1. Persepolis

2. History and Identity
The opening of the film hints to the major theme of the film
The intertwined nature of History and Identity
How is this represented visually in the film?

3. A quick scene deconstruction

10. What is established in this scene?
How is Marjane’s character introduced?
What is she trying to do?
What does the film show us?

11. What is established in this scene?
A binary is introduced
Marjane’s two identities: one with the veil and one without the veil
Marjane is compared to the French woman in the two-shot

12. What is established in this scene?
Identity is questioned
The mirror is used to reflect Marjane’s “veiled” identity back to her (and the audience)
When asked for a passport, she is being tested on her identity
This is a test that she cannot pass; putting on the veil is not enough

13. What is established in this scene?
Marjane is caught between cultures
She cannot return home to Iran
She is “Othered” in France
But why is she caught between cultures?
This short scene gives us a lot of information, preparing us to explore how she has ended up without an identity that she can claim as her own

14. Mediated History
Mediated History is a theme that has been important to the last few films we have seen
In Redacted, every scene is shown through a lens that the audience is able to contextualize
We are meant to notice the fact that we are voyeurs to a horrible experience

15. Mediated History
Persepolis and Waltz with Bashir are mediated by the very fact that they are animated films
While both films are composed traditionally, they are also unapologetic with the fact that they are not bound by the rules of reality

16. Marjane’s reaction to Markus’ Writing

17. Mediated History
Persepolis narratively mediates history through memory
We experience history through Marjane’s personal narrative
This mediation distances us and allows us to consider the broader context of history, yet it also privileges Marjane’s personal narrative and allows her story to be relatable
The film is much an artefact of history as it is an autobiography

18. Mediated History
Mediated history is also seen in the structure of the narrative
The framing device of Marjane trying to fly to Tehran is not in the graphic novel
It serves as a reminder that we are reliving Marjane’s history
We are being told how the history of Iran has shaped Marjane’s identity and lead to her living in France

19. Mediated History Finally, the film mediates history visually
The use of colour and the type of animation
Black and white, Shadow puppet theatre
Each depict a layer of history and memory
Black and white representing Marjane’s personal historical narrative
Shadow puppet theatre (and other forms of stylization) representing Iran’s historical narrative

20. Mediated History

21. Who is Marjane? How does the film connect history and identity?
Marjane and Iran “grow up” together
Both are in transition throughout the film
Majane is unable to cope with a new Iran, just as Iranian society is unable to cope with a mature Marjane
Some examples...

22. Marjane’s first of many acts of rebellion against the oppressive structures of Iran

23. Marjane going through puberty as war rages in Iran

24. Marjane compromises her beliefs by entering a loveless marriage

25. The “Iran of today” and the Marjane of today cannot coexist

26. Living on the Margin
Marjane’s Identity is defined by Iran’s history, but she is only defined by what she is not and exists only in the margins
She is not Iranian; she fails at her attempt to reintegrate into Iranian society and ultimately lives in exile
She is not European; despite sharing cultural values with her European peers, she is always Othered by being racially different

27. Living on the Margin

28. Living on the Margin

29. Living on the Margin
Marjane’s hybridized identity leads her to be homeless
Literally, when she lives on the streets after being kicked out of her home
Figuratively, when she is unable to live in Iran and is forced into exile

30. Living on the Margin

31. Living on the Margin

32. Living on the Margin
The ending returns to the imagery of the beginning
The driver looks at Marjane in the mirror, but Marjane herself does not appear in the mirror
By living on the margin, Marjane is rendered invisible, neither Iranian or French
She comes from Iran but is driven off into Paris, her fate is always to be in transition, never really at home

33. Feminism in Persepolis
Despite the fact that history is defined by men, including Marjane’s grandfather and uncle, the moral center of the narrative lies with Marjane’s grandmother and mother
Both insist that she does not compromise her own identity in order to assimilate into either Iranian or Austrian culture
And of course, ultimately Persepolis is Marjane’s story

34. Conclusions
Persepolis is a film that considers how history can shape identity
Marjane is indelibly linked to Iran, but this link is highly problematic
As such, Marjane’s experiences are mediated to remind us of the distance between her present self and her past
Her identity on the margins is as mediated as the film itself; just as the film puts us at a distance, she is distanced from her own identity