HYBRIDITY AND POSTCOLONIAL CONSCIOUSNESS IN SALMAN RUSHDIE’S FICTION
PDF

Keywords

postcolonialism, hybridity, postcolonial consciousness, Salman Rushdie, identity

How to Cite

Zaringiz Baxtiyor qizi, S. (2025). HYBRIDITY AND POSTCOLONIAL CONSCIOUSNESS IN SALMAN RUSHDIE’S FICTION. Advances in Science and Humanities, 1(11), 148-151. https://doi.org/10.70728/human.v01.i11.033

Abstract

This article explores the concepts of hybridity and postcolonial consciousness in the fiction of Salman Rushdie, one of the most influential postcolonial writers in contemporary English literature. Drawing on key postcolonial theories developed by Edward Said, Homi K. Bhabha, and Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak, the study examines how Rushdie represents hybrid identities, cultural in-betweenness, and the lingering effects of colonialism in his narratives. Using qualitative textual analysis, the research focuses primarily on Midnight’s Children and The Satanic Verses as representative texts. The findings demonstrate that hybridity in Rushdie’s fiction functions not merely as a thematic concern but as a narrative strategy that challenges colonial binaries, destabilizes fixed notions of identity, and articulates a complex postcolonial consciousness shaped by history, migration, and cultural plurality. The article argues that Rushdie’s use of hybrid characters, fragmented narratives, and linguistic experimentation reflects the realities of postcolonial societies and offers a powerful critique of colonial and nationalist discourses.

PDF

References

1. Bhatia, Sunil. “Acculturation, Dialogical Voices and the Construction of the Diasporic Self.” Theory & Psychology 12, no. 1 (February 2002): 55–77.

2. Ashcroft, Bill, Griffiths, Gareth, and Tiffin, Helen. The Post-Colonial Studies Reader. London; Routledge, 1995.

3. Citrin, Jack, and John Sides. "More than nationals: How identity choice matters in the new Europe." Transnational identities: Becoming European in the EU, 2004, pp. 161-185.

4. Cohn-Sherbok, Dan. ed. The Salman Rushdie Controversy in Interreligious Perspectives. The Edwin Mellen Press, 1990.

5. Dawson, Ashley. Mongrel Nation: Diasporic Culture and the Making of Postcolonial Britain. University of Michigan Press, 2007.

6. Dascalu, Cristina Emanuela. Imaginary homelands of writers in exile: Salman Rushdie, Bharati Mukherjee, and VS Naipaul. Cambria Press, 2007.

7. Eikenaar, Jannik Haruo. The Im (Proper) Name of Salman Rushdie: Hybridity, Migrancy, and the Rushdie Persona. Diss. University of British Columbia, 2015.

8. Ho, Janice. "The Satanic Verses and the Politics of Extremity." Novel: A Forum on Fiction. Vol. 44. No. 2. (Duke University Press, 2011).

9. Ilott, Sarah. "Introduction: Remapping Boundaries—Postcolonial Britain and Literary/Cinematic Genres." New Postcolonial British Genres. (Palgrave Macmillan, London): 2015. 1-26.

10. Misra, Vijay. “Post-Colonial Differend: Diasporic Narratives of Salman Rushdie”. Ariel: A Review of International English Literature, 1995, Vol. 26, No. 3, pp. 7-45.

11. Nierste, Leslie M. From Cultural Purism to Cultural Pluralism: Salman Rushdie and the hybrid. Diss. Appalachian State University, 2010.

12. Rushdie, Salman. The Satanic Verses: New York, N.Y.: Viking Penguin Inc, 1989.

13. Rushdie, Salman. “In Good Faith.” Newsweek 115, no.7 (February 12, 1990): 52–54, 56–57.

14. Sharma, Shailja. “Salman Rushdie: The Ambivalence of migrancy. (Critical Essay).” Twentieth-Century Literature 47, no. 4 (December 22, 2001): 596– 618.

15. Verspaandonk, Michiel. A Dialogue Between Cultures- The Depiction of the Orient and the Oriental in Two Works by Salman Rushdie. MS thesis. 2010.

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.