Biography
Satrapi was born in Rasht and grew up in Tehran. Her well-to-do parents were highly educated members of a distinctly westernized stratum of Iranian society. They were both politically active and supported Marxist causes against the monarchy of the Shah. When the Iranian Revolution finally took place, however, they were dismayed and intimidated by the Muslim fundamentalists who took power.
Her parents grew concerned that the young Marjane, a strong-willed and rambunctious teenager, would run afoul of the strict new public codes for women. They arranged for her to study abroad and in 1983 she arrived in Vienna, Austria, to attend the Lycée Français de Vienne. According to her autobiographical graphic novel, Persepolis, she stayed in Vienna through her high school years, staying in friends' homes, but spent two months living on the streets. After an almost deadly bout of pneumonia, she returned to Iran. She studied visual communication, eventually obtaining a master's degree from Islamic Azad University in Tehran.
During this time, Satrapi went to numerous illegal parties hosted by her friends, where she met a man named Reza, a veteran of the Iran-Iraq War. She married him at the age of 21, but divorced him roughly three years later. Satrapi then moved to Strasbourg, France.
Satrapi is married to Mattias Ripa, a Swedish national. They live in Paris. She is an atheist.
Read more about this topic: Marjane Satrapi
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