Marriage practices are evolving in the Islamic Republic of Iran as a result of modernity's impact on its political, economic, and social structures. Young Iranians are in direct contact with these structures that define them. Autonomy, rationality, and individualism are notions of modernity that directly affect marriage, therefore, their beliefs and practices concerning marriage expose the extent to which they grasp tradition or embrace modernity. Through a qualitative study that involves participant observation and collection of in-depth narratives from young, unmarried Iranians living in urban cities in Iran, I examine the unique Iranian encounter with the subjective modem.

Existing ethnographic studies rarely delve into contemporary narratives about marriage. This study discovers that young Iranians yearn for an authentic experience of modem life that combines tradition, family, rationality, and individualism. Rather than viewing this collaboration of values as a bifurcation, young Iranians embrace a unique hybrid reconciling the modem with tradition.