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Presentation - British History Δ
Kiwi
Salman Rushdie - Methwold’s Game
1633:
Methwold (British East India Company officer)
harbour city to open India to trade with the West => city of Bombay
1947:
(William) Methwold (owner of an estate of exclusiv houses in Bombay)
sells his houses cheaply to “suitable person”
Conditions:
- ) houses with contents, left as they were(live like Britishers for two months)
- ) sold at the exact moment of Indian independence (August 15th,1947, midnight)
protagonists:
Amina and Ahmed Sinai
Mr Homi Catrack (Versailles Villa)
the Ibrahims (Sans Souci)
important quotes:
“We don’t have much left to do, we British, except to play our games.” ll.6 f.
“Hundreds of years of decent government, then suddenly, up and off.” ll.21 f.
“And now, suddenly, independence.” l.26
“It seems [...] that beneath this stiff English exterior lurks a mind with a very Indian lust for allegory.” ll.42- 45
They “lost their stomachs for India” ll.64 f
“Seemed like they washed their hands” l.66
“Can we not be as civilized as he?” ll.138 f
Typical Indian words:
raj = period of British rule in India
sahib = used formerly in India as a title of respect for a European man
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