Persepolis
This unit on Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi is designed to focus on close reading skills and holistic critical analysis. The activities focus on developing…
- an interpretation of the ideas and issues raised throughout the work.
- an appreciation for the broader authorial choices made in the work.
- an appreciation for the work’s graphic form, including and analysis and evaluation of the work’s use of iconography, panel construction, structure, presentation of time, and other artistic choices.
- a personal response and evaluation of choices made in the work.
- an understanding of the ways in which a global issue is raised and developed in a work of graphic literature (e.g., the extent to which cultural accommodation creates identity conflicts within an individual).
The resources in this unit include:
- A unit specific activity portfolio with a range of activities.
- Presentation slides to accompany the activity portfolio.
- A list of non-literary contextual resources and connected works.
- A summative essay assessment.
- Example student work.
Teaching Resources (PDF)
Teaching Resources (Word)
Teaching Resources: Full Text (Online)
A Note about the Resources
Activity Portfolio
Several of the activities in the activity portfolio ask students to read and apply Scott McCloud’s theories of analyzing comics. A full-text copy of his book Understanding Comics can be found here. If your school has a copy, the OUP IB Skills and Practice text (written for the 2011 syllabus) contains good supplemental resources about analyzing images which can also be helpful.
For IB classes….
The activities in the portfolio (and accompanying slides) ask students to consider “global issues” surrounding the ideas of cultural accommodation, assimilation, and reverse culture shock. These activities and subsequent discussions can be used as models to introduce the concept of formulating global issues in response to a work in an IB Language A class. I would not recommend allowing students to use these specific global issues as the focus of their individual oral if they are covered extensively. The activity at the end of the unit invites students to choose their own passages and consider their own global issues in response to the work.
Summative Essay Assessment
This summative assessment gives students 5 work specific prompts to choose from and asks them to write an essay in response. The questions ask students to consider the work holistically while appreciating broader literary and graphic choices made by the author.
In addition to helping students prepare for external exams, an in-class essay can be a good starting place for students to find inspiration to write a longer, out of class essay.
IB Assessments
Persepolis is one of the most popular works taught in the English A courses and therefore frequently appears as an analyzed work on IB exams. It is a work that examiners know well and see frequently, which is why students may want to take extra care that they are exploring their own ideas in response to the work. Developing independent and well-supported conclusions, analysis, and points of evaluation will help students score in the higher bands of the assessment criteria.
Many teachers only teach Part 1 of the memoir, which can be limiting because it is short. Studying both parts 1 and 2 of the memoir gives students the opportunity to explore more mature and complex ideas in more depth. This also allows for more variety in how a cohort of students develop their conclusions and analysis in response to the work.
Pro-tip
Matching symbols and icons to classroom notes can help students visualize the abstract concepts and connect the discussion of the work to their existing schema. This ultimately can help student decode the information into their long-term memories.
