Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie | Thinking Activity

Greetings, 

After completing the unit on Postcolonialism, we moved on to our next unit and have now completed the study of Salman Rushdie's groundbreaking, Booker Prize-winning novel "Midnight's Children". This novel is particularly important because of its new Postcolonial insights, as it explores the ideas of hybridity, chutnification, magic realism and historical metafiction. In this blog post, you'll find some points to ponder upon, which have been assigned by Dr. Dilip Barad.

Justification of the Title: Analyze why Salman Rushdie chose the title "Midnight's Children" over "Children of Midnight".

"A novel in which memory and politics, love and hate would mingle on almost every page".

"Midnight's Children" novel deals with many problems and issues, and it sort of fictionalize the history of India from 1920 up to the end of Emergency in 1977. Background of the novel tell the story of incidents that were really happened in Indian history, and foreground consist of imaginary characters. 

The protagonist of the novel is Saleem Sinai,  is known as a "Midnight's Child," which highlights his link with other children born at midnight and symbolizes the experiences and challenges of India's new generation. The newspaper cutting with the headline "Midnight's Child" announces the birth of a child who represents India's new start after the independence, and he is also the narrator telling his story to his wife Padma, and she also gives commentary about the things unfolding in the novel. Saleem tells the story of four generation of his family including himself. 

Saleem Sinai is one of the children of midnight. Those are the children with special power and they are the 'embodiment of the hope of freedom'. All the midnight's children are born on the same date of India's independence on 15th August, 1947, at midnight during 12 to 1 A.M., There are thousand and one midnight's children out there. Saleem, Shiva and Parvati are most important of them. There is constant rift between Saleem and Shiva, because Saleem was born exactly on 12 AM, and Shiva five minutes after that, and therefore less powerful. Saleem had a special power in his nose with which he can summon all the other midnight's children including Shiva. 

If we look historically then, all these children were born at the dawn of new and independent Indian nation, free from oppressions of British raj. These all children were born on the auspicious day of independence, which itself make them special. Rushdie here, give them special powers, and it seems that their future is bright with this new India. But the things were different, after the independence India had new challenges. The 1965 War between India and Pakistan, liberation of East-Pakistan, and the emergency. 

Salman Rushdie somehow needed a title for his novel about children born at midnight which better serves his purpose in storytelling and the way he wanted to narrate the story of India and that of Saleem simultaneously. 15th August, 1947 midnight was the time of significant change in India, that title is driving force of narrative and also adds depth to the magic realism aspect of the novel. "Midnight's Children" was a suitable choice than "Children of Midnight" because it has a deeper meaning and significance. The title "Midnight's Children" is more  suitable than other. 

Role of 'English' in the Novel

Robert Phillipson had highlighted the dangers imposing language on others in his 1992 work 'Linguistic Imperialism'. Linguistic imperialism refers to the practice of imposing one language on people who speak different languages. It's also called linguistic nationalism, linguistic dominance, or language imperialism. In today's world, the spread of English globally is often highlighted as the main example of this phenomenon.

"the dominance asserted and maintained by the establishment and continuous reconstitution of structural and cultural inequalities between English and other languages."

Today, English language is commonly cited for linguistic imperialism. Nowadays it is important for everyone to know and learn English language to have good opportunities in market jobs. Those people who knows this language are seen as intellectual and superior than others, especially in India and Eastern countries. Most of the countries from East were once the colonies of Britishers, and during that time English people imposed their language and culture upon the Indians. In return, to impress their master Indians have started to learn, speak and write English language. This way English language holds more importance today not only in India but globally. 

In 'Midnight’s Children', Salman Rushdie's character Saleem Sinai used English in a way that was both remarkable and recognizable to Indians. After years of struggling with this foreign language out of respect for the legacy of Thomas Macaulay, it had finally become something that belonged to them. novelists such as Mulk Raj Anand, R.K. Narayan and Raja Rao were those who made a conscious decision to write in English as if it were an Indian language.(Narayan)

According to Peter Barry, there are three stages in postcolonial discourse, and those are adopt, adapt and adept respectively. In the first stage colonized tries to please their master by adopting their way of living. In the second stage  colonized people begin to modify and adapt the cultural and linguistic practices they have adopted from the colonizers. Indian English literature's Adept phase was started with the publication of 'Midnight's Children' and famous preface of Raja Rao's 'Kanthapura'. In this stage colonized people finally master colonizers ways of doing thing and become rebellious in their nature towards their masters.  

Rushdie had 'Dedoxified' the English language in his work. In that he breaks the reverence towards the English language in his work. He diminishes the so called respectableness of the English language, and employed many Indian words as it is in the novel. This way of putting Indian words as it is in the English works is now known as "Chutnification" of language. Rushdie has used English language, there is no denying in that, but he used very Indianized version of the language.

Midnight’s Children drew some of its manic essence from GV Desani’s 'All About H Hatterr'. “Hatterr’s dazzling, puzzling, leaping prose is the first genuine effort to go beyond the Englishness of the English language,” Rushdie wrote in The New Yorker. 

The question of language was central to the making of Midnight’s Children. However, writing in classical English felt wrong, like a misrepresentation of the rich linguistic environment of the book’s setting. In the end I used fewer non-English words than I originally intended. Sentence structure, the flow and rhythm of the language, ended up being more useful, I thought, in my quest to write in an English that wasn’t owned by the English (Rushdie)

He took the inspiration from American writer Philip Roth, who used such kind of hybridity of language and mixing of words from various languages. Rushdie thought that the using of proper English language would not give the justice to Indian English novel.  

Here is the example of hybridity of language used by Rushdie, kind of a "Hinglish". Mingle of English and Hindi language. Look at the highlighted words. 

She (Padma) attempts to cajole me from my desk : "Eat,

na, food is spoiling." I remained stubbornly hunched on

paper . . . . Padma snorts. Wrist smacks across forehead.

"Okay, starve, starve, who cares two pice."

'All right, all right, baba,' Padma attempts to placate me. 'Why become

so cross? Rest now, rest some while, that is all I am asking.'

'Hey, you Saleem: just to think! You and me, mister-midnight's

children, yaar! That's something, no?'

Metaphor of ‘Bulldozer’ used in Midnight’s Children 

The reference to "bulldozers" is a symbol of the harsh and forceful way the government tries to modernize society in Salman Rushdie's 'Midnight's Children'. The bulldozers represent the destruction of poor or marginalized communities in the name of progress during the years of emergency (1975-1977). They are being used to clear out the "ghetto of the magicians," showing how the state is willing to erase people's homes and cultures to make way for what they consider development.

This connects to a larger theme in the novel, where modernization and nation-building often come at the expense of ordinary people, especially those who are already vulnerable, poor and helpless. The bulldozer here is a symbol of how power can destroy people's lives in the name of progress.

The major concern in the text is how political power can dehumanize and silence marginalized people. The bulldozer not only demolishes homes but also crushes memories, histories, and resistance, illustrating how authoritarian regimes prioritize their agendas over the well-being of citizens, often under the guise of beautification or improvement.

This is also true of the current government in India, where the threat of the bulldozer is used to silence people, particularly minority communities like Muslims. If anyone speaks out against the interests of the government or authority, it can have severe consequences for their livelihood. Thus, the bulldozer becomes a tool to silence people and strip away their freedom of expression.

Postcolonial Voices in Midnight’s Children 

"Midnight’s Children" offers critical insights and new perspectives within postcolonial studies. The novel predominantly explores the hybridization of identity in the cases of both central figures, Saleem and Shiva, while also delving into linguistic experimentation and historiographic metafiction.

In many ways, Rushdie breaks from traditional postcolonial representations. The novel focuses on the indigenous character Saleem's history, with the entire narrative revolving around him. In contrast, the traditional portrayal of postcolonialism often involves numerous Western characters and a continuous conflict between the colonized and colonizers, as seen in 'A Passage to India' by E.M. Forster, where multiple foreign characters are central. However, in 'Midnight’s Children,' the only prominent Western character is William Methwold. This way, Rushdie subverts Edward Said's Orientalist framework.

As mentioned above, Rushdie and his works represent the Adept phase of postcolonialism, in which the writing not only addresses indigenous culture but also intermingles it with the culture of the colonizers. This intersection of identities leads to the concept of “Hybridization,” introduced by Homi Bhabha. In 'Midnight's Children', we observe the hybridized identities of Saleem and Shiva. Aadam Sinai believes that Saleem is his son, while he is actually the child of William Methwold and Vanita. Conversely, Shiva, the biological child of Aadam and Amina, is raised by the poor entertainer Wee Willie Winkie. Throughout the novel, the true identities of both Saleem and Shiva remain uncertain, only revealed when Mary Pereira confesses to swapping the children at birth. This highlights the hybridized identities of the characters, who are neither fully Indian nor fully Westernized.

Typically, the poor, marginalized, and subaltern are voiceless or given little space in narratives, but in this novel, we see that Saleem’s character emerges from a lower-class background. Yet, the entire story revolves around his character development, with Indian history interwoven with the events of his life, from childhood to adulthood. On a psychological level, Saleem’s fractured and diseased identity allegorizes the challenges faced by India after gaining independence in 1947. While people believed that India would rise to new heights, the nation faced numerous struggles. Indians witnessed regressive historical events, such as Partition, the India-Pakistan war, the Bangladesh Liberation War, and the Emergency imposed by Indira Gandhi. These events are crucial in shaping both the nation's history and Saleem’s psychological development.

The novel also successfully decenters the European way of presenting narratives. The entire story focuses on Indian history and its people, rather than centering the narrative around Western thought. This is achieved through the use of magic realism and chutnification at the linguistic level. The hybridized, chutnified language is evidence of a process of decolonizing the self, allowing for a new perspective that moves beyond the colonial lens.

Reflection on Emergency Period

In the novel, Rushdie also comments about the regressive event of emergency from 1975 to 77 in the tenure of Indira Gandhi, which is now considered as a black spot on Indian democracy. Back then she was very much famous and popular politician figure among Indian people. These two years of her reign as prime minister of India can be regarded as dictatorship, where there is no one to speak against her, and she was the only supreme authority figure. This is a significant event of Indian history, and it is also captured in the novel also, but in very much satirical manner. 

Rushdie had made direct reference to Indira Gandhi as 'The Widow' in the novel. This also led to court case and other legal frame work between Rushdie and Indira Gandhi. In the novel she is portrayed as authoritative figure. In the movie also, she orders to arrest all the midnight's children, because of this Saleem was suffered in the prison along with other children. 

Katherine Franke is the biographer of Indira Gandhi. She had written Indira: The Life of Indira Nehru Gandhi., in which she has written good and bad aspects of Indira Gandhi openly. Indira Gandhi's embarrassing incident with Margaret Thatcher over lunch is famously captured by her. In that event Rushdie also was invited but he did not went there. Such was the character of Indira Gandhi portrayed by Salman Rushdie. 

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References:

Barad, Dilip. “Erasure and Oppression: The Bulldozer as a Tool of Authoritarianism in Midnight's Children.” researchgate.net, ResearchGate, https://www.researchgate.net/publication/383410297_Erasure_and_Oppression_The_Bulldozer_as_a_Toolof_Authoritarianism_in_Midnight%27s_Children. Accessed 7 September 2024.

Narayan, Manjula. “How Midnight's Children shaped Indian writing in English.” Hindustan Times, 14 April 2021, https://www.hindustantimes.com/books/how-midnight-s-children-shaped-indian-writing-in-english-101618288240932.html. Accessed 26 August 2024.

Nordquist, Richard. “Definition and Examples of Linguistic Imperialism.” ThoughtCo, 31 July 2019, https://www.thoughtco.com/what-is-linguistic-imperialism-1691126. Accessed 25 August 2024.

Rushdie, Salman. “Salman Rushdie on Midnight's Children at 40: 'India is no longer the country of this novel.'” The Guardian, 3 April 2021, https://www.theguardian.com/books/2021/apr/03/salman-rushdie-on-midnights-children-at-40-india-is-no-longer-the-country-of-this-novel. Accessed 26 August 2024.