A Martyr in Size Nine Shoes

My mother cried the day they came to get me

the night before she had held me
cradled me like I was five not fifteen
I raised you with the water of my tears
(Satrapi 99/6)
her voice a whisper not a shout
I will not let them take you
The only struggle she put up
were her wails
as they marched me away
There were hundreds of us
packed onto a bus
shipped off to the front
our generals told us of Paradise
plenty of food, women, and houses
made of gold and diamonds (Satrapi 100/1)

We didnt care
they promised us a better life (Satrapi
102/1)
one away from washing windows on a busy
Tehran street
Paradise tasted sweet on our tongues
and we marched without a thought
besides
our death meant life for our families
White bandanas waved as we swarmed the
mine field
a mockery of innocence and purity
we should have known before they were
stained crimson that white
only ever meant death

The only gold I ever saw was the

little, plastic key
they hung around my neck
that promised honor
but only gave death

They urged us to take a grenade for our

country
they told us we would be honored
celebrated
we are

The other soldiers cringed away from us

eyes downcast
snarls on their lips
but our generals made us sing louder
ignore them theyd bark
become hypnotized they meant

The streets are lined with out names

turning cities into cemeteries (Satrapi 251/4).
reminding all who wish to forget
our blood was injected into
the the veins of society (Satrapi 115/4)
I am just a martyr in size nine shoes.

Thousands of us lined up in a row

kids from the slums
useless to society if we didnt agree
to blow ourselves up for the betterment
of a country who always turned its back on us

Thematic Statement: The freedom of the people comes from the blood of innocence.
Thesis: In The Complete Persepolis Satrapi creates sympathy through the use of child soldiers,
and reminds the readers that Iranians paid a price for their revolution also.

Mother
your voice rings through my ears
deafening
my own Islamic Regime (117/6)
I fought you so hard
a woman whose raised fist (5/2)
resilient face
made covers across the globe (5/3)
you taught me to be forgiving (46/4)
you taught me to never back down

Kia
reminders of a childhood
made of nails for fingers (45/2)
and innocence and laughter and light
taken away by a war you didnt belong in
you remind me to face the injustices
as if theres nothing that can stop me
friend
you gave me strength
even when I had none

Father
you are my softness
stern voice lining my childhood
teaching me lessons they forgot about (19/7)
teaching me to be dependent
to be my own
letting me grow
even when I was young

Reza
love and death
they correspond so closely
you made me feel trapped
suffocated in a world I didnt belong in
you are a mistake I needed to make
to make me learn
to make me grown

Grandmother
breasts of jasmine (150/2)
piece of Persia
you taught me so much
a guiding light in my darkness
told me to be true to myself (150/6)
shamed me for my wrongs
shaping me into the woman I am today

Terhan
once vast and beautiful
bustling with individuals
now just a cemetery where
thousands of robots
march to the same rhythm
remember
martyr blood does not
run through the veins of society

Anoosh
harsh and hard
a revolutionary hero (54/5)
child of Marx and idle of my life
killed for your beliefs (70/1)
you taught me to hold strong
to never back down
I will make you proud

freedom always comes with a price

Thematic Statement: Every person we meet in life creates us into who we are.
Thesis: In this assignment I hoped to show that people in Satrapis life influenced her to become
the strong willed woman she is today.