identities shaped by their environments. - Tip: Discuss how each character’s relationships with their families guide their search for identity.
Comparisons and Contrasts
Marji's Rebellion vs. Elwood's Conformity: Marji openly defies restrictions, while Elwood often adopts a survival mode, reflecting their differing contexts.
Family Dynamics: Both characters are profoundly shaped by their family backgrounds, yet Marji's family remains a source of activism while Elwood’s relationship with his grandmother illustrates the generational trauma of racism.
Tips for Paper 2
Thematic Analysis: Focus on how both authors convey the theme of oppression and survival through their protagonists’ journeys.
Symbolism: Identify and analyze symbols (like the veil in Persepolis and the boxing match in Nickel Boys) that illustrate the characters' struggles.
Historical Context: Incorporate background on the Iranian revolution and the Civil Rights Movement to deepen your analysis.
Literary Techniques: Explore how Satrapi's visual storytelling in Persepolis contrasts with the narrative style of Nickel Boys. Discuss the impact of these styles on the audience's understanding of the protagonists' experiences.