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Salman RushdiePoet
Date of Birth: 19.06.1947
Country:  Great Britain |
Content:
Biography of Ahmed Salman Rushdie
Ahmed Salman Rushdie was born on June 19, 1947, in Bombay, India, into a prosperous Muslim family, just two months before India gained independence from Britain. He received an English education, first in his homeland and then in Rugby and Cambridge University in England. From the age of 14, Rushdie lived, studied, and worked in England, occasionally visiting India and Pakistan where his relatives had moved. Rushdie became a British citizen, and English became his first language instead of Urdu, which was spoken at home.
Early Works and Success
Rushdie's first novel, "Grimus" (1975), went almost unnoticed. However, his second novel, "Midnight's Children" (1981), won the James Tait Black Memorial Prize, the English-speaking Union's literary award, and the Booker Prize. His next novel, the short book "Shame" (1983), satirizes the political life in Pakistan. The theme of disguising oneself as another person, recurring as a satirical device, is present in his novel "The Satanic Verses." The main target of his satire is the treatment of ethnic minorities in Britain. In some chapters, the book tells the story of actor Gibreel's visions, which he has while portraying the Archangel Gabriel. He witnesses the birth of Islam and conveys Allah's answers to Muhammad; these answers, accumulating over time, will become the Quran. According to Rushdie, the perception of divine message is subject to distortions due to human fallibility (in other words, we hear what we want to hear), and such a line of thought would offend any fundamentalist.
Controversy and Life in Hiding
On February 14, 1989, the Iranian leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini sentenced Rushdie to death by issuing a fatwa, condemning his novel "The Satanic Verses" (1988) for blasphemy and apostasy. Muslims worldwide were promised a large reward for carrying out this sentence. Since then, Rushdie has frequently changed his place of residence, and he is constantly protected by the police.
Other Works
Among Rushdie's other works are "The Jaguar Smile: A Nicaraguan Journey" (1980), a book about his trip to Nicaragua, "Haroun and the Sea of Stories" (1990), a children's book, and "Imaginary Homelands: Essays and Criticism" (1991), a collection of articles, essays, and criticism.
