Women and Social Chaos, Essay Example

Introduction

Time and again, women have been confronted with the desire of being recognized in par with their counterpart, the males. Males have been originally considered to come from a more powerful and more authoritative background; while females are seen to have a much weaker standing that their partners. Most often than not, women are seen to have lesser conditions of being recognized even though they may have tried their hardest  to reestablish a new reputation, a new point of recognition for themselves and those others they tend to prove themselves to. It is because of this fact that women have a hard time placing themselves especially when social chaos occurs; they are usually the ones who are considered dispensable and are thus given less care and attention especially in locations where the culture on gender recognition is more directed to male-respect.

In the story presented in the comic-illustrated biography of Marjane Satrapi, she relates how such gender inequality in the Middle Eastern region has affected her childhood alongside the ways by which she recognized her point of growth alongside the war that was occurring in her community at the time of her maturity. Using her own experiences, Satrapi tried to outline the pros and cons of gender inequality that she has actually been involved in ever since the point of her childhood towards the time when she was already realizing what human rights was and how she perceived womanhood alongside it. The changes in her personal perception about womanhood have directly been presented in her narrative; thus echoing how women in her community have probably viewed their point of existence as well.

Women and the Changing Times

Being subjected to social segregation, Satrapi, at a young age, already embraced the desire of making a difference especially in the manner by which she handles herself with her peers. Her parents, being political as they are, had their own share in redefining the culture of the people especially in embracing the concepts of womanhood and what it meant to be free. Living within a hostile society during the Cultural Revolution in Middle East, Satrapi was able to see what it meant to live under pressure with her rights as a human being and as a female being specifically suppressed because of an established realization on what women are and how they ought to be treated.

What makes such option of social change rather relatively connected to the ideals of determining the realities of human rights even against cultural stratifications that usually condone the being of a distinct sense of recognition; one that becomes an evident reason for the rising of social chaos. Being a young child, Satrapi had her hopes high; seeing her parents pursue for what they think is right and necessary, Satrapi tried to establish a new sense of being for herself; realizing that somehow, someday, she would be that faint flicker of hope that her people need in order to live better lives and become more engaged in social change than in simply becoming victims to the chaotic situations they are subjected to face.

War in the Eyes of a Young Girl

As a young girl, Satrapi’s vision of a perfect society has already been tainted by the cultural detentions that her people have towards the recognition of females in the community. Noticeably, her understanding of such matter makes it hard for her to become more positive about being a woman. She knows that she, as a young girl, needs to conform to social sanctions; and that her hopes for gaining the opportunity to become a better person is limited to what the society allows her to embrace and realize. The war years have even made such an idea more extensive especially in making a mark on how she makes use of her talent as a young individual. Her family, was supposed to be influential in many terms have also lost their luster and were conformed to live within the limits of the society as the war years arrive. If it was not for such circumstance, Satrapi may not have been ever able to see the realities of human living and how it ought to be recognized based on its worth as a source of satisfaction and full realities of embraceable opportunities.

Satrapi’s transfer to neighboring European countries have actually created a better sense of realization on her that it did give her a better vision of what else is there in store for her not only as a person but as a woman. She began to see the difference of her culture apart from what the world recognizes in line with the understanding of women and what they can do. What makes Satrapi’s road to realization actually made it more reflective of the conditions of womanhood in all other parts of the world is that of the point of comparison that she gradually knew about thus prompting her to become more effective in presenting her thoughts and the facts that were used to support her idealisms in her narrative.

The Transformation of Perception

Her thoughts about herself and regarding women as a whole gradually changed. Her perception about what womanhood is about became more concrete and she became determined in making a change on how women in her community were recognized, respected and given the chance to embrace a better option of lifestyle that is best to provide them with the option of personal growth. Her thoughts of being the hope that her community needs when she was still a child finally had a chance of becoming real. The Iran-Iraq war years that have long pestered the Middle Eastern communities have largely created a huge sense of change on how the society itself viewed the values of gender-definition in the said locations.

The hardships and social segregation that women had to go through prompted several organizations around the world to become more concerned as to how women in the said areas are supported and given the chance to live better lives. The world has opened several doors towards the recognition of what women in war-stricken countries need to be supported with; nevertheless, it could be understood that the fight has not yet ended; the truth is, it is not merely the war that these organizations need to face. As seen and understood from the narratives of Satrapi’s brief biography of her childhood, the problem of social and gender inequality is deeply rooted in culture; one that is controlled and is assumed to have a distinct sense of conditioning that concerned organizations and entities need to balance out with.

Perception over freedom has already changed through the years. Satrapi’s narrative of a young girl being affected by the social chaos affecting her community has touched several hearts of readers as they intend to feel what a young girl might be going through because of these particular points of failure. Noticeably, the narrative of Satrapi is able to draw the line that gains the interest of particular groups especially in the way they handle community-problems that are basically causing them to lose track of who they are and what they can be. Most likely, it is with such point of recognition that girls [following the line of maturity] becomes more concerned about how they are able to get the best out of the communities they live in without necessarily killing the roots of their cultural heritage. Changes ought to be made, but risks ought to be taken seriously. Women who were brought up in a hostile community know more than just to ask for what they want to happen; they know they have to work through the hoops and become more endowed in remaining serious about the situation; this allowing themselves to embrace the option of maturity under hostile and controlled conditions.

Conclusion

The world faces so many troublesome times; in the Middle Eastern nations, the chaotic condition between Iran and Iraq are among the most problematic ones. Noticeably, the world created a distinctive picture that questions the capacity of communities to produce progressive individuals who are able to embrace growth accordingly. In the case of Satrapi, she had to go through so much in order to become more effective in seeing the worth of her being. She had to take note of her weaknesses and strengths in a specifically different vision compared to other women in her community. Most likely, the point of realization that she had to go through had a much different consistency with what girls her age had to go through in other parts of the world. With suppression and control from culture and the government, she had to learn about the reality of what being a woman is about in another country that gave her hope of becoming a better individual; able to realize the best of her capacities and embrace a better essence of herself. Satrapi challenged the thinking about gender disparity in her community through her written narrative; she engaged her readers into realizing how hard it was for her to embrace maturity as part of her personal growth. As a young girl, she already knew what she wanted; she challenged the system and she wanted to bring about a massive point of change from which she hoped better days are to come from. Somehow, it could be said that the social chaos she has been subjected to has created a better essence of who she was and what else she can be based on the opportunities opened for her to embrace.

Works Cited

Satrapi, Marjane. (2000). Persepolis. Pantheon Books.