Haroun and the Sea of Stories

Spring break may have involved a great deal of procrastination but somehow, I managed to finish reading Salman Rushdie's Haroun and the Sea of Stories. Even more shocking is the fact that I was able to finish reading it in one sitting, perhaps because I found it to be a lighthearted and enjoyable.

I've been meaning to read other books by Rushdie, only that I never got around to doing it. So I looked up Rushdie on Wikipedia and found that he wrote this book right after his highly controversial publication, The Satanic Verses. I wonder if this had anything to do with the blatantly emphasized themes in Haroun and the Sea of Stories. The most obvious of these themes is the suppression of free speech and more importantly, the pollution of people's imaginations. As a children's book, it encourages children to imagine. Reality is more often than not imposed upon us; it's enough that it's always with us. When the Cultmaster says, "You'd have done better to stick with Facts, but you were stuffed with stories," I was reminded of Charles Dicken's Hard Times which I finished reading only a few hours before picking up Rushdie's book. This is something Mr. Grandgrind might have said to Sissy Jupe. Dickens and Rushdie both write the word "fact" with a capital F. The first letter of various other words is capitalizes. This gives the word more emphasis and importance.

I also feel as though this book transcended its lighthearted tone in terms of its content. Rushdie presents a world in which all speech is barred being at war with a world that loves speech. This land of silence attempts to spread its influence over the land of speech. This entire scenario is very grave and serious if we take it outside the context of a children's book. What I found particularly interesting was the part where Rushdie talks about the burning of the Pages. It reminded me of excerpts I've read on censorship and the burning of books. Being strongly opposed to censorship, I appreciated Rushdie's book a lot. As the Hoopoe said, "Is not the Power of Speech the greatest Power of all? Then surely it must be exercised to the full?" (Power with a capital P. Speech with a capital S.)

Aside from talking about the suppression of speech and imagination, Rushdie seems to be making a big statement about what a good story is made of. General Kitab, who's name literally translates to mean book, "was on many occasions actually provoking such disputes, and then joining in with enthusiastic glee, sometimes taking one side, and at other times (just for fun) expressing the opposite point of view." This happens to be what good books do: present all aspects of a topic (though they eventually must take a stand.) Another instance in which Rushdie talks about good stories is when Blabbermouth says, "I always thought storytelling was like juggling. You keep a lot of different tales in the air, and juggle then up and down, and if you're good you don't drop any." To me, this also meant that in order to keep the appeal of literature in general, alive, one has to be good at keeping a balance in terms of the elements which the work is comprised of. For some reason, this reminded me of the differences between the Homeric Odyssey and Walcott's Odyssey which were created entirely as a result of a difference in language and setting. By juggling the olden tale with the contemporary language and the surreal settings, Walcott, too, presents something that is authentic and entertaining.

Authenticity is another thing that Rushdie talks about. If people rely on their imaginations, they can come up with innovative stories. Along with the need to be creative, Rushdie stresses the need for individuals to articulate their ideas as well. Silence pollutes and destroys great stories.