Explain: "'My' India has always been
based on ideas of multiplicity, pluralism, hybridity: ideas
to which the ideologies of the communalists are
diametrically opposed" (1578).
What is magical realism?
1579:
Explain the controversy surrounding the publication of The
Satanic Verses.
Describe Rushdie's "'mongrel' aesthetic."
How, according to the editors, does "The Prophet's Hair"
compare to The Satanic Verses?
"The Prophet's Hair" (1981) 1583:
Why does Hashim fail to perform his "duty as a citizen"
(1583)?
1584:
Why does Hashim suddenly become a
more observant Muslim?
1587:
Why does the Narrator suggest the
Sheikh's crippling of his children is an act of "absolutist
love" (1587)? Explain.
1588:
Why does the Narrator describe the Sheikh as a bulbul?
1589:
Is this a happy ending? Explain.
Other Discussion Questions:
1578-79:
What qualities do the editors identify in Rushdie's "most
notable" novels of the 1990s and 2000s?
1580:
Explain what happens to Atta.
Why does his sister, Huma, return to the site of her
brother's attack?
1581:
Why is Huma not injured there?
1582:
What does the Narrator mean by "the newborn goblins of
nostalgia" (1582)?
1584:
Why does Hashim reveal his unpleasant secrets to his
family?
1586:
Why does Atta steal the hair from his father?
How does Hashim retrieve the hair?
1587:
What specifically motivates Sheikh Sin to accept Huma's
offer?
