Zack Schwartz Post 10

In "The Facts in the Case of the Departure of Miss Finch" by Neil Gaiman, Miss Finch is the outcast of the story. The reasons that she is cut off, however, are self inflicted. The attitude of Finch is very unappealing and she does not make any effort into assimilating into society. She is very hard to talk to as she is an intellectual and socially awkward. She feels she is always right and must constantly prove her intellectual superiority to others. If she would make an effort to get along with others better, she could undoubtedly be accepted into society. Instead, her arrogance prevailed and at the end of the story, no one even made an effort to look for her when she went missing. With a simple adjustment of attitude, she could have had many great friends.

In the book, "Persepolis" by Marjane Satrapi, Marjane was the outcast. The reasons that she became a pariah, however, are not some than can easily be adjusted. Her and her family have specific political beliefs that go against that of the mainstream government. She behaves and acts differently than much of society, so she feels very alone. She cannot just succumb to the beliefs of others like Finch could have, because the right thing to do is to stand up for what you believe in. Marjane is doing the right thing, but an effect of doing the right thing is being looked upon as an outcast. She wears different clothes and does not pray every day unlike the rest of society, but at least she is doing what she believes is right.