10. Midnight's Children(1980)
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Sir Ahmed Salman Rushdie (born 19 June 1947---)
Anglo-Indian author Salman Rushdie is
one of the leading novelists of the twentieth century. His style is often
likened to magic realism, which mixes religion, fantasy, and mythology into one
composite reality. He has been compared to authors such as Peter Carey, Emma
Tennant, and Angela Carter. His somewhat flippant and familiar way of treating
religion has provoked criticism, however, peaking in the Ayatollah of Iran's
issue of a fatwa (a death order) in response to The Satanic Verses, his fourth
novel.
Ahmed Salman Rushdie was born on June
19, 1947 in Bombay, India, to a middle class Muslim family. His father was a
businessman, educated in Cambridge, and his grandfather was an Urdu poet. At
fourteen, he was sent to England for schooling, attending the Rugby School in
Warwickshire. In 1964, his family, responding to the growing hostilities
between India and Pakistan, joined many emigrating Muslims by moving to
Karachi, Pakistan.
These religious and political
conflicts deeply affected Rushdie, although he stayed in England to attend the
King's College in Cambridge, where he studied history. While in school, he also
joined the Cambridge Footlights theatre company. Following his graduation in
1968, he began working in Pakistani television. Later, he also acted with the
Oval House theatre group in Kennington, England, and until 1981, he wrote
freelance copy for advertisers Ofilvy and Mather and Charles Barker.
In 1975, Rushdie published his first
novel. Grimus, a science fiction story inspired by the twelfth century Sufi
poem "The Conference of the Birds," was largely ignored by both
critics and the public. Rushdie's literary fortunes changed in 1981, when the
publication of his second novel, Midnight's Children, brought him international
fame and acclaim. The story is a comic allegory of Indian history, and tells of
the 1001 children born after India's Declaration of Independence, each of whom
possesses a magical power. It won the Booker Prize for Fiction, the
English-Speaking Union Award, the James Tait Black Memorial Prize (fiction),
and an Arts Council Writers' Award. In 1993 and 2008, it was named the
"Booker of Bookers," acknowledging it as the best recipient of the
Booker Prize for Fiction in the award's history.
His third novel, Shame (1983), was
commonly regarded as a political allegory of Pakistani politics. It used a
wealthy family as a metaphor for the country, and included characters based on
former Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq. It
won the Prix du Meilleur Livre Etranger, and made the short list for the Booker
Prize. In 1987, Rushdie published a short travel narrative titled The Jaguar's
Smile.
In 1988, Rushdie became the center of
a controversy surrounding the publication of his fourth novel, The Satanic
Verses, which revolves around two Indian actors who struggle with religion,
spirituality, and nationality. Although the book won the Whitbread Award,
Rushdie's free adaptation of Islamic history and theology caused the orthodox
Muslim Ayatollah Khomeini of Iran to issue a fatwa, a call for all obedient
Muslims to assassinate him. The book was banned and burned in many countries,
and several people involved with its publication were injured and killed. After
the death threat, Rushdie shunned publicity and went into hiding for many
years, although he continued to write.
He published a children's book in
1990, titled Haroun and the Sea of Stories. It won the Writers' Guild Award
(Best Children's Book). He next published a collection of essays, Imaginary
Homelands: Essays and Criticism 1981-1991 (1991), and a collection of short
stories, East, West (1994). Then came another novel, The Moor's Last Sigh
(1995), which used a family's history to explore the activities of right-wing
Hindu terrorists, and the cultural connections between India and the Iberian
peninsula. The Ground Beneath Her Feet (1999) was Rushdie's sixth novel,
re-imagining the birth of modern rock music. He also published the novel Fury
in 2001, and Step Across This Line: Collected Non-fiction 1992-2002 in 2002.
His latest novel Shalimar the Clown, published in 2005; it was a finalist for
the Whitbread Book Awards. In 2012, he published a memoir of his days in
hiding, Joseph Anton.
While many of Rushdie’s texts center
on the interpretation and role of religion in society, Rushdie himself is an
atheist. This upset many Muslims who previously regarded Rushdie as a strong
figure in the Muslim community. Combined with the unpopularity and
assassination attempts that followed the publication of The Satanic Verses,
Rushdie issued a statement in 1990 claiming that he had renewed his Muslim
faith. He denounced the blasphemous ideas that he wrote in The Satanic Verses
and said that he was committed to better understanding the religion and how it
fit into the larger world narrative. He also issued a request for the publisher
to never again produce new copies of The Satanic Verses. However, in 1995, he
admitted the tactic was only a survival mechanism and that he still does not
subscribe to any religious beliefs. He considers the statement the biggest
mistake of his life.
Rushdie ended his fourth marriage,
which was to the American television star Padma Lakshmi, in 2007. He is an
Honorary Professor in the Humanities at the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology, a Distinguished Supporter of the British Humanist Association, a
Distinguished Fellow in Literature at the University of Anglia, a recipient of
the 1993 Austrian State Prize for European Literature, a recipient of the 1996
Aristeion Literary Prize, and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and
Commandeur de Arts et des Lettres. He was also President of PEN American Center
from 2003-2005. In 2000, he moved from London to New York. In 2006, he became
the Distinguished Writer in Residence at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia
SALMAN RUSHDIE
(1947--)
He is best known for
the violent backlash his book The Satanic Verses (1988) provoked in the Muslim
community. He is associated with
“Gabriel Garcia Marquez” (Father of Magic Realism).
Won the
Booker Prize for Fiction and in 1993; it won "Booker of Bookers" and “Best
of Bookers” as the best novel for Fiction on 25th and 40th anniversary of
Booker.
Novels:
1.
Grimus - 1975: Science fiction, first novel- Set in Axona in India. Flapping eagle, a
young Indian becomes immortal after drinking magic fluid and wanders Earth 777
years 7 months and 7 days.
2.
Midnight`s
Children (1981)- second novel,
Magic realism, The novel narrates key events in the history of India from 15th
August 1947, through the story of pickle-factory worker Saleem Sinai, one of
1001 children born with Magical Powers. Shiva has strong knees. Saleem narrates
the story to Padma
3.
Shame (1983)- 3rd novel, Shame (1983), was shortlisted for the Booker Prize for
Fiction. Political turmoil in Pakistan between Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and General
Zia Ul Haq
4.
The Satanic
Verses (1988) - 4th novel, leads
to accusations of blasphemy against Islam and demonstrations by Islamist groups
in India and Pakistan. Iranian spiritual leader Ayatollah Khomeini issued a
“fatwa” against Salman Rushdie, calling for his assassination, forcing Rushdie
to go underground.
5.
The Moor’s Last
Sigh 1995-5th
novel
6.
The Ground
beneath her feet 1999-6th
novel
7.
Fury 2001-7th novel
8.
Shalimar the
clown 2005- 8th
novel
9.
Enchantres of
Florence (2008)- 9th
novel- a European visits Akbar’s court and claims that he is distant relative
of Akbar born of an exiled Italian/Indian princess -Florence.
10.
Two Years Eight
Months and Twenty-Eight Nights (2015)- fantasy
novel, title refers to One Thousand and One Nights
11. The Golden House (2017)
12.
Quichotte (2019)- picaresque metafiction- Key Shot (Quichotte)- a way to inject drugs.
Inspired by Don Quixote.
13.
Victor City
(2023)- latest novel, epic
tale of woman
Children stories:
14.
Haroun and the
sea of stories 1990.
15.
Luka and the fire
of lake 2010
Essay and Non-fiction
16. Imaginary Homelands: a post-colonial essay, concept of “common
wealth literature does not exist”
17.
The East Is Blue
(2004)- about pornography
in Asia and the Muslim world.
Memoirs:
18. The Jaguar smile: A Nicaraguan Journey 1987- first full length non-fiction work.
19. Joseph Anton: A Memoir 2012- used the names of Joseph Conrad and Anton Chekov
20.
Knife:
Meditations After an Attempted Murder (2024)
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Background:
Published in 1980, Midnight’s Children
follows the tumultuous transition into India's and, to a lesser extent,
Pakistan’s independence after the partition of British India. The story itself
is allegorical with the main events being about the life of Saleem Sinai, a boy
who was born at the stroke of midnight on the same day that India gained its freedom
from England.
Salman Rushdie, the novel’s author, created
the book to be a fictional biography of the country from the point of view of
someone who grew up alongside the nation. Rushdie himself was born in 1947,
just two months before the country’s liberation in August. As such, he had a
unique perspective on the country’s adolescent years as they coincided with his
own. These same ideas are injected into Saleem’s story; the changes that befall
Saleem in terms of wealth and identity are indicative of India’s growth.
Like Rushdie’s other novels,
Midnight’s Children uses magical realism as a device to combine history with
Rushdie’s fictional twist on history. Rushdie also employs postcolonial theory
to show how imperialism handicapped countries like India trying to reestablish
their culture and identity. Also subject to Rushdie’s critique is how social
class and religion contributed to India’s uncertain beginnings.
Midnight’s Children won the 1981 Book Prize.
Then in both 1993 and 2008, it won the Best of the Book prize on the prize’s
respective 25th and 40th anniversary. It also won the English Speaking Union
Literary Award as well as the James Tait Prize. The story was adapted to the
stage in 2003 by the Royal Shakespeare Company. Later in 2012, a film version
premiered at the Toronto Film Festival.
Three part Narrative Structure:
There are 30 chapters in 3 books:
|
Chapter |
Plot Summary |
|
Book One
(1-8 chapters) |
|
|
1.The Perforated Sheet |
Saleem’s tale begins 32 years from present day. Saleem's
grandfather Aadam Aziz’s visit to Ghani the landowner, where he falls in love
with Naseem through a literal perforated sheet, in Kashmir. |
|
2.Mercurochrome |
Aadam and Naseem marry but are poorly matched.
Aadam weakens over time while Naseem (Reverend Mother) gains strength with
each child. Merchurochrome (the red medicine) used to the wounded in Gandhi’s
call of Hartal. |
|
3.Hit-the-Spittoon |
Aadam joins Mian Abdullah (Humming Bird)
politically. After an assassination attempt, Nadir Khan hides in Aadam’s
basement. |
|
4.Under the Carpet |
The story moves to Amritsar and introduces Ahmed
Sinai, Saleem’s father. Mumtaz (Aadam’s 2nd daughter) secretly marries Nadir,
who later flees. She then marries Ahmed Sinai and Muntaz is renamed as Amina. |
|
5.A Public Announcement |
Ahmed and Amina relocates to Bombay as Partition
approaches. Amina becomes Pregnant, she saves Lifafa Das who leads her to ‘Sri
Ram Ram Seth’ who predicts her son's fate. |
|
6.Many-headed Monsters |
Communal tensions increase as independence nears.
The mystic foretells that Amina's son will share India’s birth and have
significant events involving noses and knees. |
|
7.Methwold |
Amina and Ahmed move into Methwold’s estate and
adopt English customs. Methowld is the biological father of Saleem Sinai. |
|
8.Tick, Tock |
Saleem is born at midnight on August 15, 1947.
Mary Pereira switches him with another newborn, Shiva, to impress her lover.
Shiva is raised by Vanita and We Willie Winkie. |
|
Book Two
(9-23 chapters) |
|
|
9.The Fisherman's Pointing Finger |
Mary becomes Saleem’s devoted nanny. Ahmed’s tetrapod
business with Dr. Narlikar is freezed by Govt and his financical increased.
Brass Monkey is born. |
|
10.Snakes and Ladders |
Saleem’s favourite game. Mary’s lover (Joseph
D’Costa) is killed while trying to bomb a clock tower. Dr Schapestekar gives
typhoid medicine make from snake’s
venom to Saleem. |
|
11.Accident in a Washing-chest |
While sitting in washing chest, Saleem sees his
mother undress and is punished with one day silence. He hears voices in his
head. |
|
12.All-India Radio |
Saleem leads the Midnight’s Children Conference
through telepathy, discovers the other midnight children, including Shiva
with deadly knees. |
|
13.Love in Bombay |
Saleem tries to impress an American girl Evelyn
Lillith Burns, and learns he can probe minds using his powers. Teenage Saleem
falls for Jamila Singer, his supposed sister. |
|
14.My Tenth Birthday |
Only 581 of 1,001 midnight children survive.
Ahmed’s financial losses continue. |
|
15.At the Pioneer Café |
Saleem learns Amina is having an affair with
Nadir (now known as Quasim Khan). He meets Shiva, who wants to rule the
midnight children with an iron fist. |
|
16.Alpha and Omega |
At school dance, Saleem loses part of his finger.
A hospital blood test reveals he is not biologically Amina and Ahmed’s son.
(Alpha and Omega represents the blood groups) |
|
17.The Kolynos Kid |
Ahmed sends Saleem to live with his film maker uncle
and film star aunt (Hanif and Aunt Pia’s), where he gropes his aunt and is
sent back home. (Saleem’s first exile) |
|
18.Commander Sabarmati’s Baton |
Saleem exposes a neighbor’s affair (Navy commader
Sabarmati’s wife Lila Sabarmati with Catrack), leading to a double murder. |
|
19.Revelations |
Mary confesses to switching Saleem and Shiva at
birth and runs away, disrupting the family. |
|
20.Movements Performed by Pepperpots |
The family moved to Pakistan and stay in Uncle
Zulfikar and Aunt Emerald’s house in Rawalphindi, Pakistan (Saleem’s second
exile). He performed war movements with pepperpots on the table for his uncle
Zulfikar who is an officer in Pakistan Army. Brass Monkey, now Jamila Singer, reveals her
singing talent. |
|
21.Drainage and the Desert |
Four years later, After returning to India,
Saleem has sinus surgery and loses his telepathy but gains an acute sense of
smell. |
|
22.Jamila Singer |
After selling Methowld’s estate in 1963, the
Sinais move to Karachi, Pakistan (Saleem’s third exile). Saleem reveals his
love for Jamila, but she rejects. |
|
23.How Saleem Achieved Purity |
India bombs their city. A spittoon strikes
Saleem’s head, killing his family and erasing his memory. |
|
Book Three
(24-30 chapters) |
|
|
24.The Buddha |
Saleem joins the Pakistani army and is used for
his smell powers. Saleem is known as Budha. |
|
25.In the Sundarbans |
In the jungle, Saleem regains his identity and
recounts his story to fellow soldiers. Only he survives the trip. |
|
26.Sam and the Tiger |
Parvati-the-witch smuggles Saleem back to India
using magic. Tiger Niazi, the Pakistani in charge of the war in Bangladesh,
surrenders to Sam Manekshaw of the Indian army. |
|
27.The Shadow of the Mosque |
Saleem lives with his uncle Mustapha, but is
kicked out. He moves to the slums with Parvati and Picture Singh. Project MCC
started |
|
28.A Wedding |
Parvati becomes pregnant by Shiva. Saleem marries
her to protect the child, even though it’s not his. |
|
29.Midnight |
The Prime Minister captures and sterilizes the
midnight children, stripping them of their powers to prevent rebellion. |
|
30.Abracadabra |
Parvathi died during emergency. During a snake
charming competerion at Bombay, Saleem finds out the picke he’s eating is
made by Mary Pereria and reaches her. She takes care of his son while Saleem
writes his memories. |
Opening line:
“I was born in the city of
Bombay… once upon a time. No, that won't do, there's no getting away from the
date: I was born in Doctor Narlikar's Nursing Home on August 15th, 1947. And
the time? The time matters, too. Well then: at night. No, it's important to be
more… On the stroke of midnight, as a matter of fact. Clock-hands joined palms
in respectful greeting as I came.”-
Saleem Sinai
Closing line:
“Yes, they will trample me underfoot, the numbers marching one
two three, four hundred million five hundred six, reducing me to specks of
voiceless dust, just as, all in good time, they will trample my son who is not
my son, and his son who will not be his, and his who will not be his, until the
thousand and first generation, until a thousand and one midnights have bestowed
their terrible gifts and a thousand and one children have died, because it is
the privilege and the curse of midnight's children to be both masters and
victims of their times, to forsake privacy and be sucked into the annihilating
whirlpool of the multitudes, and to be unable to live or die in peace.”- Saleem Sinai
Midnight's Historical Events
|
Historical
Event |
Narrative
Coincidence |
|
Jallianwala Bagh Massacre (1919) |
Aadam Aziz’s worldview is shaped by colonial
brutality, laying the foundation for Saleem’s legacy. |
|
Indian Independence & Partition (1947) |
Saleem is born at midnight on August 15—his birth
literally and symbolically tied to India's birth. |
|
Gandhi’s Assassination (1948) |
Reflects the collapse of idealism and growing national
unrest. |
|
America drops bomb on Japan 1948) |
Nadir has fled and left a note for Mumtaz that reads, “I divorce you.” |
|
Linguistic Reorganization of States (1950s) |
Saleem’s family's moves reflect shifting cultural
and political identities. |
|
Sino-Indian War (1962) |
National defeat mirrors Saleem’s mental turmoil
and instability. |
|
Nehru’s Death (1964) |
Adma Aziz’s death |
|
Indo-Pakistani War (1965) |
Saleem’s family moves to Pakistan; his telepathic
powers weaken as he leaves India. |
|
Indo-Pak War & Bangladesh Liberation (1971) |
Saleem loses his memory and joins the Pakistan
Army, fights in Bangladesh, loses his memory, and becomes a "war
hero." |
|
The Emergency (1975–77) |
Midnight’s Children are sterilized by Widow
(Indira Gandhi)—symbolizing the suppression of freedom and imagination. |
|
End of the Emergency (1977) |
Signals both relief and disillusionment; Saleem
reflects on crushed dreams. |
|
Indira Gandhi’s Return (1980) |
Marks the recurrence of oppressive politics and Saleem’s
enduring sense of loss. |
Midnight's Children Character List
Saleem Sinai is
the sickly narrator and protagonist of Midnight’s Children. He was born at the
stroke of midnight on August 15, 1947, the same moment that India gained its independence
from the British Empire. The time of his birth infused him with powers of
telepathy, a gift he used to find the other children born near midnight on that
same day. Later, he acquired a gift of smell that allowed him to discern
emotions and personalities in people. In terms of his narration as a rhetorical
device, he often forgets facts of his story. His assertion of magical powers
and a supernatural connection with India in his narration also makes him
unreliable storyteller. Combined with his narcissistic attitude and God
complex, it is difficult for the reader to ascertain whether or not he is
reading too deeply into his own existence. Overall, his story is an allegory
for the birth and rise of India as an independent nation.
Padma Mangroli is
Saleem’s present-day caretaker and fiancée. Padma plays the role of the
listener in the storytelling structure of the novel. She is described as plump,
muscular and hairy, compared to Saleem’s frail, cracked body. Saleem will
follow tangents and try to explain the significance of himself and his life,
Padma is more interested in the action of the tale. It is her influence that
balances out Saleem’s long-winded, prosaic story-telling. She also embodies the
skepticism that the audience has for Saleem’s narration. Her disbelief of
Saleem’s magic powers and metaphysical connection with India mirrors that of
the reader.
Characters
introduced in Book One
Aadam Aziz is a doctor and the father of Amina Sinai, or
Mumtaz, Saleem's mother. Saleem’s story begins with
Aadam, an Indian doctor, returning to his homeland after obtaining his medical
degree from Germany. He has many children
with Naseem Ghani, and struggles with questions of the existence of God
throughout the novel. He is a "half and halfer", an Indian with a
western education and outlook. He narrowly survives death in the Amritsar
Massacre of 1919.
Aadam Aziz's Mother runs the jewel business of her husband. She is
often shrewd toward Aadam. She spends time caring for her disabled husband
until his passing, at which time she follows him, relieved of her duty.
Aadam Aziz's Father is a formerly successful
jewel merchant, whose mentality has now declined. He spends all his time in his
room in the company of birds, who he can communicate with. When the birds
leave, he passes away.
Tai is a boatman on Dal Lake and a friend of Aadam
Aziz. At times he demonstrates an ability to predict the future and, while most
people consider him insane, he makes several insightful remarks, the most
important of which is his advice to Aadam Aziz to "follow his nose."
Naseem Ghani/ Reverend Mother is the daughter of
the wealthy landlord Ghani. She is first Aadam Aziz's patient and then becomes
his wife. She is the mother of Mumtaz Aziz (or Amina Sinai). She is dramatic
and strong-willed, possessing a lot of power in her relationship with her
husband Aadam Aziz. Later referred to by Saleem as "Reverend Mother" because of her religious devotion.
She has two large moles on her face referred to as witches nipples.
Ghani the landowner is a widower, blind and wealthy landowner. He is Naseem's father. He owns a lot of property
around Dal Lake in Kashmir.
Oskar Lubin is a German anarchist friend of Doctor Aziz from
his student days in Heidelberg, Germany. He is killed in a road accident while
demonstrating outside an army barracks in Germany in 1919 during the German
Revolution.
Ilse Lubin is Oskar's wife and another anarchist friend of
Aadam Aziz from his student days in Heidelberg. After Oscar's death in 1919 she
visits Aadam in Srinagar and drowns herself in Dal Lake.
Ingrid is another anarchist friend in Heidelberg.
Brigadier R. E. Dyer, an officer in the British army and Martial Law
Commander of Amritsar who orders his men to fire on an unarmed crowd. Related
to Jallianwala Bagh Massacre, 1919.
Alia is the eldest daughter of Aadam and Naseem Aziz;
she is the sister of Amina Sinai (Mumtaz) and Emerald. Together they are known
as the "Teen Batti" or three bright lights. Alia suffers from a
lifelong love for Ahmed Sinai, whom her sister Mumtaz marries. Her resentment
toward her sister manifests itself in the meals she cooks, and therefore
affects those who eat what she prepares. She is described as clever and plump.
She becomes an unmarried school mistress in Pakistan.
Mumtaz Aziz/Amina Sinai is the second daughter of Aadam and Naseem Aziz;
the sister of Alia and Emerald; and Saleem’s mother. She is described as dark skinned; in later life
she becomes plump and suffers from facial hair and verrucas. She is married to Nadir Khan. Once the family finds out that the two
never consummated their marriage, Mumtaz is divorced and then marries Ahmed
Sinai. It is Ahmed who changes her name to Amina to signify her new life as his
husband. By sheer willpower, she forces herself to love her
husband Ahmed Sinai. As a mother, she is devoted
and loving and always puts her children first when Ahmed’s alcoholism threatens
the family.
Mian Abdullah (a.k.a. the Hummingbird) is a pro-Indian Muslim
political figure, who dies at the hands of assassins.
The Rani of Cooch
Naheen a wealthy Muslim woman who sponsors the
political campaign of the Hummingbird. She is the intellectual friend of Aadam
Aziz. Her name is a play-on-words, literally meaning "The Queen of
Nothing" in English. She is described as a pale
woman who suffers from a unknown illness and turns white by the time of her
death.
Nadir Khan is Mumtaz's first husband. He is "the
Hummingbird's" personal secretary, and is known for his rhymeless poetry.
After the Hummingbird's assassination, Aadam Aziz agrees to hide Nadir in the
Aziz basement. Naseem is so infuriated by Aadam's decision that she vows
silence, which lasts for three years. Mumtaz falls in love with Nadir, they
marry privately, and live together in the basement. Aadam discovers that the
marriage has not been consummated after two years, Naseem breaks her silence
berating her husband and Nadir, and Nadir summarily divorces Mumtaz and flees
the household. He changes his name to Nasir Qasim and rekindles their
relationship in clandestine meetings some ten years later.
Hammdard the
rickshawman is a rickshaw
servant who lives behind Aadam and Naseem's house.
Rashid the rickshaw boy is the son of Hammdard. He
lives behind Aadam and Naseem's house. He is often seen talking with Hanif and
other boys outside the house. He informs Doctor Aziz that Nadir Khan needs a
place to hide. He later teaches the young Saleem how to ride a bicycle.
Emerald the youngest and prettiest daughter of Aadam and
Naseem Aziz; she is Saleem's aunt, the sister of Mumtaz. She marries General
Zulfikar.
General Zulfikar is the husband of Emerald, who is involved with
Pakistani political events. Is described as having a face like Pulcinella. He
becomes a father figure to Saleem during his stay in Pakistan. He is killed by
his own son in the end.
Ahmed Sinai is Saleem's father and Amina's husband. He is
originally a dealer in leathercloth, but becomes a property speculator when he
moves to Bombay. He dreams of reordering the chapters of the Koran in a true
chronology. After Saleem is born, his wife loses interest in him and he becomes
an alcoholic. He is also involved in the tetrapod business with Dr. Narlikar. He tries to be a successful businessman, but his attempts at personal
wealth fail -- according to him, because of a fake “family curse” he invents
one night while drunk.
Lifafa Das is a peep show street man who leads Amina to Shri
Ramram Seth in gratitude after she saves his life from a Muslim mob.
Shri Ramram Seth is a Hindu seer, a cousin of Lifafa Das. Amina
visits him while pregnant and he makes prophecies on the future life of her yet
unborn son, Saleem Sinai.
William Methwold is an Englishman from whom the
Sinais buy their house in Breach Candy, Bombay. When selling his housing
estate, (known as Methwold's Estate) he stipulates that all buyers must live
exactly as their previous English occupants did until the hour of independence.
Methwold invites Wee Willie Winkie and his wife, Vanita to perform for him. He
sends Winkie out on an errand, and seduces Vanita, resulting in Vanita becoming
pregnant. Methwold is Saleem's biological father. He is said to be a direct
descendant of William Methwold (c 1590- 1653) the historical Englishman who
planned the city of Bombay.
Wee Willie Winkie is an accordionist and entertainer. He is Shiva's
non biological father, and Vanita's husband.
Vanita is the wife of Wee Willie Winkie; she is revealed
to be Saleem's biological mother, who dies during labor.
Mary Pereira is a midwife and servant, who switches Shiva and Saleem at birth in an
attempt at impressing her sweetheart Joseph D'Costa. She is consumed by guilt
by her action and becomes Saleem’s nanny, (known as an
“ayah.”) to try to make amends. Saleem comes to see her as a second mother, even after he finds out that
she was the person who switched Saleem and Shiva at birth. She is a Christianised Indian. After confessing her
crime she flees to reemerge later as the owner of a pickle factory with the
name of Mrs Braganza, a name she borrowed from Catherine of Braganza,
the Portuguese princess who gave Bombay to the English in 1662 as part of her
dowry.
Joseph D'Costa is Mary Pereira's sweetheart, a hospital porter, a
communist political radical and a most wanted man by the Indian police. He is
cornered by police, bitten by a krait, and shot close to the Methwold Estate.
Mary mistakes the leprosy-stricken Musa for his ghost.
Suresh Narlikar is a child hating gynecologist and businessman,
who lives on Methwold's Estate in Bombay. He owns the nursing home where both
Saleem and Shiva are born at midnight on 15 August 1947. He forms a business
partnership with Saleem's father, Ahmed Sinai, to reclaim land from the sea. He
is killed by a mob of language marchers in 1957.
Doctor Bose is the doctor who delivers Saleem. He works in the
charity ward of Doctor Narlikar's nursing home.
Ibrahim Ibrahim a next door neighbor in Sans Souci
villa on Methwold's Estate in Bombay. He is elderly and owns sisal farms in
Africa. He lives with his sons, Ismail and Ishaq.
Ismail Ibrahim' a neighbour to the Sinai's who is
a crooked lawyer. Amina asks him in secret to act for the family to recover
Ahmed Sinai's frozen assets.
Nussie Ibrahim, Ismail's wife, who is nicknamed
The Duck because of the way she walks. She is the mother of Sonny Ibrahim.
Ishaq Ibrahim, a hotel owner lives with his father and brother on
the Methwold's Estate.
Adi Dubash A nuclear physicist who works on India's nuclear
program. Killed by choking on an orange pip.
Mrs Dubash, his wife who is a religious fanatic. They are the
ground floor neighbors to the Sinai's in the Versailles Villa on the Methwold's
Estate in Bombay. Their son is called Cyrus the Great by the children of
Methwold's Estate because of his intelligence.
Cyrus the Great the Dubashes only son and childhood friend of
Saleem's. After his father's death through choking on an orange pip his mother
grooms him to become the guru Lord Kushro Khusrovand.
Sonny Ibrahim is Saleem's neighbour and friend. His forceps
birth has given him a misshapen forehead.
Eyeslice Sabarmati one of Saleem's childhood friends on Methwold's
Estate, the son of Commander Sabarmati and his wife Lila, and the brother of
Hairoil. He is blinded in the right eye by a stone thrown by Shiva after he had
taunted him about his poverty.
Shiva is a boy who is born at the same moment as Saleem
and he was switched by Mary Pereria (nurse) at birth with the baby Saleem. Saleem was given to Shiva’s parents while Shiva was given to Saleem’s
parents. He is the biological son of Ahmed and Amina
Sinai, but is raised in poverty in the Bombay slums, initially by Wee Willie
Winkie. Shiva possesses an amazing ability to fight. Shiva is the knees in the
prophecy of "knees and nose" and is the possessor of abnormally large
knees. His fighting skill makes him a war hero and gets him promoted to the
rank of major in the Indian army. Shiva’s life and
characteristics are inverted of Saleem’s life. For example, Saleem is sickly
and introverted, whereas Shiva is robust, healthy, and extremely violent. Shiva
is compared to Hindu god Shiva: power of destruction and procreation. Shiva
puts an end to the Midnight’s Children Conference (MCC). He is the biological father of Saleem's son Aadam
and in fact, he fathered hundreds of children with women
all across India during his 20’s.
Characters
introduced in Book Two
Vishwanath the post
boy is a servant at Methwold's Estate. He is seen
frequently delivering messages to and from Methwold's Estate on his Arjuna
Indiabike.
Jamila Sinai/ Jamila Singer is Saleem's younger
sister, nicknamed "the brass monkey" because of her thick
thatch of red-gold hair and because she is conceived the night her father's
assets are frozen by the state. Sinai family moves to
Pakistan, where she becomes famous celebrity "Jamila Singer"
because of her magical, pure voice. While she and Saleem are fond for each
other during their childhood, she forever shuns him after he admits that he is
in love with her.
Dr Schaapsteker an elderly expert on snake venom who rents the top
floor of Buckingham Villa, the Sinai's house, after Ahmed Sinai's has his
assets frozen.
Purushottam, the sadhu who takes up residence in the Sinai's
garden at Saleem's birth and lives with the garden tap dripping constantly on
his head.
Musa is the disgraced servant of Ahmed Sinai whom Mary
mistakes for the ghost of Joseph D'Costa.
Johny Vaheel the police inspector who exposes Musa as the thief
of the Sinai's valuables and corners Joseph D'Costa in the clock tower of
Mahalaxmi Racecourse across the road from Methwold's Estate.
Hanif is Saleem's uncle and Amina's brother. He is a
screenwriter who enjoys some fame in his youth, but who grows disillusioned
later in life with Bollywood and the superficiality of the film industry, and
commits suicide. He is Pia's husband.
Pia is Hanif's attractive wife, a former actress and
later joint petrol-pump owner with Naseem, her mother-in-law.
Mustapha Aziz is another uncle of Saleem's, the brother of
Mumtaz, described as tall but stooped with a droopy mustache. He becomes a
second rank civil servant in New Delhi, always passed over for promotion. His
wife is Sonia. They have strangely silent children who've been beaten into
submission.
Sonia Aziz (née Khorovani) is Mustapha's wife. She is
eventually committed as insane.
Evie Lilith Burns is Saleem's American childhood sweetheart. She is
a freckled tomboy with tooth braces. She later knifes an old lady on her return
to America and is sent to reform school.
Zafar the son of General Zulfikar. Zafar suffers from
enuresis (bed-wetting) which annoys his father and appalls women.
Homi Catrack a film magnate and racehorse owner who is a
neighbour of the Sinai family in Bombay. he frequently has affairs with married women, including Pia and Lila Sabarmati. Saleem exposes Homi’s affair
with Lila to her husband, Commander Sabarmati, and is subsequently murdered by
Commander Sabarmati. His mentally ill daughter Toxy lives in seclusion with her
fearsome nurse Bi-Appah.
Lila Sabarmati is commander Sabarmati's wife, who is shot, but
not killed by him, for having an affair with Homi Catrack.
Commander Sabarmati is the husband of Lila Sabarmati, a high flying
officer in the Indian navy and neighbor to the Sinai's in Bombay. He shoots his
unfaithful wife and murders her lover.
Hairoil Sabarmati, the Sambarmati's son and classmate of Saleem.
Alice Pereira is Mary's sister, who works for Ahmed Sinai as his
secretary.
Croaker Crusoe, the headmaster of the Cathedral School in Bombay
where Saleem receives his education.
Mr Emil Zagaloo is Saleem's geography teacher at the Cathedral
School. He is sacked after pulling out a clump of Saleem's hair.
Rushdie, a prefect at the Cathedral School. A minor
character, but notable by the use of the author's name.
Glandy Keith Colaco an overweight bully at the cathedral school
Fat Perce Fishwala another overweight bully at the cathedral school
Masha Miovic, a champion breaststroke swimmer and pupil at the
Walsingham school. A friend of the Brass Monkey, she partners Saleem at the
school social and faints when his finger is severed.
Jimmy Kapadia, a classmate of Saleem's. He is a scholarship boy
at the cathedral school, the son of a taxi driver. Saleem believes he murders
him through a dream.
Soumitra, one of the Midnight's Children, a boy who is able
to travel through time.
Sundari, one of the Midnight's Children, a girl of such
intense beauty that she blinded her mother at her birth. Her face is later
slashed with a knife by an aunt and she becomes a beggar.
Parvati-the-witch / Leylah Sinai is one of the
Midnight's Children, and the only one to become a friend (and later wife) of
Saleem, as Leylah Sinai. She is a child of the conjurers ghetto in New Delhi
but can perform real magic. Though she carries Shiva’s
biological son, Parvati and Saleem raise him as their own child. She is killed in the Sanjay Gandhi’s
"cleansing" of the Jama Masjid slum during the Emergency of
1975–1977.
Narada / Markandaya, one of the Midnight's Children who has the
ability to change sex at will.
Dom Minto a private detective hired by Commander Sabarmati
to investigate his wife's infidelity.
Major (Retired)
Alauddin Latif, nicknamed Uncle
Puffs is Jamila Singer's agent. A former soldier in the Pakistan border patrol,
he has seven daughters, known as the Puffias, who he offers to Saleem to choose
one as a wife.
Tai Bibi is a 512-year-old whore who Saleem visits in
Karachi. She has the ability to change her body smell at will and mimic the
smell of others.
Mutasim is the son of a wealthy Pakistani who is western
educated and has a Beatles haircut. He is an unsuccessful suitor to Jamila
Singer. He is killed in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965.
Characters
introduced in Book Three
Ayooba Baloch the leader of Saleem's platoon in the Pakistani
army. Nicknamed the tank. He is sixteen and hates vegetarianism or any sign of
unmanliness. He is killed in the Bangladesh Liberation War of 1971, when, while
mourning the unfairness of life with Saleem, he is shot by a sniper.
Farooq Rasheed, one of Saleem's platoon in the Pakistani army.
Sixteen years old and described as a born follower. Killed in the Bangladesh
Liberation War when he is shot by a sniper while scouting a battlefield.
Shaheed Dar, one of Saleem's platoon in the Pakistani army.
Perhaps fifteen years old (he lied about his age), gloomy and resigned to
martyrdom in the army. He is killed in the Bangladesh Liberation War when a
grenade splits him in half. Saleem takes him to the top of a mosque, where his
scream echoes over the loudspeaker as he bleeds out.
Brigadier Iskandar Commander of the CUTIA unit (Canine Unit for
Tracking and Intelligence Activities) of trained dog handlers.
Lala Moin, batman to Brigadier Iskandar.
Sgt Maj Najmuddin, Sergeant Major in the CUTIA unit.
Deshmukh, the vendor of notions, an elderly peasant from
Bangladesh met looting a battlefield.
Sam Manekshaw Commander of the Indian army at the surrender of
Dhaka. He was a former colleague of Tiger Niazi in the British colonial army.
One of the few historical personages, given a voice in the novel.
Tiger Niazi Commander of the Pakistan army at the
surrender of Dhakar. One of the few historical personages, given a voice in the
novel.
Picture Singh (aka The Most Charming Man in The World) is a
snake charmer from the conjurers' ghetto in New Delhi. He is seven feet tall, a
communist and the undisputed leader of the ghetto. He becomes a father figure
and a friend to Saleem. His photo once appeared on half the Kodak
advertisements in India which gave him the nickname Picture.
Master Viram, a sitarist whose playing is able to respond to
and exaggerate the faintest emotions in the hearts of the audience.
Resham Bibi, a superstitious old woman from the conjurers'
ghetto in New Delhi. She sees Saleem as bad luck. She dies of cold.
Chisti Khan a fakir from the conjurers' ghetto who has an
ageless face.
Roshanara Shetty, the child wife of the steel magnate S.P. Shetty.
She manages to injure the ego of Shiva by telling him all the society ladies he
courted were laughing at him behind his back.
Aadam Sinai is Saleem's son, and Shiva's biological son. He
has extraordinarily large ears and a strong will. He is part of a second wave
of Midnight's Children.
Durga is a washerwoman with huge lactating breasts. She
is wet nurse to Aadam Sinai and a succubus to Picture Singh who becomes
infatuated with her even as she drains his strength.
The Widow is the novel's fictional representation of Indira
Gandhi. The Widow is alluded to early in the novel, but is only revealed to be
Indira Gandhi towards the end of Book Three. During her first term, she realized that the Midnight’s Children Counsel
represented a threat to her leadership. With the help of Shiva’s strength and
Saleem, whom she took captive, she had all the surviving members of the
Midnight’s Children Council captured and sterilized so that their magical
powers could not be passed down, thus securing her claim as the only
“legitimate” child of India.
The Widow's Hand is a servant of the Widow responsible for Saleem's
torture. She has a similar hairstyle of the Widow, glasses and is described as
very attractive. Her character is based on Rukhsana Sultana.
Anand (Andy) Shrof, a Bombay westernised businessman and playboy and
owner of the Metro Cub Club.
Maharaja of Cooch
Naheen, A young snake charmer who rivals Picture
Singh as the most charming man in the world.
Midnight's Children Themes
Naming as an Identity
Midnight’s Children has strong ties with the
idea that naming creates identity. The majority of names in the novel allude to
the archetype that the character resembles. Saleem’s grandfather Aadam, for
example, alludes to the Biblical Adam who was the first man. Saleem’s
grandmother takes on the name Reverend Mother after she becomes engulfed in her
religious identity. The women in the novel change their name after getting
married, essentially leaving their unmarried identity behind and becoming a new
person in union with their husbands. For a while, Saleem even forgets his own
name during a time when he is not particularly proud of his actions. He has
lost his moral compass and has therefore lost the name which gives him meaning
and direction.
Post-Colonialism
Before becoming an independent nation, India
was under the rule of the British Empire. The British used their influence to
erase the customs of India and impose their own culture and morality. The
Indians, however, found it difficult to recall their own culture. Many cast
aside the “old ways” of polytheistic religion and ornate ceremonies, and
instead tried to veer the country to follow Western culture. Others tried to
return to their customs but were caught identity crisis. The shadow of the
British Empire still clouded India’s vision, making it difficult to move
forward with their own identity. Characters like William Methwold and Evie
Lilith Burns served as reminders of how white characters were able to make
Indians feel subservient and out-of-place in their own country.
The Unreliability of Oral Storytelling
Midnight’s Children is told entirely through
the voice of Saleem, who is recalling the mystical events of his life on his
deathbed. He expects Padma, who represents the readers, to completely believe
the series of events that comprise his life, which is difficult because his
story is filled with supernatural occurrences set against a realistic world.
Yet at the same time, there are moments in the novel when Saleem admits that he
might have forgotten a date or mixed up a series of events due to his failing mental
health. This puts the reader in a difficult position: they can either fully
believe Saleem’s occultish story and forgive his slights of memory, or they can
take everything Saleem says with a grain of salt. Either way, Saleem’s
authority as a reliable narrator is undermined through both magical realism as
well as his admission of mixing up dates and events.
Mythology and the Epic Story
Hindu, Christian, Greek, and other religious
mythologies are Saleem’s props that lend credence to his elaborate tale of
India’s creation. He sets his grandfather up as a progenitor by comparing him
to the first man in Christian mythology, Adam. With respect to his “evil”
counterpart, Shiva, he conjures the Hindu god to compare Shiva’s position as a
major player in the story with the god’s own influence on people’s lives. The
same goes for Parvati, who represents the caring and motherly form who has a strong
control over Shiva as well as everyone else in India. Throughout his story,
Saleem makes connections between himself and Scheherazade, the storyteller from
One Thousand and One Nights. To set up his story as an epic adventure, he uses
classic traditions from Homer’s The Odyssey as a way to draw further parallels
to his own journey to find himself.
Boundaries and Borders
From the moment that England breaks ties with
India, India is given autonomy and independence. In theory, this means that
India should have finite, indisputable borders. Midnight’s Children takes a
different approach, saying that boundaries and borders are often more blurred
than one might think. This is seen in the characters time and again -- for
example, the struggle for presence between Aadam and Reverend Mother. Saleem is
able to surpass the boundaries of his body by telepathically shoving himself into
someone else’s brain. In the national sense, the impermanence of borders is
apparent even at the beginning of India’s independence when these countries
decide to create new borders, separating Pakistan from India. The only problem
with this is that these borders were unable to separate Hindus from Muslims as
they were intended to do.
Racism and Sexism
Left over from colonialism is the idea that
white skin is desirable and pure. While the Western characters exhibit these
ideas more prominently, the ideas seep through to the Indian characters.
Saleem’s father’s cousin relays these racist thoughts when she begins harping
on other dark-skinned Indians. When Jamila Singer appears in public, she is
covered in a white silk chadar to symbolize her purity. Sexism is also
prevalent in the novel, with many male characters (even Saleem) ignoring
women’s autonomy and identity. Both Amina and Parvati accept their new first
names after becoming married, and neither Sonny nor Saleem respect Brass
Monkey’s and Evelyn’s insistence that they don’t want to be in a relationship
with boys who are pursuing them. Instead, the boys doggedly pursue the girls
regardless of what the girls want.
Class and Social Structure
It is impossible to overlook Saleem’s journey
through India’s different social structures. Saleem begins his life in an
upper-middle class family, enjoying a beautiful home and having enough money to
be comfortable. Their wealth is created from their capitalistic lifestyle, left
over from British Imperialism. But as soon as Saleem’s parents split up, his
social standing is significantly lowered to the point where he, his mother, and
his sister are recognized as the needy relatives. Once India enters the war,
Saleem loses all hopes of ever belonging to “respectable” society and instead
lives in the slums, spreading the word about how a communist government would
be more inclined to help the poor break free from their squalor. All these
different parts in Saleem’s life are representative of the vast differences in
class and social structures present in India.
Book One: Chapter wise- Summary
1. "The Perforated Sheet"
Midnight’s Children begins with the
narrator Saleem Sinai introducing himself as the child born at the same time as
India gained its independence from the British Empire. He says that, even
though he is nearly thirty-one years old, he can feel his skin cracking and
peeling as he gets closer to his death. Saleem believes it is important that he
tells the story of his life and how it coincides with India’s own history.
Present-day Saleem is telling this
story to Padma, his constant companion and caretaker. “I, Saleem Sinai, later variously called Snotnose,
Stainface, Baldy, Sniffer, Buddha and even Piece-of-the-Moon, …… And I couldn't
even wipe my own nose at the time”. He
is critical of her sturdy stature and hairy body, and he constantly makes fun
of her name, which means “dung.” Saleem says, “She had been named after the lotus goddess, whose most
common appellation amongst village folk is 'The One Who Possesses Dung'“.
He dismisses her attempts to make him well. Saleem’s body keeps deteriorating
and cracking. Saleem compares himself to Scheherazade, the narrator and
protagonist of One Thousand and One Nights; and he wanted to tell his story
faster.
Saleem’s story begins in spring morning
(Kashmir) 1915 (32-years before his birth) with his grandfather, Aadam Aziz,
returning to the Kashmir region after obtaining his medical degree in Germany.
While praying on his mat upon reaching Kashmir, he hits his nose on the ground.
Three drops of blood fall from his nose onto his mat. Saleem also mentions that
Aadam has a large, cucumber-sized nose, which is the most prominent
feature of his face. After the accident, he vows never to follow any religion.
He is waiting for Tai the boatman to
take him to his village when he reminisces about how Tai once told him that his
nose would always guide him in the right direction for his life. Tai says, “A nose like that, little idiot, is a great gift. I say:
trust it. When it warns you, look out or you'll be finished. Follow your nose
and you'll go far.” Tai yells out that the daughter of prominent
landowner Ghani is sick and needs his assistance. Once Saleem arrives at the
house, the blind Ghani has his daughter hidden behind a large white sheet with
a seven-inch hole cut in the center of the sheet. Ghani informs Aadam that,
because of his daughter’s purity, Aadam can only perform the check-up through
the sheet.
As Aadam is called countless times to
Ghani’s house to treat “illnesses”, he begins to fall in love piece by piece
with Naseem, the girl behind the sheet. However, he has never seen her face,
only the part of the body that she claims is in pain. Finally, on the day
that World War I ends, Naseem says she has a migraine and needs Aadam to
treat her head. When Aadam sees Naseem’s face for the first time, he is
completely smitten with her.
Ilse, Aadam’s anarchist friend from
Germany, comes to visit him and deliver the news that their friend Oskar has
died. Ilse drowns herself in the lake that same day, in a spot where, as Tai
once told the young Aadam, foreign women often come to drown themselves without
their knowing why.
In that same year, Doctor Aziz’s
father dies, followed shortly by his mother. Agra University offers Aadam a
job, and he decides to leave Kashmir and proposes to Naseem. The two are
married and move to Amritsar.
The perforated sheet is a motif in
Midnight’s Children. As Aadam fell in love with Naseem piece by piece, he never
learned to love her as a full woman. This fractured foundation immediately
causes problems in their marriage, namely on their second night of marriage
when Aadam urges Naseem to move “like a woman”. “Move
where?” she asked. “Move how?” He became awkward and said, “Only move, I mean,
like a woman…” She shrieked in horror. “My God, what have I married? I know you
Europe-returned men. You find terrible women and then you try to make us girls
be like them! Listen, Doctor Sahib, husband or no husband, I am not any…bad
word woman.” -- Reverend Mother.
2. "Mercurochrome"
On August 7th, Mahatma Gandhi called
for Hartal, a day of mourning in protest of British imperialism. Riots break
out, however, and Aadam tries to help the wounded by using Mercurochrome, the
red medicine which leaves bloodlike red stains on his clothing. Six days
later, the people hold a peaceful protest and are rounded up and put into a
compound, i.e., Jalian Walabagh. Aadam is there by accident. His nose begins to
itch violently, causing him to sneeze. He falls to the ground right before the
troops fire on all the people. The bullets miss Aadam.
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