Shanen P.

Ortiz “21st Century Literature” 12 STEM 4 -

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LITERARY TEXT ANALYSIS

Author/ Representative Genre/Structure/

Literary Period Text Elements

Genre: Novel, Fiction, Magical realism,

Sir Ahmed Salman The Satanic Verses Drama, Tragedy
Rushdie/
Late 20th Century Theme:
(Modern South Asian  Metamorphosis
Literature)  Rebirth
 Identity
 Beliefs
 Religion
 Forgiveness
 Migration
 Unbelief

Setting:
 London, England
 Bombay (Mumbai)
 Polytheistic town of Jahilia
 Atlantic Ocean

Characters:
● Gibreel Farishta
- is a successful film actor
who has suffered a recent
bout of mental illness and
who is in love with an
English mountain climber,
Alleluia Cone.
- One of the fortunate
survivors and descended as
transformed into the angel
Gabriel, and has a series of
dreams.
- Gibreel’s jealousy made
him kill his loved one and
himself.

● Saladin Chamcha
- a voice actor who has had a
falling out with his father.
- Married to the English
- women.
 - Saladin was arrested as an
illegal immigrant.
- Transforms into a Devil.
- Survived falling out of an
airplane.
- Arrested as an illegal
immigrant.
- He returned to Bombay to
reconcile with his father and
reconnected with his former
girlfriend.
● Alleluia Cone
- an English mountain
climber.
- Alleluia is the girl that
Gibreel is being possessive
of.
- She was killed by her very
own lover, Gibreel.
- Victim of love

● Mahound
- Character bases on
Muhammad.
- attempting to found a
monotheistic town in the
polytheistic town of Jahilia.
- In an apocryphal legend,
Mahound receives a vision
allowing to worship the
three goddesses, but after
realizing that the confirming
revelation was sent by the
devil, he recants.
- He falls ill and dies, with
his final vision of being one
of the goddesses.

 Pamela Lovelace
- Wife of Saladin Chamcha
- An alcoholic who had an
affair after his husband death.

Plot:
 Initial Situation
 Exposition:
- Gibreel and Saladin are
both Indian Muslim living
 in England.
- They both meet each
other on a flight from
Bombay (Mumbai) to
London.

 Rising Action (conflict)

- Saladin Chamcha and Gibreel
Farishta fell to Earth.
- Saladin was arrested and
abused on the other hand,
Gibreel is not.
- Both of them traveled to
London seperaely.
- Saladin was the reason of the
breakup of Gibreel and
Alleluia.

 Complication:
- Saladin was arrested as an
immigrant while Gibreel is
not.

  Climax ( Crisis, Turning Point):

- Saladin transformed into a
Devil, while Gibreel turns
into an archangel.
- At the party, Saladin and
Gibreel cross paths. Saladin
makes the decision to kill
Gibreel, but instead of carrying
out his plan, he tricks Gibreel
into thinking Alleluia has more
than one lover.
- Saladin fooled Gibreel, but
rather than killing him,
Gibreel saved him.

  Falling Action:
- Saladin goes back to India
and makes amends with his
dad.
- Gibreel murders Alleluia
Cone.

 Resolution (Denouement):
- Gibreel was jealous while
both he and Alleluia was
 visiting Bombay and killed
Alleluia. After confronting
Saladin of what he has
done, he then shoots
himself.

 Conclusion
- Saladin reconciles with his
dying father.
- Gibreel kills Alleluia and
kills himself.

 Point of View:
- A third-person point of
view.

 Atmosphere:
- Dramatic, Cruelty,
Rootlessness, Detachment,
Confornity, Pragmatism.