If you have been around the block, you have probably heard about Persepolis by now. It is one of those comics that was welcomed by critics far outside of the normal comic book sphere of influence. Biographies are the "it" right now in comics, and after the success of Maus, it isn't any wonder that Persepolis is noticed and lauded left and right. This comic didn't need to piggyback on anyone though, it easily stands on it's own as a superb work.
Story: Persepolis is Satrapi's autobiography of her life growing up Iranian. The first book begins with her at age ten in 1980. It is a time of revolution in Iran. Though the old regime is corrupt, the government that replaces it is founded on fundamentalist Islam and proves to be far worse. What liberties people used to enjoy are stripped away; freedom is thrown out the window. Then there is war with Iraq. It is dangerous times... death from outside, death from within. What a time to be growing up in!
The second book deals with her life after being sent to Austria by her parents to keep her safe. She is getting older, learning to be an adult, and struggling to hold on to her identity and sanity.
Themes: The first book seems to carry the fruits of youth: innocence, idealism, and hope. By contrast, the second book is one of loneliness, aimlessness, and crisis. What? Crisis?!? How could things be worse? She escapes war, but looses everything in the process: Family, friends, community, culture... all gone. The bombs and rockets of the outside world never came close to killing her compared to the results of her internal struggle. Realities are harsh. Gone are the optimisms of her youth.
As all of her tenuous supports in Austria come crashing down she finds herself living on the streets--a testimony to how easily homelessness can grab hold of one's life. Even while watching her put her life back together through the later parts of book two, there is a sense of pessimism about life and the future. It almost feels like "so what?", and her life looks more like a cruel game than anything. One would have hoped that her experiences would have turned her into a great political activist, fighting against tyranny like her uncle Anoush. Life isn't as neat and tidy as our storybooks, is it? That is when you realize the book that you're holding in your hands is the testimony that something amazing has come out of all this. I think that is the greatest post-script to Persepolis.
Art: Satrapi's art is wonderfully black and white, and very simple. That is not to say that it is simplistic. She is very intelligent, whether using silhouettes running down to the basement during an air-raid, or God and Karl Marx floating in a dream world's clouds. The style is clear (vs. some manga, for example, where battles scenes look more like abstract renderings), and emotions are often larger than life. The cartooniness of the graphics sometimes made death disturbingly easy to swallow for me. Contrast this with Maus, which threw death in my face over and over, willing me to come to terms with it's harsh realities.
Bottom line: the art serves the writing well. Even if it is not your favorite style, I'm sure it will grow on you until you look upon it fondly.
After-Effects: Much like Sacco's Palestine, Persepolis is going to bring a lot of insight for the average reader of another world. An intimate tour of Iran is timely. As Iran seeks nukes, the "war on terror" persists, and repressive Islamic governments furrow the brow, what better time to put a human face on the people? Fear, hope, love--we're all human. It is a good thing to remember. For whatever reason Iraq and Iran go to war, even Satrapi's politically dissident parents get caught up in the nationalism that sweeps the people. We really are all the same. Hopefully comics and books like these will get into the hands of the average American and start changing the way we think and act.
Btw: Did I mention that she has a wicked sense of humor? Admittedly, this really did happen to her...
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