Persepolis

by

Marjane Satrapi

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Veil Symbol Icon
The veil is an extremely vital piece of clothing to Marjane’s identity, not because she feels pious and wants to wear it and thus asserts it as part of herself, but instead because she doesn’t want to wear it and must anyway. Persepolis opens with Marjane describing how she first has to start wearing the veil at school. This moment for her most markedly divides her pre-Revolutionary life and her post-revolutionary life, when the rise of the Islamic Republic creates an enormous schism in society between those who are traditionally religious and those who are not and prefer to dress with Western influences. Marjane, though she still considers herself Muslim, belongs to the latter category. But the Islamic Regime dictates the moral code of society, and Marjane must contend with a world that disallows her regular mode of expression. The veil for Marjane and for many women in Iran becomes the key symbol of repression, particularly against women.

Veil Quotes in Persepolis

The Persepolis quotes below all refer to the symbol of Veil. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Religion, Repression, and Modernity Theme Icon
).
The Veil Quotes

We found ourselves veiled and separated from our friends.

Related Characters: Marjane Satrapi (speaker)
Related Symbols: Veil
Page Number: 4
Explanation and Analysis:

I really didn’t know what to think about the veil. Deep down I was very religious but as a family we were very modern and avant-garde.

Related Characters: Marjane Satrapi (speaker)
Related Symbols: Veil
Page Number: 6
Explanation and Analysis:
The Trip Quotes

I wanted to be an educated, liberated woman…and so another dream went up in smoke.

Related Characters: Marjane Satrapi (speaker)
Related Symbols: Veil
Page Number: 73
Explanation and Analysis:
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Veil Symbol Timeline in Persepolis

The timeline below shows where the symbol Veil appears in Persepolis. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
The Veil
Religion, Repression, and Modernity Theme Icon
Nationalism, Heroism, and Martyrdom Theme Icon
Violence, Forgiveness, and Justice Theme Icon
Children, War, and Growing Up Theme Icon
The Personal vs. the Political Theme Icon
Gender Theme Icon
The opening chapter of Persepolis describes the implementation of the veil policy in Iran. After the populist 1979 Islamic Revolution, during which the westernized monarch, called... (full context)
Religion, Repression, and Modernity Theme Icon
Nationalism, Heroism, and Martyrdom Theme Icon
Violence, Forgiveness, and Justice Theme Icon
Children, War, and Growing Up Theme Icon
The Personal vs. the Political Theme Icon
Gender Theme Icon
...because bilingual schools are seen as markers of capitalism and decadence. Afterwards, “we found ourselves veiled and separated from our friends,” Marjane describes. On the streets there are demonstrations for and... (full context)
Religion, Repression, and Modernity Theme Icon
Nationalism, Heroism, and Martyrdom Theme Icon
Children, War, and Growing Up Theme Icon
The Personal vs. the Political Theme Icon
Gender Theme Icon
Marjane speaks to her conflicting feelings about the veil. Though her family is modern, she “was born with religion” and feels deeply religious herself.... (full context)
The Trip
Religion, Repression, and Modernity Theme Icon
Violence, Forgiveness, and Justice Theme Icon
The Personal vs. the Political Theme Icon
Gender Theme Icon
...explains that by “women like me,” the men meant women who do not wear a veil. Marjane’s mother comes home markedly shaken. The family watches TV, where a fundamentalist representative explains... (full context)
Religion, Repression, and Modernity Theme Icon
Nationalism, Heroism, and Martyrdom Theme Icon
The Personal vs. the Political Theme Icon
Gender Theme Icon
...women wear full covering from head to toe, with just the face showing behind the veil, the “modern woman” shows her “opposition to the regime by letting a few strands of... (full context)
Kim Wilde
Religion, Repression, and Modernity Theme Icon
Children, War, and Growing Up Theme Icon
The Personal vs. the Political Theme Icon
Gender Theme Icon
...Revolution, which was founded in 1982 to arrest women who do not conform to the veil wearing law. Marjane wears her veil improperly. The two members question her about her clothes,... (full context)