Monday, April 16, 2012
Saleem Sinai = Beloved?
As we were discussing some of the chapters in class today, I noticed some similarities between Beloved incarnate and Saleem Sinai. In different ways, both represent their respective cultural history. Beloved's memories reveal a lot about the past of African Americans sold into slavery such as the Middle Passage. Saleem represents his cultural history in a slightly different way. His life and birth correspond with India's history and independence. He is often viewed as a child of all of independent India. Furthermore both Beloved and Saleem fear physically falling apart. Does anyone else see any similarities?
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4 comments:
I see similarities between these 2 authors novels as well as Marquez, Grass, and even Dostoevsky's. All authors are telling the story of their people in a similar, but culturally unique way.
I definitely see similarities in the ways that Morrison and Rushdie give the reader a glimpse of cultural history. Neither of the two authors give us the history all at once, instead they include snippets throughout their novels and it is the reader's job to piece it together.
I didn't even think about Dostoevsky, Parker. Now that you mention it though, it does make sense to me. And Christine, I also agree. I think in a way all literature inevitably gives readers glimpses of the culture and cultural history in which it was written in.
I think it is interesting that both Morrison and Rushdie both use the characters physcial bodies to give insight into the characters. Rushdie uses the nose and Morrison uses Beloved's belly.
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