Quote 1
It had been four years since I'd seen such a well-stocked store. […] Even today, after all this time, you can always find at least a dozen boxes of good-smelling laundry powder in my house. (20.38, 20. 41)
Marjane locks onto grocery stores—and detergent—as symbols of Western safety. In Iran, they can barely find bread sometimes because people hoard food due to the constant threat of war. Detergent is a sign of both safety and a little bit of Western excess. Just how many good scents can there really be though?
Quote 2
I was distancing myself from my culture, betraying my parents and my origins. […] I was playing a game by somebody else's rules. (24.29)
Do you think Marjane is being too hard on herself? After all, pretty much any place she goes is going to have different rules than Iran. She has to compromise a little in order to fit in, right? Or does she compromise too much?
Quote 3
"I AM IRANIAN AND PROUD OF IT!" (24.47)
Today, this would be akin to shouting that you have a bomb in an airport. While it wasn't as dangerous back in Vienna in the 1980s, it still doesn't win Marjane any friends. Most people, even then, look upon Iranians with disdain and fear.