Salman Rushdie's Haroun and the Sea of Stories Essay

Millions of people around the world are discriminated against, but Hazaras and Shias especially know the struggle of this, constantly being put at the bottom of the social class and knowing unfair treatment all too well. In The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, the act of discrimination is portrayed throughout the novel and is the cause of many of the main events that occur in the novel. Hassan, a hare-lipped Hazara boy in the novel, feels the pain and torture of simply being who he was and endures the hardships of his ethnicity, but yet he never complains or wishes to change who he is, symbolizing his bravery. Therefore, discrimination and slander towards Hazaras in the novel gives a strong sense of unequalness among the two ethnicities, Pashtuns and Hazaras, and is not considered virtuous among societies today.

Haroun and the Sea of Stories is the fifth novel written by Salman Rushdie. If you look closely at both a reading about Salman's life and one of his novels, you can actually find connections between them. In the reading about Rushdie's life, it was made evident that people despised his book The Satanic Verses. This is the same case in Rashid's life, for some people very much disliked his story telling. Furthermore, in the supplementary reading; I learned that individual people and larger organizations like governments wanted to capture Rushdie. This is because Rushdie's controversial book was heavily looked down upon by the Muslim Religion. This is a parallel to the Sea of Stories due to the fact that Khattam-Shud wanted to capture Rashid

In his essay, Reality TV: A Dearth of Talent and the Death of Morality, Salman Rushdie argues that the popularity of reality television shows should both alarm us and enlighten us as we examine their success. What is Rushdie’s primary argument, and in what tone does he make his plea? How well does Rushdie keep our attention as a writer and are his arguments credible? Are his claims supported by hard evidence or merely conjecture? And finally, from this essay what can his audience surmise about Rushdie’s world view, biases and opinions of society at large and the media in particular? As we explore Salman Rushdie’s essay let us keep an open mind even if reality television is our favorite form of entertainment.

During his visit to Kahani,Haroun crossed the twilight strip which led them to an evil and forbidding region, “It was a suicidal mission, Haroun became convinced they would be defeated”(121),but after he saw Mudra a shadow warrior his opinions changed. Mudra was performing a martial dance,”The dance of the shadow warrior showed him that silence had its own grace and beauty...and that action could be as noble as words;and that creatures of darkness could be as lovely as the children of light”(125). This emphasizes the change Haroun went from seeing the evil in the Chups to seeing the beauty. Not only did stories change Haroun they changed the people in the Valley of K as well. Rashid told them “Haroun and the Sea of Stories”. The crowd became so impacted by the story they sang along and interacted with Rashid. Eventually the citizens were able to connect and sympathize with people from the land of chup. They realized how their ruler resembled Khattam-Shud and were able to choose leaders they actually liked. Storytelling takes us on a journey that lets us experience moments in a way reality doesn't let us;it changes us in a way no one else

These works go hand in hand with one another and make great observations on why it is okay to view everything differently. Although Rushdie’s novel considers being a fantasy or sci- fi genre, its message behind it hits the reality of it. Haroun and Rashid both are on a quest to

Because these writings may be new territory for certain readers, this political writing may seem “programmatic, pushing a single cause or concern or party position, or it’s tied into a highly topical situation that doesn’t transfer well out of its own specific time and place” (Foster, 117). However, the core of these examples describe issues that discusses issues with mankind, such as oppressive government - a theme found across literature. Another example includes the class struggle between the Shia Muslims, (known as Hazaras) and the Sunni Muslims (known as Pashtuns) in Afghanistan. From childhood to maturity, Amir notes that many Pashtuns look down upon Hazaras, such as Assef, his teacher, soldiers, and General Taheri. At times, this influences the interactions between Hassan’s family and other Pashtuns. As a result, the Kite Runner discusses an important cultural class struggle, which permeates throughout the span of the novel and points out it’s lack of footing. Since the world has many factors (political, economic, social, cultural, etc.), many political influences find their way into a writer’s work, even when it seems it

In Salman Rushdie’s Haroun and the Sea of Stories, Haroun, an eleven year old boy travels to magical lands intending to restore Rashid Khalifa’s lost storytelling ability. Haroun faces an internal conflict when trying to understand his father’s stories because others are simple minded, but after meeting friendly creatures he is able to look at the stories differently. Haroun’s neighbor causes him to question Rashid’s inspiration for stories. Only knowing how to accept sensible answers, Haroun refuses to believe that Rashid’s explanations can be the truth. During an unpleasant encounter with Haroun Mr. Sengupta says, “Life is not a storybook or joke shop.

However, he incorporates special characters to relate to others in the outside world while they relate to each other, in a positive and negative manner, in the story. In fact, in Haroun and the Sea of Stories, Salman Rushdie reveals that each character relates to another character through their language, image, and personality. Haroun and the Sea of Stories reveals that each character relates to another through language. The first two characters that can relate are Rashid Khalifa and Mudra, the shadow warrior. Rashid and Mudra are alike

It angered people in Iran,which caused the belligerent dictator and comptroller, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, to issue a fatwa or a death sentence for Rushdie. Haroun and the sea of stories (1990) was one of the many stories that he has written during his exile and this one is dedicated to his son. Rushdie addresses censorship in Haroun and the Sea of Stories by showing limitations on freedom of speech, intellectual liberty with characters like Haroun and Rashid as well as how characters like Mudra are afraid of challenging the Politicos like Khattam Shud. True thoughts are hidden within one's character so if one were to speak out, that person would receive punishment.

Storytelling is a critical part of Salman Rushdie’s life. It creates relevance for the audience, providing visual details making them easier to understand for the reader. Rashid Khalifa, his admires called him the Ocean of Notions and his enemies who were jealous of him called him the Shah of Blah, plays a crucial role in a part of people’s lives. Story telling is a critical part of a politician’s likelihood in the novel since they rely on the storytellers to persuade and convince people to vote for them. Soraya was an important part of Rashid and Haroun’s life.

Over thousands of years Arab’s and Jewish civilizations have made deep historical roots in Palestine along with many emotional attachments. At the end of the 19th century Arab nationalism and political Zionism were starting to steak claims to the same land. These two groups would start the fire for what will become civil wars, bitter disputes, and lasting relations though the 20th century. The British wanting to break the chocolate and also pick their piece would try to settle disputes in the Middle East so that they could lay claims to the natural resources of the land. In doing this the British would double deal and both sides would be left with nothing (Khouri). The Problems in the Middle East have been going on for centuries creating a large puzzle that will never reveal a picture of harmony.

The same historical information, everyday, every year, every generation. A society without fiction is almost as unfathomable as the concept of coming up with a story that has nothing to do with reality. In Haroun and the Sea of Stories Salman Rushdie’s characters unintentionally explore why we make up stories that aren’t true. He poses this idea in the beginning of the novel and leaves it up the audience to answer the burning question of why we crave fiction. Humans are wired to tell stories, it begins in our youth with fairy tales and nursery rhymes but as we age it grows into complex ideas that connect, inspire, and entertain us. Without imagination and the beautiful use of fiction in writing, society would be trapped in a never-ending cycle of interminable

While many of the Chups share what they think about Khattum-Shud, he strips their speech and is now deemed, “...the prince of silence...” (Rushdie 39). Many

Storytelling plays an important role in people’s lives. In Haroun and the Sea of Stories, Salman Rushdie explores the vital role stories have in the lives of multiple characters. Politicos need stories in their lives in order to succeed. Without stories, the politicos would never be able to persuade or convince voters in an interesting way. The stories Rashid Khalifa tell are a vital part of his everyday life. Without the tales he spins, Rashid wouldn’t have a job and the city he lives in would be completely devoid of happiness. Stories have been important in the shaping of the Haroun at the end of the book. If Haroun had no stories, his childhood would have been dark and he wouldn’t have followed the hero path. Within the fictional world of Haroun and the Sea of Stories the characters realize that stories are not mere entertainment but are crucial to their lives.

There are many ways to understand “Haroun and the sea of stories” novel. I would analyze that as he referring to Iran. And here is why I think that he is referring to Iran When I first read the story I notice something weird the author described the city of Rushdie in a miserable shape “There was once, in the country of Alifbay, a sad city, the saddest of cities.” (13) Since I started reading the story I was thinking if it was just a fairy tale why the author would describe their city as the saddest city. In fairy tales, usually authors describe the city as a happy city. And Then, when I focused on the name of the city “Alifbay” I realized that it is the first two letters of the Urdu Alphabet which is the main language in Iran. Therefore, Rushdie’s