Persepolis

Satrapi's book conveys a complex political history stained with the national tragedy of Iran which was known then as Persia. The author shows through her visual rhetoric the intensity of the Islamic Revolution. The leaders enforced women to wear veils and outlawed bilingual schools. The veil created much turmoil in the country. The author centers in on the main character's family when she tells the reader about her mother being a revolutionary and hiding from the government because of a picture that was taken of her protesting. Later into the story, the girl turns her back on her strength in her God and puts her faith in herself. This shows the effect of the revolution. Even though this girl wanted things to change in her country, she still let it all get to her head and changed her motive. I would say that the author achieved her goals through the very simple graphic novel that gave a compelling story of a young girl.

In this story the use of color is key to completely setting the tone. The harsh black and white set the stage for the harsh reality of the situation. There are no happy times in this story so there is no need for color. The absences of gray shows that there is no gray to the political system. The people of the nation where either for or against the government.

This frame has great visual rhetoric. In the earlier frames the author explains that the revolution is like a bicylce, when the wheels don't turn, it falls. This picture shows tons and tons of people trying to ride this larger than life bicycle. It takes great coordination and skill to keep your balance and everything in check with that many people. One person can make a wrong move and screw everything up for everyone. The background in this frame is completely black, which shows just how bad the situation is. The only white are the people and the bike. These are the only symbols of hope, they are the only ones how can make a difference.