“...before they turn us into something worse”: A Postcolonial Reading of The Satanic Verses
| Název práce v češtině: | "...dokud nás nepromění v něco horšího": Postkoloniální čtení Satanských veršů |
|---|---|
| Název v anglickém jazyce: | “...before they turn us into something worse”: A Postcolonial Reading of The Satanic Verses |
| Klíčová slova: | postkoloniální|současná britská literatura|gender|nestvůrnost|Salman Rushdie|diaspora|imigrace |
| Klíčová slova anglicky: | Postcolonial|Contemporary British Literature|Gender|Monstrosity|Salman Rushdie|Diaspora|Immigration |
| Akademický rok vypsání: | 2019/2020 |
| Typ práce: | diplomová práce |
| Jazyk práce: | angličtina |
| Ústav: | Ústav anglofonních literatur a kultur (21-UALK) |
| Vedoucí / školitel: | PhDr. Soňa Nováková, CSc. |
| Řešitel: | skrytý - zadáno a potvrzeno stud. odd. |
| Datum přihlášení: | 12.12.2019 |
| Datum zadání: | 12.12.2019 |
| Schválení administrátorem: | zatím neschvalováno |
| Datum potvrzení stud. oddělením: | 19.12.2019 |
| Datum a čas obhajoby: | 10.09.2020 11:00 |
| Datum odevzdání elektronické podoby: | 19.08.2020 |
| Datum proběhlé obhajoby: | 10.09.2020 |
| Odevzdaná/finalizovaná: | odevzdaná studentem a finalizovaná |
| Oponenti: | Mgr. Petra Johana Poncarová, Ph.D. |
| Zásady pro vypracování |
| This paper will focus on a postcolonial reading of The Satanic Verses by Salman Rushdie concentrating on the depiction of foreignness and immigration in their connection to space and language. Moreover, the migrant discourse of The Satanic Verses is only possible in relation to the matter of dehumanization, which is echoed in literature and cinematography, some examples of which will be included. First, the thesis will deal with the idea of place. Rushdie created an omnipotent universe functioning on multiple levels: the layers in The Satanic Verses are interlocked, they penetrate each other, continuously transcending and transforming one another, misleading not just the readers but the very characters of the novel. The carefully crafted map of the universe includes Bombay, London, Jahilia and Titlipur. London splits into Proper London and a “dog-eared metropolis”, the city changes with the distance, luring and attracting from afar and deceiving once up close. Meanwhile, Jahilia is the perfect illustration of a constant shift and rebirth, made and remade out of sand over the centuries, “the quintessence of unsettlement” and a “sight to wonder at”. Next the thesis will move on to discuss the main characters in relation to the specific locations. Jahilia seems to create its own space which is closely tied with the dreams and the visions of one of the protagonists primarily existing within the parallel Bombay - London. Gibreel consequently becomes afraid of falling asleep as every time he does, he travels to the city of sand; in that way he acts as a bridge between the layers, allowing one world to mutate into another. His dreams also bring us to the mansion named Peristan, placed in the village of Titlipur, where Ayesha, an orphan girl suffering from epilepsy, leads the villagers to their destiny. Whereas Ayesha of Titlipur is an image of innocence and purity, the character with the same name inhabiting Jahilia is portrayed as a vile and powerful empress. This cross-identity, the doubleness filling the various spaces of the novel, leads us to the aspect of antipodeticity and mutation. Gibreel as a newcomer is quite laid-back, he does not care about fitting in or about the image of an ‘unwanted man’ in the space of London. Simultaneously, the second protagonist, Saladin Chamcha is devoured by the idea of Englishness. Although these two characters are often seen as antipodes, they can also be viewed as two parts of one: “Gibreelsaladin Farishtachamcha, condemned to this endless but also ending angelicdevilish fall, did not become aware of the moment at which the processes of their transmutation began”. Rushdie portrays a number of other characters, each and every one of whom approaches immigration differently: Mimi Mamoulian, rebelling against being invisible as a Jewish woman, John Maslama, a wealthy businessman of Indian origin, who leaves some space for ‘Divine Providence’, the Cone family and especially the father, Otto Cone, who suffered through the concentration camp during World War II. All of them undergo a transformation, a mutual mutation of sorts that changes not only the characters but also the cities influenced by reimagination brought by the newcomers. The narrator brings the characters and the spaces together as he is not only the spectator but often a participant and an active commentator of the events depicted. As the narrator travels across the spaces and the times he is also becoming a connecting link of all the universes created by Rushdie. The narrator is not deprived of a sense of humor and just like the readers he is questioning the actual possibility of certain episodes. This thesis will include some theoretical material in order to analyze the complexity of The Satanic Verses, such as Homi Bhabha’s works on mimicry, stereotype, hybridity and third space. Additionally, Rushdie’s Imaginary Homelands will introduce a better and deeper understanding of the matter of coming home and the so-called ‘double vision’ of the immigrants. |
| Seznam odborné literatury |
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