Persepolis

Week one

Prompt #3

Persepolis

Page 12- In this passage Marjane writes  “…comic book entitled “Dialectic Materialism”. The philosophy of this concept is Marxism. For this 10 year old to understand the world around her and develop critical thinking and philosophical ideas was hard for me to comprehend. The cultural changes in her country, ”The Revolution” , changed her way of thinking. She was given the opportunity to be enlightened by reading books about social events from around the world. The difficulty, for me, is understanding the meanings or my lack of knowledge of Marxism. I need to broaden that statement by saying my knowledge is limited only by my lack of knowledge. Marjane was brought up with ideals, philosophy, and religion. Researching Dialectic Materialism and Marxism, I gained insight or more knowledge about what Marjane was reading. I understand dialectic materialism in it’s simplest form- Dialectical materialism, to use the words of the Russian Marxist Plekhanov, is more than an outlook, it is a "philosophy of action." The way others view world  and society is extraordinary. I do have more questions than answers. Marjanes’ country is in turmoil and her parents are demonstrating in sometimes violent outcomes. Is her parents influencing her? What about her faith in God? At one point she states, “My faith was not unshakable” (10). Yet Marxism does allow religion.The Bible states, The New King James Version in the Book of Hebrews Chapter 11:1, “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen”. Perhaps “seeing” the effects of the Revolution in her country might have shaken her faith. She even started to compare, between the two, God and Karl Marx. Obviously she embraced her parents’ action of demonstrating. I  question her action about demonstrating. Seems to me she changed from being a passive prophet to active participant in the Revolution.