How did Marji's journey shape her identify as an individual and as an Iranian

This is only a short-answer space but Marjane certainly comes of age in the book. The bildungsroman is a genre of literature in which the protagonist undergoes a process of intense moral growth and self-actualization. For a work to be considered a bildungsroman, the protagonist must progress from childhood to adulthood, leave home to undergo a journey, and develop a more mature understanding of his or her self.

Satrapi's novel, especially if considered in the larger context of the second volume of the series, falls into all of these categories. Marjane begins Persepolis as a child and by the end of the novel declares her independence from her mother and father through the ritual of smoking a cigarette. Marjane's parents force her to leave her war torn home for her safety and this begins her journey. Throughout the novel Marjane must reconcile her own beliefs and understanding of the world with the strict cultural rules of the Islamic regime.