Persepolis 2

1. Explain the differences between Marjane's personality before she left Iran and when she returned after being in Austria. Why do you think she changed so much? Use specific examples from the book to support your claims.

I think Marjane changed so much not only because she had gotten into the drugs and sex while she was in Austria. Austrian culture is extremely different than the Iran culture, and at first Marjane didn't want to adapt to the new culture she was in. She thought they were very rude, selfish, and maybe even unclean. Because she came from a place where she wasn't allowed to have sex before marriage, and if you did you should try to hide it, or something bad will happen to those people mostly if you were a woman. In Austria however it didn't matter what you did as Lon as you didn't break the law, also Marjane was only 14 when her parents sent her away, a very young woman who was still at an impressionable age. Since she did stay in Austria for a few years she got used to the culture and without realizing it she was starting to "conform" to the culture she was in. It was only natural for her personality to change over the course of her teenage years. When she came back to Iran she had adapted to the Austrian culture and almost forgotten her original culture. It was a culture shock while she was away from home and when she returned. Also her friends were a bad influence on her, peer pressure could have also played a part in her personality change.