Hello Readers,
Welcome back to another blog! Last week in ASTU 100A, we read a comic book called “Persepolis – The Story of a Childhood”, written by Marjane Satrapi. This graphic narrative portrays her childhood during the Islamic Revolution in Iran. In my high school, we read a similar study from Khaled Hosseini’s novel – “The Kite Runner”. Both works are demonstrated through different genre with a similar historical context, but how do the writers convey their traumas to the public? War and deaths were on the line. Revolutions and wars are the major historical timeline in the Middle East, which triggers the memory of many. As for Satrapi and Hosseini, that is their denotation of trauma.
At first glance without taking out the plastic wrap, I didn’t know “Persepolis” was a comic book until I flipped to the first chapter – The Veil. This brings me back to my high school where my English teacher taught us how to analysis “Naruto” from a literature perspective. I enjoy how visual imagines and sound effects are depicted as it allows the readers to experience what is happening and what the characters are thinking. The color of black and white is very important because it often reflects the story’s atmosphere. For example: At one panel, the white color of the playground implies the freedom to the children. On the other hand, the windows and the veil are illustrated as black, which indicates Satrapi’s trauma and dark memory about her childhood. At another panel, “Whack, Whack” is demonstrated as an act of hitting their chest to show their respect and devotion to the new regime. The sound effects provide a sense of hearing to the readers, by visualizing a strong patriotic activity and painfulness to the chest (Probably leaving a big red mark!). I believe the style of comic provides senses to the readers, as it creates imagination to the individuals and it helps them to understand the situation in a more perceivable way.
Since “The Kite Runner” is a novel, it does not display any visual images in the book. Imagination is hard when your vocabularies are limited; instead, many readers like myself, have to rely on the movie version to support my understanding and a general idea about Islamic Revolution and invasion. Despite “The Kite Runner” mainly talks about Amir (Protagonist) searches for his redemption from betraying his best friend, Hassan. Islamic Revolution and invasion from the Soviet Union alter his relationship with his father, Baba, and Hassan. These historical events change the tide of Amir’s life and personal thoughts. Symbolism is a major feature in the novel; repetitive keywords are often emphasized to convey the theme and trauma. From my memory, “Kite Fighting” serves as a double entendre; many readers would think it is a traditional outdoor activity. However for Amir, “Kite Fighting” means freedom in Afghanistan but also a sign of betrayal to Hassan. Quotes in the novel are another important feature; it shows the significance of a plot towards the theme and audience reaction. Sometimes quotes can be powerful and meaningful and therefore people will remember it. Amir’s father once said “Tell him I’ll take a thousand of his bullets before I let this indecency take place,” he insists to let a Russian soldier shoots him first before raping one of the women in the truck. With the constant “T” sound, you may notice the alliteration used by Hosseini, which emphasizes the bravery of Baba, despite sacrificing himself for the woman. Thus, these features offer the readers some insight into the historical context through detailed explanation and repetitive wordings in a novel.
In conclusion, both genres show their own unique features to convey the historical context; especially when the readers have never experienced it before. Graphic narratives provide visual images and sound effects. Novels provide detail narratives with the use of diction. I think Marjane Satrapi did an amazing job of interpreting her memory through tiers of simple illustration and coloring. Also, with my experience of the novel – “The Kite Runner”, Hosseini depicted Amir’s personal struggle really well by building relationships and, cultural and historical events to his childhood life. On the side notes, I would definitely recommend “The Kite Runner” to you all! This book is an emotional rollercoaster and very enjoyable to read. Go check that out!
