Marjane Coming of Age

In Persepolis (Satrapi & Paronnaud, 2007), the main character Marjane faces many challenges in this coming of age story. In a time of revolution and many societal rules, Marjane spends her time hiding her love for heavy metal music and challenging the dress code. When she moves to Austria, she befriends a group of people that she believes she can be friends with. After a while, she feels lonelier than ever. She leaves school and becomes homeless. Finally, she moves back to Iran. Miserable as ever, she becomes depressed and tries to commit suicide. Her life has become a series of unfortunate events as a teenager rises to adulthood. This realistic character development is something that many teenagers can relate to. The inability to fit in or figure out who you are and what your identity  is, is something many people fear and struggle with everyday. This element of realism makes you feel extremely sad for Marjane and gives you a sense of understanding her whirlwind of a life. The story ends with her in a cab telling the cab driver she is Iranian. Although it is not a happy ending, Marjane is able to finally find and come to terms with the basis of her identity. This realistic element is nice to see because although it took her a while to find her identity, she has finally found it. Hopefully she can use that as a start to find happiness.

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