Individual Oral Script – Persepolis (Body Shaming)
Societies often try to control people by regulating their bodies, which connects to
my global issue of body shaming and its detrimental effects. In many cultures,
especially for women, appearance is linked to morality and acceptance, causing
individuals to fear judgement and suppress their true selves.
This issue is explored in Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi, where young girls are
forced to wear the veil and learn obedience from an early age. As Marji grows up,
control over her clothing and behaviour intensifies, showing how social rules
pressure her to hide parts of her identity. Similarly, the comics by Barry Deutsch
and B. Hawkins depicts weight based body shaming through repeated criticism
and dark imagery, symbolizing the emotional burden of constant judgement.
Together, these texts reveal how body shaming functions as a form of control that
damages self worth and shapes identity through fear and shame.
Main Extract – “The Veil”
In the extract The Veil, Satrapi presents body shaming as a form of control that is
imposed on young girls in order to enforce conformity. Visually, the compulsory
veil immediately creates uniformity. In the class photograph, the girls appear
almost identical, lined up in rows with similar expressions and dark veils framing
their faces. This repetition of shape and colour removes individuality and suggests
how the state reduces them to a collective identity rather than recognising them as
individuals. The strong black and white contrast reinforces this rigidity,
symbolising a world divided into strict rules with little room for personal freedom.
Linguistically, Satrapi uses simple, factual narration such as “Then came 1980: the
year it became obligatory to wear the veil at school,” which reflects a child’s
straightforward voice. This calm tone contrasts with the seriousness of what is
happening, highlighting how such control is normalised. In the lower panels, the
children are shown playing with the veils, using them as props, which visually
conveys their confusion and lack of understanding. Their dialogue is innocent and
fragmented, showing that they are too young to fully grasp the political meaning
behind the rule. Through both visual uniformity and simple narration, Satrapi
demonstrates how the female body becomes a site of regulation from an early age,
teaching girls to associate their physical appearance with restriction and
obedience, ultimately shaping their developing sense of identity.
Wider Extract – “Kim Wilde”
Moreover, as Marji grows older, this control no longer remains subtle or
collective. It becomes personal and confrontational. In Kim Wilde, body shaming
is no longer about blending into a uniform group, but about singling Marji out as
an individual. Her Western inspired clothing and hairstyle attract immediate
criticism from authority figures, and the focus shifts directly to her appearance.
Visually, Satrapi draws the morality figures towering over her, making Marji
appear small and exposed. This power imbalance highlights how the female body
is policed through intimidation and public humiliation. The shift from silent
conformity in childhood to direct shaming in adolescence shows how body control
intensifies over time, shaping Marji’s identity through fear and constant
surveillance.
Main (Non-Literary)
Therefore, while Satrapi presents body regulation within a political and religious
system, this same global issue of body shaming is also explored in the non literary
comic by Barry Deutsch and B. Hawkins. In their work, control over the body is
not imposed by the government but by society through everyday interactions.
Visually, Deutsch and Hawkins use dark shading that gradually surrounds the
central character, creating a powerful metaphor where the criticism literally
weighs him down. The central placement of the phrase “It weighs you down”
reinforces this idea, linking emotional burden to physical weight. The fragmented
structure of the panels, showing scenes from different public and private spaces,
suggests that judgement is constant and unavoidable. Linguistically, the comic
uses casual and dismissive phrases such as “Let’s face it” and “You’d look so
much better if you lost some weight,” which reflect how body shaming is often
disguised as honesty or concern. The repetition of these remarks highlights how
identity is shaped over time through continuous exposure to criticism.
Wider (Non-Literary)
Furthermore, this idea is reinforced in another comic by Barry Deutsch and B.
Hawkins, where body shaming appears in a subtler but equally harmful form.
Unlike the previous comic, which highlights the emotional burden of open
criticism, this one shows how judgement is disguised as care. The everyday
settings make the comments feel normal, suggesting that body policing is part of
daily life. Linguistically, the repeated phrase “I would never fat shame, but…”
creates irony, as the denial is immediately followed by criticism. This exposes the
hypocrisy of socially accepted judgement. Through both mockery and fake
concern, Deutsch and Hawkins show how subtle, repeated comments shape self
perception and reinforce shame over time.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the global issue of body shaming and its detrimental effects on
identity and mental health is clearly explored across both the literary and non
literary texts. My central argument has shown that when society turns the body
into something that must be monitored, corrected, or judged, it becomes a
powerful tool of control. In Persepolis, Satrapi illustrates how this regulation
begins in childhood through enforced veiling and later intensifies into direct public
confrontation, showing how political and religious systems shape identity through
fear and shame. Similarly, in the comics by Barry Deutsch and B. Hawkins, body
policing operates through repeated everyday comments and disguised concern,
using both visual metaphor and conversational language to show how constant
judgement gradually erodes self worth. Although the contexts differ, one political
and one social, both texts demonstrate that body shaming restricts individuality
and pressures people to conform. Ultimately, these works suggest that when
appearance is linked to morality or acceptance, individuals are pushed to suppress
parts of themselves, reminding us that challenging body shaming is essential to
protecting personal identity and mental well being.