Interview with Satrapi 7/18

Root’s interview with Satrapi is very interesting. It seems as though Satrapi was being real. Most people try to cover up how they really feel when in an interview just so we aren’t given their real feelings towards what the interviewer was asking. I find it interesting that Satrapi says she’s a terrible writer and the only way to really express herself is to draw out what she wants to say. She talks about how she uses the language of words and the language of image. They talked about the meaning of truth. I had heard much about the fictional book A Million Little Pieces by James Frey and find it comical as to how Satrapi find truth. She just watches the Fox News instead if talking to people and listening to what they have to say about “truth.” She talks about how every book is a story, no matter how personal it is. You should keep the truth to yourself and incorporate it in a story. By doing so, only the writer knows what’s true about the piece they are writing. I found it odd how Satrapi also talks about how no one is perfect, yet she seems so real and down to earth. She really elaborates on the fact that no one should be ashamed of their imperfections because they are what make us human beings. I think that’s the most important thing about being a writer: realizing that work is never going to be perfect, you are never going to be perfect no matter how much you think you are. At what time in Satrapi’s life did she realize that no one is perfect? And has she been honest with herself when writing her books if truth should be kept to oneself because it’s too personal?

Persepolis

It was interesting to read Chute’s article on Persepolis. I thought the “graphic narrative” was different from what most little comic strips normally are. This was more of a novel, if anything. It’s interesting how the article addresses a few of the main points in the graphic narrative by Marjane Satrap.
The fact that girls were forced by law to wear a veil seems like they have no liberty or say in what they can and can’t do. She learned much about the Iran-Iraq war, the tortures families and friends endured, along with the injustice being created because of the war. I thought it was really interesting to hear that when she got rebellious, her parents sent her out of the country probably in fear of her getting killed for being so outspoken. It shows how protected the society was when women were to speak out. In the beginning of the article, it talks about how women were pretty much just for show. They had no say in what went and men believed they were the best at everything. Newsflash: times have changed; it’s the 21st century. One thing that really got me was that fact that Anoosh, Marji’s uncle, wanted to see her out of anyone in the family. He told her to never forget the kind of history she’s living in. That’s something that no matter what gender you are, you should always treasure history.
I found it rather odd that Marjane would use just 2 tones of color in her graphic narrative. The colors back and white showed symbolism in the sense that all she wrote about and talked about was violence. She didn’t do the strip in color because violence isn’t normal, and by using colors, it would make the idea realistic. This idea reminds me of the movie Schindler’s List by Steven Spielberg. The entire movie was shot in black and white. The only thing that was in color was a little girl in a red dress which signified amount of blood shed that happened throughout the holocaust and the loss of innocence. The tie between both the strip and movie comes in where they each have a meaning behind the writers’ unwillingness to accept reality.

Narrate Memoir

How does hearing the stories of Katrina survivors help you better narrate your own memoir? What strategies do they use that you can also use to make your memoir stronger?

Listening to the heartfelt stories people were telling after the occurrences of Katrina really brought to my attention the kind of emotion that accompanied their telling. Seeing many different perspectives in which the storm destroyed people's lives made me feel as though I was present during the disaster. I felt as though I had also become a victim in Hurricane Katrina. There was one particular story that made me tear-up when listening. A mother told her daughter that if the waters become too high, just to swim on without her and to save herself. When you hear a mother telling her child to save his/her self instead of looking back, it touches a point in ones heart to ask themselves, "What would I do in a situation like that?" To think of saving myself instead of trying to save my own mother is heart wrenching. I could never just leave someone who meant/means so much to me for the sake of my own selfish life. When I heard this story, questions upon questions began popping into my head. What the hell would I do? What if I got pulled under the deep waters and just went back for nothing? What if my mother was caught in something? What if the current swept me under so deep that I wouldn't be able to even reach the person I set out to rescue? How would I live with myself had I only gone back to help a loved one? These questions probably will never be answered unless a situation was put forth in my direction.
Finding the deep emotion within each story has shown me that writing a memoir is more than just the telling of one's misfortune or joyous past occurrence. It's about the traumatic experiences people face and the emotions in which allow them to tell their stories. I’m going to incorporate emotion and deep sentimental feeling in my memoir that allows the reader to understand where I came from and who I am today. They are going to help me tell my story.

The Good Out Weighs the Bad, Sooner or Later

In writing a memoir, Frank Mathias made it simple to comprehend the tricks. To write a piece of art, you must be a historian and an artist. In order to be a historian you had to have been through something that changed the way you think, or the way you believe which makes the story or experience factual. The artist in an individual must be able to incorporate the sensory details in order to really tell the story by captivating the reader and bringing them into the memoir.
An example of artistic captivity would have to be “Knocked Up” by Nicole Filmore. She made me feel as though I was also living in a house with a pregnant 17 year old sister. When she was ordered to do things because her sister couldn’t keep up with chores, she resorted to bitching about them in her memoir. This shows the more immature yet artistic way of expression through the use of profanity. Although Nicole has a way of dealing with problems through complaining and counting down the days until her sister will finally has her baby, we later see that after all this time, Nicole had had a life changing experience in the delivery room. She had hated the fact that her sister got all of the attention, yet fell in love with the idea of having a baby, deciding that her baby niece was her “everything.”
I really understand where Nicole’s coming from when she gets dumped with all the chores and hates the neglect. When my parents first opened their night club business, it was nothing but late nights and never really getting to bond with my family the way we used to before the crazy entertainment business took hold of their lives. But there’s one thing I don’t understand. Why didn’t Nicole do anything to get away from what she hated the most? Why didn’t she find the time to be with friends and do things for her rather than always be confined to the walls of her own home and tending to her master of a sister? I understand that she needed to be there for her sister in the mean time, but I don’t see why she never mentioned the time she had alone to herself. Maybe that’s why she was so bitter before the baby arrived. Maybe that’s why she was never into the whole thought of her 17 year old sister having a baby so young. Reading Nicole’s “Knocked Up” memoir really showed me that no matter what situation your family's in, the good will out-weigh the bad, sooner or later.

Factors that lead me to USF

Led me to USF:

Many of my friends have been or are applying to different schools that I want to get AWAY!
I didn’t get into get into USF unless I took this program.
I thought it would be a good way to meet people and get to know myself in the individual responsibility.
I wanted to LEAVE!!! Hahaha =]

SOMETHING THAT WOULD HAVE STOPPED ME FROM COMING HERE:
I wanted to go to school up in Boston or Indiana
I really wanted to closer to mom.
I was accepted to Florida Gulf Coast University.
I needed space.
I didn’t get a scholarship, but I have MANY goals and know I’m going to achieve them.
I just graduated high school a year early

Directly influenced me to go to school:
Both of my parents I have had both of my parents tell me that college is not a choice it’s a life—there’s no way ill be able to succeed without a college degree.

Directly influenced me not to go to school:
I don’t really remember who, but MANY people my friend Gabe, Dan, Rachel, even my stepmom told me USF is NOT the only school out there. Community college is OK too… but I wouldn’t go for less than just a university. People also told me that you don’t have to go to college to succeed. My friends mike and tori are getting married and working for the rest of their lives after high school.