Role of Iranian Woman in Book, Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi

For as long as I can remember, women have always played a huge role in society. No matter if was race, ethnicity, or even their culture, women have always been important with the roles that they carry. In the book, Persepolis, you learn about what the Iranian women had to go through, especially Marjane Satrapis. We see Satrapi’s struggles through her childhood and the stories she tells. As you dig deeper in to the book, readers realize what an everyday life in Iran is like. Such as, growing up in war and the struggles it is being a young women. Not only do you continue to see the struggles, but you see the rebellious actions some women take by wearing the veil, such as joining revolutions and challenging their history.

After reading Persepolis, I was able to gain a better understanding on what the meaning of the veil is. In the Iranian culture, wearing the veil doesn’t only symbolize religion but it also shows how the women have respect for themselves. A phrase often used is “if you cover, you get respect”. One instance this was shown in Persepolis was when two men to started to insult Marji’s mom. They stated “if [she] didn’t want [disrespect] to happen, [she] should wear the veil” (Satrapi 73). There are two ways to wear the veil. One way is to wear it like a Fundamentalist woman; showing absolutely no hair (like Marji and her mother). Or a modern woman, that shows a little hair; by doing this you are rebelling against the government. “I didn’t really like to wear the veil, especially since I didn’t understand why I had to” (Satrapi 3). Resulting in not understanding why Marji had to wear her veil, she wore it just like her mother, a modern rebellious Iranian woman.

Not only were women rebellious on wearing the veil, they also...

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...ficulties surrounding the veiling practice and the resulting advantages and disadvantages. Veiling is not entirely a bad practice that’s about the spread of submissive, undermined woman. The rebellious acts by Iranian women are found by women who wear the veil, being a part of the country’s riots, and challenging what they think their history is all about. In spite of the effect of the veil, and how it’s looked at to be oppressive, Iranian women find that today they have found strength and identity by wearing their veil proudly. Additionally women who participate in the revolution, such as Marji and her mother, stuck to who they were regardless of the amount of punishment they could have gotten into with their government. Even though Iranian women are trying to overcome discrimination and dealing with being stripped of their rights, Iranian women still stand tall.