In the last chapter “The Dowry” Marjane Satrapi is 14 and is as rebellious as ever. As Marji is questioned and criticised about her clothing and jewellery by her teachers, she abruptly talks back and ignores them. After the principle gives Marji her final warning, she attempts to take her bracelet given to away. Marji hits the principle and is immediately expelled.

At her new school, despite the teacher telling the class that Islamic Republic does not keep political prisoners, Marji speaks out and disagrees, exclaiming that Islamic Republic does keep political prisoners which disrupts the class.


Dowry represents the result of the ominous events occurring in Iran, specifically rape and murder. Our own contextual knowledge of religious people is righteous and pure, However the novel subverts our stereotypical expectations of these characters. For example, the main character slaps the teacher due to sudden bursts of anger. Furthermore the main character is banished from her next school for speaking out and saying her opinion. The reader is then positioned to acknowledge that religious community is not as perfect and pure as we believe it to be. Therefore this text subverts our stereotypes of religious people.


Marji’s thoughts symbolises the struggles of self-belief and that Iranian people have to experienced during this time. “how dare you lie to us like that” Marji said this when the teacher was telling her students false information about political stances, which restricts and prohibits the students from speaking their own mind as they are told otherwise. This then reinforces the contextual idea that Iranian people were confined from their own individuality, as they cannot express their own beliefs freely. The onomatopoeia of the claps after Marji talked back further suggests that the notion of speaking your mind was uncommon  and was largely supported by the general population which then also implies that adults who follow the political rules have a superior voice.