The villain in the story

“Humbert like most dictators was interested only in his vision of other people. He had created the Lolita, he desired, and would not budge from that image”(Nafisi,48).

Persepolis, tells the story of young lass coming of age in the republic of Iran during the Islamic Revolution and the rule of the fundamentalist Islamic government that followed. On the surface, the role of the villain seems to be attributed to the “narrow-minded” fundamental Islamic government and its harsh treatment of Iranian citizens. Meanwhile, the west is depicted as a safe haven which that grants freedom and equality for all which makes it the “hero” of the story. But in actuality, the complexities of world politics and involvement of various western countries in the affairs of Iran makes the lines blurry. So who therefore is the truly villain?

The main goal of the Islamic government of Iran is to restore the country back to the days of Muhammad. Ore more accurately, create a country whose foundations lay in the teaching of Islam and a government to enforce such ideas. Blinded by these ideologies and mindset of the west being completely evil, the government became a tyrant.  To reach their vision of Iran, they tumbled upon the fundamental human rights of its citizens without much as a blink of an eye. By enforcing that women wear veils and that men wear beard. The consumption of alcohol, western films and music were also strictly banned. To create a better Iran, it was better if the people had no say in their own lives and what they can expose themselves to. Rather, they were to be completely obedient to the law or suffer consequences such as lashing or even death.

 Though the west provides more freedom and equality in their own sector of the world, it involvement in the affairs of Iran brought more harm than good to its citizens at times. The purpose of the Islamic revolution was to get rid of a useless king, whose father rise to power had being obstructed by the British government. In order to have easy asses to oil, an illiterate military officer was made king leading to the devastation to the country for years. After being dethroned, the Iranian king was refused asylum by then United States president forcing him to take refuge in Egypt. Thus, further the rift between Iranian and Egyptians for their betrayal by allying with the nation of Israel. The worst offense was selling of chemical weapons to Iraq and Iran by Germany. Thus endangering the lives of many Iranian war victims who given the structure of the health care system suffered. The involvement of the west was based on their narrow view of Iran as cheap source of oil and market of machinery. Their desire to make profit of this resource and sell their products prevented them from seeing the harsh realities of the people

             The difficult state under which Marji and her parents along with friends and loved one was a result of the influence of two villain. One who hides behind the ideas of purity and scarcity of religion and the other fueled by greed for more oil and profit. At the same time, they both play a “hero” for the nation of Iran. One by offering a safe haven for its citizens and providing the promise of personal freedom. The other for doing its best to repair the damages caused by the other and to make Iran a state independent of the west’s influence.