1. Introduction to Literature
-- Functions of Literature (1): Narrative
-- Persepolis
-- “20/20”
2014/9/19

2. Outline Functions of Literature (1)
Let’s Start with an episode of a Text: Persepolis
1st Viewing: Plot, Character
(2nd Viewing): Image, Form and Content
Elements of a Narrative
Reading “20/20” –Group Discussion
Quiz and Course Introduction

3. What is Literature? Artistic Representation of Life Fiction Drama
Poetry

4. Stories Why Literature? (1) of our own and others
-- interesting ways of understanding the world!
Telling stories and listening to stories are also our ways of understanding our world. When we dream, we tell stories to ourselves. Movies, novels, even advertisements and commercials tell stories of different kinds to interest us. Stories of a different culture may be harder to understand, but that’s how we expand our horizons.

5. Let’s Start with a Text about Iran: Persepolis (茉莉人生)

6. Iran

7. Iran – What do you know about it?
The World's Most Reputable Countries, 2014 (Forbes): Switzerland (1), …Taiwan (29), China (50), Pakistan (54), Iran (55) (source)
Why? Possible Factors…
Ruhollah Khomeini, Islamic revolution 1979
Iran-Iraq war ( )
In support of Taliban, one of US’s arch enemies
To compile its rankings, it asked three broad, general questions about the countries’ overall reputation:  Did the respondents have a “good feeling” about the countries, did they admire or respect the countries, did they trust the countries and did they think the countries had a “good overall reputation.” The  rankings are based on those questions alone.

8. Persepolis graphic fiction in 4 parts (2000-2003) film (2007)

9. Persepolis (茉莉人生, 2007) While you watch the film: Technique
Textbook pp
Character
Marji’s personality and passion
Plot
how the story begins, develops, reaches some turning points, and ends. 
Perspective
who tells the story, the adult Marji or the child?
Technique
the images that stick in your mind 
While you watch the film:
pay attention to
Textbook: graphic fiction--“Shabbat” (1980 Iran-Iraq war)
Ours: film --Marji’s childhood experience of Islamic Revolution

10. Character: Marji’s Personalities
Pre-revolution: Westernized, loves Bruce Lee
Idealistic and inquisitive
two obsessions:
Shaving my legs one day.....and being the last prophet of the galaxy.

11. e.g. As future prophet, I hereby decide:
First, everyone must behave well.
Second, everyone must keep their word.
Third, everyone must do good.
Fourth, the poor must all eat one roasted chicken every day.
Fifth, old women will never suffer again.

12. Plot: Marji’s Growth
1. Flashback over her childhood: From Pro-Shah to Pro-Revolution 2. Beginning: the return of her aunt -- children playing at a party; adults talking about politics or daily matters 3. 1st Turning Point: demonstration on the street -- father’s teaching -- Siamak returning and talking about tortures 4. 2nd Turning Point: children’s imitation --mother’s interruption and Marji’s talk with God

13. Children’s Imitation
takes on the adults’ enthusiasm (or fanaticism)

14. What’s Wrong?
She moves in extremes, supporting whole-heartedly Shah at one point and then the revolution; wanting to punish Ramine first and then forgive him.

15. Narrative Perspective:
an adult’s or a child’s?

16. Art = Re-Organization and Representation of Life
Pattern = -- Similarities & Differences
-- Repetition & Variation
Puzzled, Marji is to experience more both the oppressiveness of political dictatorship and the problems of Western-style liberty.
Here the main points “may” be:
-- how contagious political ideologies are;
-- how we need to try to make careful judgments of our actions in a group, and
-- maintain our basic integrity as humans.

17. The Artistic Form = Drawing and Filmic Techniques
The black and white – to suggest an era of dictatorial control
Drawing to show different emotions and human situations –human closeness, fear, sadness
humans as shadows, with dignity, freedom, fantasies, liberty, or like puppets, etc.
A child’s perspective mixed with an adult’s

18. Child’s Perspective: God as Her Imaginary Companion
Marji speaking to God…

19. Large Figure for Our Identification w/ this Child

20. Variations of Shape and Shadows
Fear
Dignity

21. Human Smallness

22. The Grandmother – teaching her … to survive

23. To maintain her integrity

24. Jasmine – Care of the body

25. Persepolis: Background
For your reference

26. Ref. Persepolis: Time Line
The Qajar dynasty (卡加王朝)
  the Shah regime (巴列維王朝)
revolution; wearing the veil and anti-alcoholism
the Khomenei era
  -- Iran–Iraq War
1979 – enthusiastic about revolution
age 12; Marji went to Vienne, smoked drug, fell in and out of love
1987  --age 18; Marijane returned to Iran; got married and then divorced. 
age 24 -- Marjane left Iran again
present -- Marjane Satrapi at the airport, unable to board a plane to Iran.
Textbook episode

27. Ref. National Authorities
The Shah
The revolution
80’s – 90’s

28. Ref. Iraq vs. Iran War (1980-1988) Reasons:
Iran – Islamization of the nation; Iraq – reduces and controls religion;
Khomeini once expelled by Iraq;
the issue of Kurdish (庫德族）, etc.
Father: “The West sold weapons to both sides. . . “
The US –
secretly supported Iraq in its production of chemical weapons.
sold weapons to Iran in exchange for the hostages (伊朗軍售醜聞 Iran-Contra Scandal—disclosed in 1986)
(References: Reasons and
Senate Mitchell’s Speech against Olive North )

29. Ref. Opening & Ending – Exile & Mother-Daughter Relationships
Cannot return home
Acknowledges her Iranian background

30. Ref. Marjane Satrapi (b. 1969)
As the granddaughter of Nasreddine Shah, the last Quadjar emperor of Iran, Iranian-born Marjane Satrapi is a princess by birth and a self-declared pacifist by inclination. Only 10 years old at the time of the 1979 Islamist revolution, she was reportedly expelled at age 14 from her French-language school after hitting a principal who demanded she stop wearing jewelry. Fearing for her safety, Satrapi’s secularist parents sent her to Vienna, Austria, where she would remain until age 18, when she returned to Iran to attend college. After a brief marriage ended in divorce, Satrapi moved to France in 1994, where her graphic memoir, Persepolis, was published to great acclaim in 2000.
Norton

31. 20/20 Note 1: -- carpool (共乘) e.g. When Harry Met Sally (1989)
-- 20/20 vision = 視力 1.0
In your first reading, you should try to ignore the proper nouns unless not knowing what they mean affects your reading.

32. Note 2: Ohio to Indiana to Spokane

33. Note 3
“Look, cows.”
Chalk it up to =
attribute it to
source

34. What Ruthie observes Golden Eagle White Buffalo Indian Paintbrush
Sources (left to right): 1, 2, 3; Indian Paintbrush (West America or Asia)

35. What Ruthie thought she saw
Tree reflector
Big Foot
Sources (left to right): 1, 2

36. What Ruthie thought she saw
UFO on top of Twin Falls, Idaho
UFO Sighting Twin Falls 2012
UFO Sighting in Twin Falls, Idaho on April 14th 2014
A handsome genius in the person of Bill himself.

37. 20/20: Questions for Discussion
[Character] What is Bill's first impression of Ruthie? What does that say about Bill? Has he changed his view on her as they drive along?
[Character] Which of Ruthie's observations are realistic and which are unreal? Do you think she is merely misinterpreting what she sees, or is she seeing things that aren't there?
[Theme] Whose vision is 20/20, Ruthie's or Bill's? What makes you think so?
[Association] Which one of them would you like to have as roommate, or travel partner?
Although her interpretations of what she sees are incorrect, Ruthie has a cheerful, upbeat way of seeing life while Bill offers few revelations about himself except to stereotype Ruthie as a country girl who isn't too bright.
It is ok to jump to the conclusion that Ruthie is a ditz and dismiss what she sees, and that Bill is grounded and realistic?
But what is the benefit of being as imaginative as Ruthie is? Bill thinks, “Her eyes were big, blue, and capable of seeing wonderful sights (par. 7).” Students could discuss what that means, not only about the things she's seen on the trip but also about her way of looking at the world. Which way would the students prefer?

38. Discussion –in class and online
In class discussion –
1-6 in SF 204; 7-12 in SF 205 Q.
Group 1 5 9 2 6 10 3 7 11 4 8 12

39. Let’s Take a Break!!!
Those without a group or with questions, please come see me.

40. Period 2: Discussion Time 10:10-11:00

42. Let’s Take a Break!!! Turn on your smart phones,
One group uses one tablet computer, and
Connect them to Internet

43. 1. Which of the following is NOT what Ruthie sees on the road, or thinks she sees?
1. An Indian paintbrush
2. A golden eagle
3. The store sign of Berger King
4. A UFO.

44. 2. For Bill, Ruthie is 1. not argumentative like an East Coast woman
2. Not a good driver
3. Not attentive to the surroundings
4. Not willing to share fuel cost

45. 3. When does Bill start to change his idea about Ruthie
1. When she says “Look, cows.”
2. When she sees Indian Paintbrush.
3. When she says she sees Big Foot.
4. When she sees a UFO.

46. 4. What does Ruthie think about Bill?
1. A good-for-nothing
2. A male chauvinist
3. A lazy bone
4. A handsome guy

47. 5. Do you anyone like Ruthie?
1. Yes, one of my family members
2. Yes, one of my friends
3. No
4. Not sure

48. Course Introduction
Fiction
Drama
Poetry

49. Analytical Skills + understanding of Life
This course
selects interesting English poems, short stories (and a novel next semester) and plays for us to read and
-- appreciate how literary texts convey their meanings to us through both form and content; 
-- understand different literary genres, their conventions and components,
-- analyze different parts of a text and how they are connected to its overall meaning; and, most importantly,
-- relate (creatively) the knowledge and experience we have in reading English literature to our understanding of ourselves and our society.
Analytical Skills + understanding of Life

50. Reading Process:
Understanding (with your own ‘horizon’ 地平線)  Appreciation  Interpretation  Your Self-Understanding and horizon broadened.
It usually takes several readings to fully understand and appreciate a text.
While you read, keep your mind and hand busy—by doing annotations first and then raising and answering questions online and in class.
Please turn to the syllabus now.

51. Overall Plan of a Class Before class:
you first read the texts, and raise questions (before Wed. noon 12:00)
[optional and if available]
-- watching lecture-- for a general understanding;
-- 2nd reading + watching the discussion--think of your own answers to the questions raised
In class (the following order will be used flexibly)
1st hour: (comprehension) Quiz and lecture
2nd group discussion and in-group presentation
3rd group presentation and wrapping up the discussion

52. What have you learned today?
Analyzing a text (by examining its narrative elements) in order to understand others and broaden our horizons;
Reading process
“20/20” –Character and Plot
Our course objectives and requirements

53. See you next time! Finish “A&P” Raise Questions before Wed. noon 12:00
Assignments:
Finish “A&P”
Raise Questions before Wed. noon 12:00