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Summary: The Wine
When Iraq begins heavily attacking Tehran, the Satrapis and the other residents of their building convert the basement into a bomb shelter. Marji’s mother covers their windows with tape to protect against flying glass if there is a bombing, as well as black curtains to protect against their zealous neighbors—since the government has forbidden many social activities like drinking and having parties. One of Marji’s uncles hosts a secret party to celebrate the birth of his child. Everyone at the party is having a good time, drinking and playing music, when the power goes out and sirens begin to sound.
On their way home, a young patrolman pulls over the Satrapis’ family car and accuses Marji’s father of drinking. He follows the Satrapis to make an inspection. When they arrive at home, Marji’s grandmother distracts the patrolman by saying she needs to run ahead because she is diabetic and desperately needs to treat her condition. Marji and her grandmother then flush all their alcohol down the toilet. Soon, Marji’s father arrives and reveals that all he had to do was bribe the patrolman. He regrets that they threw the alcohol down the drain, saying he could really use a drink.
Summary: The Cigarette
The war rages for two years. Marji, now twelve years old, spends more time with older girls at school. One day, two fourteen-year-old girls convince Marji to skip class to go to a trendy diner called Kansas located in the wealthy neighborhood of north Tehran. At the diner, the girls flirt with boys with stylish haircuts. Marji notes that the boys dare to look hip even though they know they could be arrested for doing so. At home, Marji’s mother reprimands her for cutting class. Marji, feeling angry and embarrassed from being caught, calls her mother the “dictator” of the house and storms off to the basement.
Later, Marji learns that Iran has finally retaken the city of Khorramshahr from the Iraqis, an event that many felt would lead to the end of the war. Iraq proposes a peace settlement, and Saudi Arabia backs it up by offering to pay for post-war reconstruction. But the Iranian government refuses these offers, pledging they will capture the holy Shiite city Karbala in Iraq. Walls on the streets are covered in belligerent slogans for war. One slogan, “To die a martyr is to inject blood into the veins of society,” particularly disturbs Marji. She realizes that the survival of the Iranian regime depends on the war and that the regime is using the war as an excuse to crush all descent in society. Marji lights a cigarette, her own defiant act against the “regime” of her mother, and she declares herself a grown-up.
Analysis
“The Wine” highlights the extent to which many Iranians fight a war on two fronts, one against Iraqi aggression and another against their own government and fellow Iranians. The Iraqi bombing campaign over Tehran threatens the heart of the Iranian nation as well as the Satrapis’ lives. Marji describes the feelings of constant anxiety that grip Iranians as a result of the bombing raids. Hiding in the basement and hoping their homes aren’t destroyed is one kind of anxiety, but even once a raid is over, people are gripped with fear for their loved ones’ safety. Yet, as terrifying as the bombing raids are, they are at least fleeting. Iranians like the Satrapis get no break from the constant fear of other Iranians. The policemen of the Iranian regime are fearsome in their own right, but they rely on the civilian population to report any illegal activity. There is, therefore, always a risk that a fundamentalist neighbor might catch wind of something illegal and inform the police. If Tinoosh’s father’s terrifyingly harsh punishment is any indication, the consequences can be severe. So along with everything else, Iranians must now fear their neighbors. The party the family attends and their run-in afterward with an Iranian police officer is the chapter’s concluding statement about how Iranians are besieged on all sides. A forbidden party, interrupted by the stress and chaos of a bombing raid, followed by a run-in with a dangerous agent of the government gives a complete picture of how fraught Iranian life is at this time.
Many of the events of “The Cigarette” are a reminder that even while Iran descends further into dysfunction and war, life must go on. Despite all of the carnage and chaos, the dynamics of a young woman coming of age remain the same as they ever were. Marji is beginning the natural process of rebellion against her parents and a distancing from her family. She cuts class, lies to her mother, and smokes her first cigarette. These acts suggest a young woman who feels ready for her independence. Indeed, Marji explicitly marks her first cigarette as the moment she leaves her mother’s “dictatorship” behind and enters adulthood. This reference to dictatorship by Marji is also significant in its own way. It is an especially relevant metaphor for a child living under authoritarian rule. But it also indicates that rebellion, defiance, and anti-authoritarianism will remain a core part of Marji’s identity as she grows into the woman she will eventually become.
At the end of the chapter, Marji makes a series of shrewd observations about the Iranian regime that reveal its moral bankruptcy. Marji notes that when the regime is presented with the opportunity to negotiate for peace with the Iraqis, they refuse. The regime‘s bloodlust for revenge appeals to its most ardent supporters and is sure to stoke nationalist sentiment, but Marji is not so easily fooled. Marji interprets the regime’s continuance of the war as a way for the regime to keep the support of the Iranian people. She notes, too, that shortly after their refusal of peace, the regime ratchets up the prosecution and execution of its detractors within Iran. Marji concludes that the regime is using the war to rally the people to support it and to crack down on its detractors. Though the war will go on to kill a million of Iran’s own people, it has become indispensable to the regime’s survival. For a 12-year-old girl, this is a remarkably insightful and cogent political analysis of the situation. Marji’s maturity at this age suggests she really is ready to grow up. But this also suggests that the children of Iran have had much of their innocence robbed of them too soon and have no choice but to act older than their years.
