historical context
reflects the time in which something takes place or was created and how that influences how you interpret it
secular
of or pertaining to worldly things or to things that are not regarded as religious, spiritual, or sacred
theocracy
a form of government in which God or another deity is recognized as the supreme civil ruler, the God’s or deity’s laws being interpreted by the ecclesiastical authorities
The West
Countries in the western hemisphere including the United States and those of Western Europe (particularly relevant: Britain and France)
fundamentalist
an adjective that commonly is used to describe someone who applies strict, literal interpretations to scriptures, dogmas, or ideologies
The U.S.S.R. (Soviet Union)/ Soviets
a politically and economically communist state that spanned most of Eurasia (including what is now Russia) from 1922-1991. The Soviets were the people of the U.S.S.R.
Islamic Revolution
Popular uprising in Iran (1978-1979) that overthrew the shah (king) and resulted in Ayatollah Khomeini returning from exile and declaring an Islamic Republic.
Bildungsroman
This is a German term that means “coming of age.” It is a type of novel (or memoir) that depicts the development of a young person into maturity, both morally and psychologically. In a bildungsroman, the protagonist (main character) enters the realm of adult understanding.
Comic book vs. graphic novel/memoir
Persepolis is a graphic memoir since it is longer than a comic book and has a full narrative arc. A comic book, technically, is a magazine that contains stories told in pictures. Common comic book series include Marvel series centered around characters like Spiderman, the Hulk, and Thor; DC Comics like Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman; and underground / international comic characters like Astérix or Tintin.
Memoir
a memoir is the term for a first-person narrative about a person’s life, based on his / her / their memories. The convention is that we therefore assume that this is as close to the truth as you can get, as the person recollects it. A memoir represents one part of a person’s life (a specific timespan) whereas an autobiography represents the person’s whole life, from beginning to end. Memoir comes from the French word for “memory,” and autobiography has roots in Latin (“auto” = self, “bio” = life, “graphy” = writing).
Narrative arc (a.k.a. Freytag’s pyramid)
Devised by 19th century German playwright Gustav Freytag, Freytag’s Pyramid is a paradigm of dramatic structure outlining the seven key steps in successful storytelling: exposition, inciting incident, rising action, climax, falling action, resolution, and denouement.
Panel
A square in the comic book
Tiers
A row of panels
Gutters
The space between the panels
Splash
When 1 panel covers the whole page
Speech Bubbles
When someone says something in the image
Captions
Explains what is shown in a picture or illustration.
Graphic Weight
A method used to draw the reads eye to something
ACTION-TO-ACTION
A type of transition in which panels show a single subject progressing through a single scene, one action after another. Requires minimal work from the reader. Example: a batter swinging in one panel, hitting the ball in the next panel.
SUBJECT-TO-SUBJECT
A type of transition in which panels stay in a specific scene, but shift focus among different characters or subjects. Requires more reader involvement than action-to-action. Example: a batter swinging in one panel, then a panel showing the players in the dugout in the next panel.
SCENE-TO-SCENE
A type of transition in which panels progress through significant distances of time and space. Requires significant work from the reader. Usually happens when someone is telling a story. Example: one panel shows someone telling a story that happened years ago, the next panel shows a scene from the story they are telling.
