In the last few classes we have been using the case study book named the Reluctant Fundamentalist. It looked at themes of memory, alienation of the individual and was a cultural memory to the people of the time. Usually I would not connect to the feeling intended from the piece of work chosen in class. This novel actually made me think about the main charter, his choices and conflicting that he had within him and especially how it changed him. It connects to themes of nationalism that I look at in History. It was especially interesting how quickly he started to change once his social circle and love life fell apart. He also begins to casually influence the american that he is sitting with. The more that we start to see him explain his life, subtle clear motivations are said in an effort to have people empathize for his story. More interesting is that there are so many external factors that have also affected him. The alienation he felt in the USA for the lack of financial means, and later for border control not believing he lived in the USA. His colleagues left him leaving him further alienated,  his facial hair made those around him even more uncomfortable and left him ready to leave. I think his entire experience will one day be part of a cultural memory for members of alienated orientations as they will know the struggle of not being fully accepted because of a certain belief. There may not be many physical signs but the shared memory and experience will always be there.

Recently in class we have been going through the graphic memoir Persepolis. I had already gone through Persepolis in class so it was very interesting going through it in a different lens. The first time I went through it we looked at it through a historical eye with emphasis on how it relates to society. Satrapi very accurately showed how the society radically changed and the very important history that Iran had. What I’ve most enjoyed about what she had done in Persepolis is what I have learned recently about Marji and her personal community. Specifically how Marji and her relationship with her society changed over the course of Persepolis. She goes from being a young girl not understanding the veil or what it represented, while still semi conforming the laws of where she was. Even though she played with it she still wore it with the other girls when it was necessary. Her exposure to her parents and their political activism started her defiance and deviance from societies rules. She even snuck out to a rally with her maid, defying even her parents rules. Marji transitions into an understanding of her greater society and her impact on it. Her talks with god, a realization  of the keys to paradise and their impact and finally her choice to leave to go to Austria. I found it super interesting with how Satrapi was able to show this really complex change in herself and her character. The connection of her personal memory was so intertwined with the collective memory her society at the time is really fascinating. The fact that she has learned more about it since leaving Iran allowed her to then connect parts of the history that she might have not known at the time. The mix of the personal and shared history was super complex to look into and made it so much more enjoyable to look at.

Welcome to UBC Blogs. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start blogging!