Salman Rushdie's "The Courter", qualifies as an example of a story that displays its themes using some kind of popular culture references as well as subjects of race, identity, culture and family. From reading the story, the researcher can conclude that it could be popular culture in some ways because it is a story that appears to address the events and the emotional state of characters during the British rule. However, the researcher believes that “The Courter,” has a different direction by describing more regarding the struggle of the storyteller’s cultural identity among his British citizenship and his Indian identity. With that said, this essay will give a critical analysis of the short story by proving that this story was more about the author being psychoanalytic and using postcolonial concepts to examine the issue of identity and cultural hybridity within the story.
As mentioned earlier, this short story really did not have an exact theme but many. Reading it kind of makes the reader feel that they were juggling different subjects. “I decline to select,” (Rushdie p.122) is the character’s method of declaring his liberalistic assessment of life. In "The Courter" Rushdie manages to utilize the references of culture from the previous 1960's, such as television shows, movies, and pop-songs, that really assist the readers in getting them to recognize and connect to the characters of his story. Most of these references are a historical orientation and can be used in guiding the time frame of the narrative. The style that Rushdie is using for each reference does help provide "The Courter" its own eccentricity and simplify the true spirit of the era. However, a reader could have a hard time trying to tie in the issue of identity and cultural hybridity within the story. It is a possibility that the references were used enough to show the psychoanalytic and postcolonial perceptions to inspect the issue of identity and cultural hybridity but it does not really seem that way. It appears that the references were used to show a distinctive time period just as mentioned earlier.
Most the references in "The Courter" relates to music. Rushdie utilized it in order to display and intensify the emotional state of the characters. Whether it is a reference of an artist's name or the words of a memorable song, Rushdie finds a way of using this as his central form of countenance. To be able to express the modifications going on in his teenage body and his hormonal mentality en route for teenage girls he finds a way to utilize songs that have themes of love such as, "Sherry" which was sang by a group called the Four Seasons, and then another oldie goldie called" It's Over" by an artist named Roy Orbison. "When the radio was on, people had fun singing about the joys of life and being a teenager.” (Rushdie, p. 45) The reference to music served its purpose for sentiments not cultural issues. It was hard to tie music into the story because it seemed to cripple the subject matter a little. Even though Rushdie tried to use it as some creative metaphor, it still felt as though it was out of place. The music was something more of a hobby for the characters because they loved to sing and dance. Now, this is not uncommon because in the Eastern India, song and dance is a big part of their culture but the reference to music did not stress Indian culture but American.
Rushdie was able to make it clear to the reader when it came express how important the Indian culture was to the characters. The story emphasized India's dance, religions, architecture languages, music, and customs and how they differed from place to place within the country, which was really relevant due to the fact that the characters came from all over India. However, at the same time, they were nevertheless able to possess a commonality. Even though the British were in control of India they were not able to erase the culture from the Indian people. The story did well with showing how the characters were able to preserve their culture, yet at the same time trying to respect the British. Still, it would have been more towards the subject had the songs and dances been more geared toward their own culture, but they were not. It was unfortunate that Rushdie lacked that parallel (Rushdie p.29). Rushdie wanted to make sure that he stressed the culture of India as an merger of these diverse sub-cultures that were spread all over the Indian subcontinent and traditions that go back several thousand years but it was not emphasized enough because it focused more on the British.
However, the music did do a good job an exploring the mood of the characters but music was not the real theme of the story. It appears that most of the theme centered on issue of identity and cultural hybridity. For example, within the story, the narrator talks about some high-powered Indian men as belittling self-involved people. In the story, his father is displayed as a person that is a “snob” (Rushdie p.1266) who effortlessly took to drinking at night, and did not care about explaining anything to anyone. For example, even though the two resident Maharajas, residing in his complex, just gave him some kind of a long lasting memory of “failed marriages and relationship, alcohol, womanizers, and discontented young desires,” (Rushdie p.1268). Having this void of Indian role models that were effective played a lot when it came to identity. Because he did not have this positive influence, it is possible that it could have effortlessly produced some kind of negative image for the storyteller, triggering him to move away from his heritage and thus producing his need for recognition in other places. This put a dent in his identity because it caused him to be very insecure.
For the storyteller, whom at the time was a teenager, try to get his hands on a British citizenship had a lot to do with identity because he wanted to have both worlds. However, it important for two other reasons as well: his “getting as far away from his father as he could” (Rushdie p.54) and his accomplishment into a non-Indian civilization. Supposing the storyteller is at the present much older, his denial to select is his way of stating that he has come into a new sense of self awareness and that it is neither described by his racial upbringing or his British nationality. However, it appears to be clear that he recognizes the person he is supposed to be which a mix of both cultures is. However, here it is obvious that theme becomes the following: “Why does a person have to choose one or the other, why can they not just pick both worlds?
Another interesting thing that was used in the story was the significance of film references in "The Courter". Theses motion picture references showed more of a reference towards the identity than the music did. On the other hand, the movies utilized were not nearly as great as the scale of the references of music, nevertheless they are used perfectly in strengthening the sentiments of the characters (Rushdie p.67). The movies just like the music were another outlet. They were a sense of escape from a world full of chaos and prejudice.
The Hollywood movies took him out of his element. It would have to be argued here that Rushdie element was his culture. Was this a way of showing that deep down he may have resented being and Indian? After all, he did want a British citizenship. It was interesting to pursue the idea that not one of his movies that he loved so much was not even British but all American. However, the way that Rushdie articulates the emotional grief in the cinema to parallel with the grief that was going on in the lives of the character was okay. At least he was able to link them without throwing the reader off the story. Rushdie was able to relate to the actors in the movie called "The Misfits" (Rushdie p.1269). In a way, he could that because he was one personally. Why? Well, he felt as though he was an oddball because he did not fit in either culture, British or Indian. With that said these references were needed and helpful in regards to the characters because it made them become more alive or humanlike and at the same time it permitted all different kinds of emotions to become connected with them.
The references and television shows assist in clarifying the frame of time that the story had taken place at. However as mentioned before it did not really do much in displaying the culture and identity of Indians. The references to the televisions appeared to be more like a get away from reality type of thing. In fact, they are way overused and out of place (Rushdie p.90). The references could have been used to purposely move away from the cultural hybridity theme. If that was the intended purpose, then it was a great mistake. As talked about before they proved to be more of a distraction from the theme of the story.
The feature of the television characters in addition to the impression of the television, display the incredible effect that TV had on civilization in the sixties and the quantity of enthusiasm that encircled everything. Television appeared to be part of the identity and very significant. The motive behind television becoming vital had to do with the fact that the majority of the populace had a television set and usually it basically permitted the individuals to be able to relate with the characters that were being shown on the screen in front of them, in addition to with each other by looking at the shows.
Rushdie manages to utilize television to clarify the associations among the characters and the technique that they look at themselves in the dealings. The movies and using the music was a good concept but they really do not give an in depth presentation of the clash of identity that was going on in the story. The references to music and television were able to take the reader into their envious world of wanting to be something that they were not because clearly the TV and music was able to do that. However, that would only last for a moment. In the end, the reader is sort of left with the question of what does that have to do with the identity struggle.
Using the television and perhaps the music could be seen as a bit distraction because it sort of takes away from the whole point of the story, as mentioned earlier, the narrative goes into different direction. The television is a good idea but it is out of place. As mentioned earlier, maybe this can be sort of tied into the identity, but how? None of the movies have anything to do with Indian culture or identity. One would have to really did deep to try and find some kind of way to parallel the two if that is even possible.
As mentioned earlier, it is evident that the Courter describes the clash among his Indian identity worker and his British citizenship. This was a person that wanted both worlds but in the end could only choose one which was Indian. He did not want to identify much with his Indian heritage because of the stereo type that Indian men were uncivilized. Even his cattle are signified as an elitist (Rushdie p.21) who effortlessly took to the nurture bottle when it was night time, and had no necessity for description to any prodigy.
For the storyteller, as mentioned earlier, He recognizes who he is and it is a combination of both (attributive) customs. However, it appears that he wanted to find his identity more with the British because they were looked at as being the ones that were in power. It made sense that he wanted to identify more with the British for that reason (Rushdie p.45) This story could be seen more as a coming of age account because it scans a person’s search to try and fit in.
The lack of having a good father in the novel showed how the culture was during the time. Being oppressed by the British caused a lot of them to act unkind to their families. The stress causes them to do things that were unthinkable. Rushdie displayed how not having a father made him fill not whole. Could this be the reason why he pushed for the British citizenship? Rushdie using the abandonment and abuse of the father possibly showed how the character was sort of shying away from being an Indian although he loved his culture. Racism and prejudice played a huge role in the character’s identity put Rushdie fails to go in depth with this subject (Rushdie p.76). The reader is forced to read between the lines which make it a little disappointing. It is not hard to figure out that the characters are living an area of colonial dominance. However, it would have been nice if the author used that more to his advantage in setting up the backdrop of the story. It may have been that maybe that concept would have been to on the nose for the reader, but at the same time, it made more sense than using the references of music and movies in the story.
In conclusion, the theme of the story should have been more about identity than popular culture. Instead of popular culture if felt like the story should have been more into cultural hybridity not a bunch of references to music and television. As mentioned earlier, music and television references were used well in the story but it is hard to see where they fit in when it comes to identity and culture. It appears that those two elements sort of throw off the entire subject matter.
Works Cited
Rushdie, Salman. East, West: Stories. New York: Vintage; 1st Vintage International ed edition, 2005.
Rushdie, Salman. Salman Rushdie's Midnight's Children: Adapted for the Theatre by Salman Rushdie, Simon Reade and Tim Supple. Boston: Modern Library; First edition, 2007.
Rushdie, Salman. The Courter." Bedford Anthology of World Literature. Boston: Paul Davis et al., 2006.
