Persepolis... Truly an Amazing Graphic Novel (Inquiry Three)

When Marji goes to Vienna, Austria, she finds out what freedom really is. She is not forced to wear a veil and wears what she wants through the streets. Over the years she hears about the events going on in Iran (See Inquiry One) she becomes saddened, leaving her in misery and worry for a long time when she recieved no letters from her parents because of further restrictions to the country (I do not know for sure if this actually happened but... it is coming from my imagination). Finally, when the border dispute ends in 1996, Marji is surprised to recieve a letter from her parents saying that her father was taken into captivity by the "enemy" and he was released after two years. Marji, when she was ten or so, thought that being able to tell her friends that her parents had been to jail with the enemy... and they were tortured and refused to talk... would be cool... but, when she went to college classes that morning, she said nothing to anyone.

Most of the time knowing that she was in Vienna, getting a wonderful education and everything she ever wanted, made her feel guilty and wish to go back home to suffer with her family again. For them to be together, but she knew her parents would not allow her to go home at this time... she may never leave.

In Austria she still wished to go to the United States, all the wonderful stories she had heard from her old friend who had gone there. Soon, she would get her wish.

In the year 2000, just after George W. Bush was elected president Marji moved to the States. New York city to be exact.

Living through 9/11 was probably one of the hardest things that Marji ever had to do. In her heart she wondered what it was coming to when the people of her own religion were doing things like this. As she walked the streets of New York she was stopped twice in a week by gangs, accusing her of being in league with the attackers of their buildings, their drunken breath intoxicating Marji. One of the attacks she never will forget:

Marji walked through the streets of New York, keeping her head down, the hood of her black hooded sweatshirt covering her hair. She wore a black leather skirt and boots, and her hair fell straight and long.

Suddenly, a group of voices fell prey to her ears as she walked, men's voices, and laughter. She walked quicker, already once that week she had been harrassed by a gang of people, blaming her for what happened to their country because of how she looked... she would not go through it again.

"Hey, guys, look what it is!" Marji walked faster again, this time almost in a run as she turned into an alley, rushing down it. She heard approaching footsteps behind her.

"Hey!" A voice called, "Stop! Hey you!" Marji slowed slightly, fearful of what would happen if she ran. She finally gathered the courage she had always had as a child and turned.

"Yes?" she asked. There was a gang of guys coming at her. Four she counted. They stopped.

"Look what we have here..." one of them said... "It's an Al Queda member..." Marji's eyes flared and she frowned, staring at the men before her.

"What did you just call me?" she asked.

"Well that's what you are aren't you?" they asked. Marji looked at them for a few moments.

. . .

She had walked away that day with a bruised eye and a cut lip... from that day on she decided that she would never put up with something like that again.

And she decided to write a book.

(There we are! That is Marji's life up until 2002!!)