Patrick Garrido

3-26-17

English 1-A

Essay 2

Occasionally, it can be easy to slip into a surface level perspective of thinking. In

this modern day and age, with information available at the push of a button, almost any

assumption can be confirmed and denied and taken as fact. But the process of surface

level evaluation, of judging a book by its cover, is an issue which has persisted

throughout time. And through this style of evaluation, one adopts base assumptions which

can prove to be incorrect. This is particularly true when discussing identity, as it can be

easy to quickly assess a stranger without understanding the deeper context and issues

surrounding them. This is particularly true for Salman Rushdie, who as an Indo-British

author, must constantly struggle with assumptions of his identity from both his adoptive

countrymen and those from his supposed place of origin. As he straddles the supposedly

clear division between both his English and Indian identity, it is impossible to ignore the

lack of belonging to either identity altogether. This new identity, this outsider, is hard to

reconcile for those with a more defined sense of identity. Through his writing, Rushdie

explores this unique struggle, which is intrinsic to not just the Indo-British, but for

foreigners and immigrants everywhere. Rushdie's exploration of his English, Indian and

outsider identities reflects the identification and placement issues faced by many

immigrants.

It is not difficult to recognize the English elements of Rushdie's identity. Through

his use of English, the references he makes, and by examining his experiencecs of
growing up in England, it might be easy to simply infer that Rushdie is simply English.

While his skin color may not initially fit the archetypal Englishman, one might argue that

mannerisms and behavior would be the defining characteristics of identity. Indeed,

Rushdie even acknowledges his relationship with England, stating, "...I grew up with an

intimate knowedge of, and even a sense of friendship with, a certain kind of England..."

(Rushdie 18). Rushdie admits that, through his relatonship and accepts of England, that

there is some sense of understanding, or identification, with his archetypal, dream

England. This is evident throughout his writing as well. He acknowledges a score of non-

Indian, western writers such as Cervantes, Melville, and Machado de Assis as literary

inspiriations. Rushdie references the classical fall of Adam and Eve, a traditionally

western tale. This understanding, compounded with the influence English and western

culture had on his childhood and writing would undoubtedly to some confrim his English

identity. Despite this, Rushdie struggles with, and even partially rejects this identity. In

fact, Rushdie spends most of his time in Imaginary Homelands attempting to reconnect

with his Indian identity. Through this attempt to reconnect with his India, there must be,

on some level, a partial rejection of this English identity. It is this struggle which

epitomises the core issue Rushdie faces throughout Imaginary Homelands, the

simultaenous acceptance and rejection of the typically concrete identity. However, to a

degree, Rushdie concedes the inherent realities of his English upbringing, and its

influence on him and his work. Particularly, Rushdie focuses on the use of English by

Indo-British writers, stating, "But the British Indian writer simply does not have the

option of rejecting English anyway. His children, her children, will grow up speaking it,

probably as a first language..." (Rushdie 17). This acknowledgement is, for Rushdie, a
key factor in his English identity. Though he later discusses the idea that conquering

English is the last step in freeing himself and his fellow British-Indians, the core of the

idea remains, the use of the language is, partially, a concession to the culture. Indeed, the

author even faces backlash from some who question the validity of Indian themes written

in English. Through this concession, the implication is clear, no matter how much he

refutes it, Rushdie is, to some degree, English, and through the use of the language he

distances himself, albiet indirectly, from his Indian roots. And though he expends much

time and energy attempting to, in some small part, reconnect with that Indian identity, he

is inevitably marred, in some sense, by its use. Such is the marring that even in the

process of