Throughout the novel Prisoner of Tehran, Marina has many relationships with different people that, without which it would have been exceptionally hard and in some cases impossible for her to survive her time in prison. The main reason for this is that she went through very tough times and definitely was very close to giving up with herself at many times but it was the presence of others and friends in the prison that was able to bring up her spirit and raise her hopes. But in some cases her relationships in prison legitimately saved her from extreme pain or in a couple cases even saved her life. This blog is meant to address Marina’s relationships with these other key characters in the novel.
Once Marina was moved to be with the other girls in prison her prison life became much more bearable as she had at least of a little bit of companionship as well as people that she could talk to and relate to. Marina is generally a friendly person, although being held in prison obviously hardened her significantly as it would to anyone. But the girls in prison were generally friendly to each other and Marina was accepted well. She especially bonded with a girl named Taraneh who she met in prison. She would always read the Koran in the corner of their room and this interested Marina. They became quite good friends. Taraneh told Marina about how she was on the execution list and she was aware of how Ali had saved Marina from being executed. Unfortunately, Marina was not able to get anything done for Taraneh and one day her time ran out and she was sent off to be executed. Marina never saw her again. They had connected well and this helped both of them to push through their days in prison. Due to this, when Taraneh was executed it was awfully tough for Marina but she had to learn to deal with hardships such as this in prison. They morphed her into a much stronger willed girl.
Another very essential relationship that Marina developed in prison was with Sister Maryam. Sister Maryam was a revolutionary guard yet was much more friendly and caring then other guards. Marina came to her very often to talk to her and discuss Ali and what her experiences with him were like and what his intentions might be. It was very important for Marina to have someone to talk to about this topic because it was very confusing to her and, in some cases, she was not sure what she would do or even what she could do. Sister Maryam was also able to protect Marina in several occasions. The main situation was when one of the rougher revolutionary guards was set on brutally torturing Marina and Sister Maryam called up one of Ali’s good friends to come and save her. Without her Marina would have had much more trouble physically and emotionally in prison as Sister Maryam acted as almost a big sister to Marina.
One of the most significant and the most affecting affiliations that Marina had with a character in the novel was her relationship with Ali, the revolutionary guard. Ali was able to protect and guide Marina through prison and, even though at some times she did not want it, without him she would have not survived. He introduced her to his family and would bring her for visits which, although she had a genuine dislike for Ali, helped her greatly to get by her pointless days in Evin Prison. Also, in the end, if it was not for Ali Marina might of never got out of Evin Prison and got a chance to get her life back on track. “Father, take her to her family," said Ali (M. Nemat page 227) This is was Ali's dying wish and with it his parents fought for Marina and got her out of Evin. Ali played a huge role in Marina's community at Evin Prison and without him her entire story would probably be a lot worse.
