Religion+and+the+Class+System+-+Hope+Sutton

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The class system has been prominent throughout world history and Iran is no exception. The idea that people are classified into different groups has been around since ancient times. In Marjane Satrapi's reknown novel Persepoliswe see the very direct connection between class systems and religion. The book takes place during the Islamic Revolution and during that time period it was not neccessarily the wealthy that were considered high class but those who were religiously devout. Those who had strong religious background were favored during the Revolution. The strong theocracy in the country favored practicing Shi'ite Muslims and gave the political and de facto power. =====

Marji's first encounter with social class is when her maid Mehri is unable to marry the man she loves because she is a maid. Marji's father explain to her that "In this country you must stay within your own social class" (Satrapi 37). Mehri was made up the lower class in Iran because she was unskilled and worked in as a "domestic servant" in the Satrapi home(http://countrystudies.us/iran/46.htm). Marji's mother and her grandmother also had experience the dark side of the class system "the Shah's father took everything we owned, I lived in poverty" (Satrapi 25). Marji comes to the realization that you are born into a class and in most cases you will stay in that social class for the rest of your life. Marji realizes that in her country society puts up social groups which are made up of people of similar lifestyles and that breaking these barriers is virtually impossible because of the long traditions from which they originated.

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Marji's way of life gives us insight to her families social and religious standing. Marji's family is financially stable and falls into the upper middle class sector of Iran's class system. Marji's familly is better off than most having the ability to buy Marji gifts, send her to a French girl's school, and go on family vacation. Marji's family live in a home where everyone is well educated and well informed about the world around them. It seems though that Marji and her family were not part of the upper class. =====

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Given that most of the upper class was strictly religious Marji's family wouldn't have been considered upper class material. The strong connection of government makes the idea of religion less of a choice. The forced wearing of the headscarves, the seperation of gender in the schools, and the strict surveilance all pigeon-hole the Iranian people into the position of taking on the identity of Islam. Marji's family is no exception for public appearance sake they try to appear as devout as anyone else but in reality they wouldn't be considered practicing Muslims by any means. "I really didnt know what to think about the veil. Deep down i was very relgious but as a family we were very modern and avant-garde" (Satrapi 6). Marji often rebels against her religion by defying the governments law and social norms, she wears were hair slightly out of her scarf, wears jewelry, and attends rally against the Shah. =====

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For most of her life she was been told what to believe from those but in authority over her but she feels lost in the world of religion not quite sure what she believes. During the Islamic Revolution in order for Marji society to climb the ladder of social standing she would become accustomed to the ways of the fundamentalist women. Marji would take on a new identity of her religion and give up her old ways of rebellio n and resistance. =====

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The Shah an cr uel leader "dynasties have succeeded each other but the kings always kept their promises. The Shah kept none" (Satrapi 27). After the Shah's rule the class system shifted yet again and after the fall of the Shah, Marji's family may have experienced a slight boost in their social standing because those who showed opposition to the Shah were respected and those who found favor with him were rejected (http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/5314.htm). =====

Sources: http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/5314.htm http://countrystudies.us/iran/46.htm