In the novels Arabesques by Anton Shammas and Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi, the autobiographical narrative is created through the use of unconventional writing styles. Shammas's use of the novel as the platform on which his autobiography is told goes against all preconceived notions of how an autobiography is normally written. As Rachel Brenner points out, “Shammas' arabesque quest for his double, embodied in the metaphor of multiple self-reflections, ironically comments on the human tendency to shape one's worldview according to territorial, theological and linguistic boundaries and zones” (Brenner). 443). An interesting result of using this format is that several parallels develop within the plot, blurring the distinction between truth and farce for the reader. Conversely, Satrapi reveals her childhood in the form of a graphic novel, a revolutionary means of autobiographical storytelling – particularly in the Middle East, where it had never been used as such before, and especially not by a woman. In this format, illustrations work alongside the text to convey the impact of the situation. Nima Naghibi and Andrew O'Malley assert that "Persepolis succeeds in defying the reader's expectations of the medium" (Naghibi & O'Malley 245). Whereas in Arabesques the stories of the past help to form the narrator's identity, Persepolis uses a more direct and linear account of the people and events around him in order to create his sense of identity. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why violent video games should not be banned"? Get an original essay In the preface to his novel, Shammas quotes Australian author Clive James as saying that "most first novels are autobiographies in disguise , [but] this autobiography is a novel in disguise. In saying this, Shammas reveals that Arabesques is primarily an autobiography, but nonetheless has novel-like elements in that some parts can be fictionalized. Through the countless stories of the narrator's beloved Uncle Yusef and the history and adventures of the Shammas family, the personality of Shammas (the narrator) is discovered. Uncle Yusuf's stories are most revered by Shammas, as evidenced by the way he describes them as "flowing around him in a swirling current of illusion that connected beginnings with endings...reality with tale" (Shammas 226). Each version of each story Shammas tells is connected to the entire Shammas story, functioning to establish its own distinct identity. Unlike the more abstract nature of the Arabesques, Persepolis uses a very different but equally complex form of storytelling in that the nuances in the graphic images that accompany the text are quite profound and symbolic of more than what is initially seen on the surface. The text focuses on key issues in Iran during the period immediately following the dethroning of the Shah, but the graphic images give the reader a picture of exactly what the narrator is thinking, allowing them to relate more easily to his mind. This way, Westerners can enjoy reading this book and understand it quite well, even if the problems are not what typical Americans experience, because the way it is written is a relatively common way of writing in the West . Naghibi and O'Malley assert that, "while Persepolis offers a perspective on events unfamiliar to the Western reader, the comic form it takes is itself automatically familiar" (Naghibi and O'Malley 232). Marji's character and her struggleto form her identity become more accessible to the average American because she does not need to imagine the people she meets, the events she goes through, and the actions she commits or that others commit against her ; they are all illustrated, so that this difficulty in relating to the character practically disappears, and his struggle to find his own political and religious views focuses instead on (Satrapi 96).The definition of an arabesque is a circle of 'events that never progress from an initial point to a distinct final destination (Brenner 440). Due to the "arabesque" nature of Shammas' autobiography, evident in his elaborate but disjointed stories, the ambiguity becomes very difficult for the reader to follow and accept everything as true, which in theory is supposed to make a autobiography. This quality thus changes the entire perception we have of autobiography, making it – as Shammas emphasized from the beginning – a fictionalized autobiography. Perhaps the fact that the story is told in Hebrew adds to this fictionalization of the entire novel. “Hebrew is at the heart of 'mestizaje' or 'crossbreeding,' as the languages ​​'braid' or connect [Shammas'] formative self and his evolving Western self” (Brenner 433). As a Palestinian Christian living in Israel, Shammas feels torn and divided about which “side” he belongs to and where he stands amid all these tensions. By using the language of the “enemy,” the Jew, Shammas expresses the way in which he searches for his identity. Unlike the fictionalization of autobiography in Arabesques, Persepolis's use of illustrations draws readers more toward the narrator. closely because they have less difficulty understanding the political and religious aspects of the plot. It is not easy for most Westerners to imagine a country filled with so many religious rules and so much political oppression, revolution and violence. Professors Naghibi and O'Malley assert that "the caricature side of [Satrapis's] drawings encourages the reader to see themselves in Marji, to see themselves in the other, to erase all differences in a gesture of 'cultural understanding'" (Naghibi & O’Malley 238). Although there is a separation of church and state in this country because Marji is an innocent child who continues to form her own opinions while living in a country where everyone is oppressed at once politically and religiously, the reader can nevertheless understand and connect to her. pointed out earlier that by writing in the language of the enemy, Shammas is trying to find his own identity as a Palestinian living in Israel. However, in doing so, he also breaks the divide between the two ethnicities, proving that the two can coexist peacefully as friends. By telling Arab history in the language of his enemy, Shammas not only creates controversy, but also instills the idea that a connection between the two is possible. Brenner argues that “language begins to heal conflict by mediating between the dominant majority and the dominated minority” (Brenner 435). According to him, Israelis (the “dominant majority”) and Palestinians (the “dominated minority”) can find common ground to end tensions between them, and this through language. This idea of ​​a common domain is essential to reduce the gap between them and bring them together on a common basis. By using Hebrew, Shammas helps ease the tensions that have divided Arabs and Israelis for two-thirds of a century. Nonetheless, by using the rival language, Shammas highlights the peaceful nature of the Arabs, thereby overruling all Western views that Israel is the only peaceful nation in the Middle East. Shammas' sense of identity is bornof reflection on the peaceful nature in which the two ethnic groups can coexist, just as he strives to find his place within a country governed by "the other". Through the use of language, the reader experiences the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict as Shammas does, and thus gains a better understanding of the relationship between the two nations and the possibility of friendship between them. Unlike Arabesques, Persepolis feeds all the information directly to the reader, and does not require the reader to analyze and interpret for themselves the meaning of each event presented in the narrative. Even though the graphic novel format of autobiography seems like a very basic form of writing, it actually increases the reader's understanding of the novel. It's much more complex than what we see. For example, at the top of page 5, an image of veiled and unveiled women is shown, representing those for and against the 1979 revolution that followed. This panel is very powerful in the way the women are illustrated. Veiled women have their heads erect and their eyes closed, suggesting either that they are unaware of what is happening to them, or that they think they are better than unveiled women. The unveiled women, on the other hand, look very angry as they chant "freedom", a step in the fight for women's rights, virtually neglected after the Revolution. In a way, this image could be seen as an example of Marji's search for her own religious identity that she attempts to form throughout the novel. Another example of a powerful image that Satrapi uses to develop her individuality is that of Karl Marx compared to God on page 13. The image itself is actually quite comical, but it well represents Marji's search for her own political identity. Without the use of these images, the text alone could not have sufficed for the comparison between the two men; However, with the images, Marji's struggle to find herself becomes more easily interpreted by the reader. By using imagery, Persepolis helps the reader see what the author sees and know what the author knows. Thus, the format of the novel contains an element of universality that does not prevent anyone from understanding its meaning and the experiences of the author -- which makes it, in other words, a true autobiography. Although the graphic novel format of Persepolis is unique and makes it easier for readers to understand many of the novel's recurring events and themes, there are other factors that make it appealing to Western audiences. One example is that Westerners, especially Americans, like to hear first-hand accounts of the political and religious difficulties of different parts of the world, especially the Middle East. Naghibi and O'Malley agree that this is true; However, they also claim that Americans particularly enjoy hearing from individuals from countries belonging to the so-called "Axis of Evil," "especially in an autobiographical form that promises to reveal the intimate secrets of an exotic other." (Naghibi 225). ). Because Satrapi's story is an autobiography set in Iran during the 1979 Islamic Revolution, there is greater interest in the subject itself, and the first-hand account it provides to the Western reader of the political conflicts and religious events taking place in the country is extraordinary and Another reason why the novel appeals to Westerners could be that, although Marji does not choose sides in the debate over the best lifestyle (that of the West versus that of the East), it shares many Western ideologies and points of view on the issue. certain subjects, the most predominant being the.