Persepolis Name ______________________________

Study Guide 2 (pp. 26-61) Honors World Literature

Directions: Answer on a separate sheet of paper. If you can, type your responses, leaving space for additional
notes between each answer. Some responses require more thought; others do not. Be sure to distinguish
appropriately.

“Persepolis”

17. How does the grandmother react to Marji’s questions about her grandfather? Why do you think this is
her reaction? How does Marji’s questioning reveal her character?
18. Examine the frameless panel on page 29. Why do you think Satrapi chooses to depict this panel in this
way? How does it affect the reader’s interpretation?
19. Examine the panel in which Marji worries about what happens to her father (30/4). What is the
significance of both her father’s and God’s presence in the picture?
20. What social commentary does Satrapi make on pages 31-32? Why, for example, does the grandma say,
“If I die now at least I will be a martyr!! Grandma martyr!”(32/5)?
21. Throughout the novel, Marji expresses frustration at being “left out” of the adult world. Identify two
examples of her frustration in this chapter. How has she felt this same frustration in previous chapters?
Be sure to cite your examples.

“The Letter”

22. How does Marji try to learn more about the revolution? What does this tell you about her character?
23. Describe Marji’s relationship with the maid, Mehri.
24. What do you notice about how the captions change (34/6 and 35/6)? What is the effect of the placement
of these captions?
25. What does Hossein shirt tell you about his character? How is his shirt ironic?
26. What hypocrisies about her parents does Marji notice and point out—either directly or indirectly?
27. Examine the speech bubbles on page 37, panel 6. Why are they different?
28. Explain the significance of the following line: “We were not in the same social class but at least we were
in the same bed”(37/7).

“The Party”

29. Why is the shah overthrown?

30. Examine the hands on page 42. Where have you seen this gesture before (look in previous chapters)?
What does this gesture symbolize?
31. Why do you think this panel (42) takes up an entire page?
32. How has society changed after the revolution?
33. Examine the hand gestures used in the following panels: 44/3, 44/5, and 45/1. How is Marji’s use of the
hand gesture ironic?
34. How is Marji’s naïveté demonstrated in this chapter?
35. Compare pages 17 and 45. Find the two panels that are similar. What do these panels show us?

“The Heroes”

36. Who are the political prisoners who were released? What were their crimes?
37. Describe the at least two epiphanies Marji experiences in this chapter.
38. On page 52, identify a panel in which Satrapi expresses hyperbole through pictures.
39. What criticism about the effects of war does Satrapi make on page 53? Where did we see this same
criticism in the previous chapter?
40. Explain Marji’s confusion on page 53.
41. To whom does Marji turn in her time of confusion?
“Moscow”
42. Why is Marji so interested in her Uncle Anoosh?
43. What does Marji’s reaction (57/4) to her uncle’s story tell you about her character?
44. How is the “childish” or innocent part of Marji’s character demonstrated on page 58, and then again on
page 59? Don’t forget to look at the pictures.
45. How is the last panel on page 60 an example of an additive relationship between the words and pictures?
(Check you McCloud “Show and Tell” notes for a definition of additive.)
46. What do Marji’s friends think of her? How do you know?

Graphic Analysis

Choose a panel you feel stands out. Re-draw the panel below and then describe why you think it is significant.
Don’t worry; your drawing does not need to be exact, so long as you recreate the “gist of it.”