Meg's Persepolis Week 4: Class Act

Last English day, we (thanks to our wonderful teacher Mr. McGuigan) were able to have class outside! It was beautiful, and a great backdrop to our philosophical discussions.

We discussed some questions, my favourites were:
-Does anybody actually have a personality?
-Can Marjane be considered the villain in this graphic novel?
-Is family vitally important in self-realization?

Within my group, we discussed whether Marjane could be considered a villain. This un-surprisingly lead to more questions. To answer the question, we needed to ponder:
-Are villains people that are un-likeable, or criminals?
-What is a villain?
-Can people be both a hero and a villain?

We discovered that the ever-changing definition in the dictionary was, “wicked, depraved or a criminal person.”
If this is the definition of a villain, then we are all villains at times. I don’t believe that people do villainous things throughout their lives, forever and always. It isn’t possible. However they can in moments, and this is the same with heroism. So, this idea of a hero and a villain in a story isn’t logical. In comic books, the villain is the one who is set to “conquer the human race, and destroy whoever gets in their way.” The hero, is someone who embodies the society they are presently in and protects it. And, if the story works out, the hero wins and the villain goes off to jail screaming, “I’ll get you, and your little dog too!”

This is present on page 286 where Marjane lies to the police, wears makeup (which is against the law) and unjustly send a man to jail for “saying something indecent” to Marjane, something that he didn’t do.

This was something villainous… to say the least. Marjane lied and to police to top it off! Marjane did a villainous act, but she is not a criminal. I believe people do unlawful acts, but this can’t officially prove that they are a criminal unless they go through court. Even this statement may not be true. It is a very complicated question.

In conclusion, Marjane isn’t a hero. Or a villain. Only in moments.