Commonwealth Literature' Does Not Exist- by Salman Rushdie

Commonwealth Literature' Does Not Exist-by Salman Rushdie

Salman Rushdie is one of the key representatives of contemporary Commonwealth literature. As an Indian-British novelist, he is world famous for his novel Midnight Children (1981), which won the Booker prize. Most of his books are set in India and have a particular emphasis on history. He is classified as a magical realist writer.

What is Commonwealth?  

The original phrase “the Commonwealth” or “the common weal” comes from the old meaning of “wealth” which is “well-being”. The term literary meant “common well being”.

Commonwealth means British nation and  political community founded for the common good .Commonwealth deals with public welfare.

What is Commonwealth literature?

 Commonwealth literature has been generally used to  refer to the  Literature of colonies , former colonies  and dependencies of Britain excluding the literature of England .commonly it shows the nationality .  

In Commonwealth  literature Does not exist Rushdie pointed that Indian Society and Indian literature  have a complex and developing relationship with the English Language . This kind of Post-Colonial dialectic is propounded as one of the unifying factors in ‘Commonwealth literature’, but it does not exist , or at least is far more  peripheral to the problems of literature in Canada, Australia, even South Africa . later he said that English literature has its Indian branch. by this he describes  that it is literature of the English Language .this literature is also Indian Literature .

English is an Indian Literary Language , and by it he thanked to writer like Tagore, Desani, Mulk Raj Ananad, Chaudhari, Anita Desai, Raja Rao, and other . the category Commonwealth  literature as a ghetto, created by those practice English Literature Proper. He also talks about The Idea of Language Politics, Commonwealth literature means MASTER Slave Relationship . Commonwealth literature is positioned below English Literature .