Week Two-Snippet (Alice)

SNIPPET

The panels on page 102 contrast each other, but are similar in many ways. The first panel, which depicts young boys from the poor neighbourhoods of Iran with golden keys around their necks--which, are the keys-symbolically speaking-to "paradaise" of afterlife, being killed by landmines. The panel depicts of silhouettes of these poor boys being thrown in the air because of the impact of explosions from the bombs.
The second panel, which illustrates Marjane's very first--and therefore very exciting-- party. Everyone is dancing to the music, jumping up and down in joy. These two panels contradict each other in their meaning. The boys from poor backgrounds in the first panel are dying in agony while the rich kids in Tehran are having the time of their lives in a punk rock party.





However, the drawings that are supposed to be used as a context to the situation, has a hidden meaning behind it, a connotation; and therefore, are ironic. The first thing I noticed when I looked at these two panels were the almost-identical motions of the people. For example, these two people have indentical poses--and many others match up as well. It made me think that although their backgrounds are different, they really are the same people.
The boys in the first panel might have parished in anguish, but they must have imagined that when the pain was over, they would be transported to the paradaise, and rejoice in the last minutes of their devastating lives, like the children--including our protagonist, Marjane-- were doing in the second panel. I think, overall, the panels show them as happy individuals. Maybe, under their silhouettes, the boys might have been smiling.
This made me think of suicide bombers. They too, are convinced that by dying for a worthy cause--religion,they are sent directly to heaven. The golden keys had the same effect on the young boys. Therefore, I think there is no correct definition of the cause of happiness. For the boys who died in the minefields, happiness might have come from death, which could bring the fabulous afterlife. Their mothers will disagree, but that is what they believed in. As for the children in panel two, happiness comes from special occasions that spark up their boring lives, like a party.