"The Key"

What is the significance of the title of your chapter?

During the Islamic Revolution, male students were taught how to think during a war, that dying in battle was lucky and heroic, and heaven was opened by a key that was then given to each of the boys. It was a cheap key, gold-painted plastic, and the children had come to believe “that if they went to war and were lucky enough to die, this key would get them into heaven.” (Satrapi 99) The teachers painted a picture of paradise into the students’ heads until their own morals and beliefs were washed away. The title “The Key” shows how children believed that war and death made them heroes who were rewarded with heaven, and as they are dying on the battlefield, dreaming of the paradise that is just moments away, they leave their bodies and their keys behind.

Summarize the chapter.

At Marjane’s school they must observe the ritual to torture or beat yourself to mourn the dead. She and her friends began to make fun of the sessions and other war-related activities. Their parents were called in and were all furious at the teacher for expecting the children to be mournful robots. Mrs. Nasrine’s son had been given a plastic key that was to get him into a paradise, all he had to do was trade his life for it. Her son never ended up dying in battle, but many others, young boys especially, were loaded into buses to take them to fight, so convinced of the afterlife that they could have.

Explain any terms (words, historical references, etc), names that are unfamiliar (new characters, people alluded to).

New Characters: Mrs. Nasrine-the Satrapi’s maid, Mrs. Nasrine’s son, Peyman-Marji’s cousin, Shahab-Marji’s other cousin
Martyr: One who dies rather than give up their cause

Point out humorous parts of your chapter and explain why they are funny.

Marjane’s parents were called in to speak with the teacher after the students were not following every rule, and were told that if Marjane did not behave, she would be expelled. After the argument ends with ordering their veils to be worn properly, Marjane’s dad adds, “If hair is as stimulating as you say then you need to shave your mustache.” (Satrapi 98) This is a comical moment because the teacher who is trying to restore order and behavior is being told in an insulting way that she is not following the rules she is trying to enforce because she supposedly has a mustache.

Choose one picture in your chapter that you think is significant. Explain the picture showing why it is significant and why you chose it.

“The key to paradise was for poor people. Thousands of young kids, promised a better life, exploded on the minefields with their keys around their necks.” (Satrapi 102) In this picture, young men are shown flying through the air each enduring their own suffering. The pain is so unbearable that only death can save them. They must surrender their lives to escape even a moment more of the unexplainable pain. The significance of this picture is how it shows the children’s fate, and I realized that those were children my age whose lifeless bodies covered the minefield. It shows that the key took them to heaven by going through hell.

This picture is found on page 102 of Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi.