Objectives—What Content and Skills?
At the end of this unit, students will be able to discuss images through a critical lens and will be able to write about the events depicted in Persepolis with a critical understanding. The students will understand the Islamic Revolution, along with the events that led up to it and then the events that came after. They will gain knowledge about Middle Eastern culture by looking at Iran through the eyes of Marjane, the main character. As a class, students will also think about the intended audience of the book and the effect that gives. The students will be looking at the theme of perception by analyzing the lens through which Marjane Satrapi tells the story. We will examine certain aspects of her life that mold her perception, such as her parents' values, her family's economic status, and the location of her home. We will look at the perception of culture from the outside looking in and the inside out. The students will be able to compare other accounts of growing up in Iran to Marjane's. They will explore the culture from different angles. We will look at the images from the text through our own American lens and will also attempt to widen that lens through the reading of non-fiction articles. Furthermore, the culminating project will include a presentation by the students. The presentation will evaluate their ability to combine words and pictures into their own memoir. The teaching of this unit will align with many of the Common Core Standards. 6 (For standards used, see Appendix.)
Essential Questions
Here is a list of essential questions that will guide the unit. In alignment with its objectives, the students will be answering these questions. Through the study of the content, the students will gain a further understanding of these concepts and terms.
-What is a graphic novel and what is the educational value?
-What is a memoir?
-What is visual literacy and how can it be explored best to help us learn?
-How do we make meaning of images?
-What is perception and how do we form our perceptions?
-What is a revolution?
-How are other cultures perceived from the outside and how do images and media mold those perceptions?
-How can graphic novels build our understanding of cultures from outside the United States? How can they skew them?
-How are judgments made?
-Why is it important to learn about cultures outside of our own and what are the best ways to learn about those cultures?
In order to scaffold learning for students, the class will start with basic terms and concepts and work up to more challenging higher-order thinking. We will start with the understanding of the graphic novel. The students will understand the purpose of the graphic novel, a brief history of the graphic novel, and the value these texts add to the development of strong visual literacy. From this basis the students will work their way up to more complex skills, such as comparing their own culture with Marjane's and analyzing the differences and similarities.
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