Abstract

This article explores the French-Iranian graphic memoirist, Marjane Satrapi’s fictionalized autobiographical graphic novel Persepolis through acculturation theories in order to foreground the ontology of individuals like Satrapi herself who were compelled to migrate to foreign lands in search of a peaceful life during the tumultuous time of the Islamic Revolution in Iran during the 1980s. It focuses on the challenges faced by such migrant individuals who, after having reluctantly severed ties with their original culture, fail to develop a sense of belonging to the host culture. This failure at integration, with no possibility of a return to life before migration, subjects such individuals to a liminal space that is characterized by an in-betweenness. This article establishes Marji’s liminal ontology by examining her migration through the theoretical frameworks concerning the stages of culture shock and acculturation strategies. It further incorporates Rahel Jaeggi’s conception of alienation to establish such an ontology as alienating.