The Satanic Verses: Study Questions. II. Mahound
1. The story of Mahound and the "satanic verses" is a dream of Gibreel, but he seems not only to be the dreamer but an observer of the dream and a character (or several characters) in it. What difference does it make that Gibreel is the dreamer? What difference does it make that many of the incidents of the dream have historical parallels? One alternative is to interpret the dream as the fiction of a demented character and to insist that it does not represent the views of Rushdie; another is to see the dream as Rushdie's effort to rewrite history. Is either of these alternatives true? If the truth lies somewhere in between, where does it lie?
2. Consider Mahound at two rather different levels. Think of him in the first place not as a historical figure but as a literary one whose mission is to bring monotheism to a polytheistic society. What does Rushdie tell us about his character, about his decisions, about his weaknesses? What are the problems he faces as a consequence of his mission? Is he a sympathetic or unsympathetic character? At a second level, think of him in comparison to Muhammad, as you learned about him from the class readings. Are there plausible connections to be made between the two characters? Is Mahound as completely independent of Muhammad as the first level of interpretation seems to imply?
3. Why does Rushdie change so many of the names--Muhammad to Mahound, Mecca to Jahilia ("Ignorance"), Mount Hira to Mount Cone, Abu Sufyan to Abu Simbel? There may be specific reasons for changing specific names, but in general what effect is the changing of names likely to have on someone who is at least vaguely away of the early history of Islam? Consider particularly, the narrator's comments on p. 93.
4. Gibreel is both the dreamer and the angel; at times he seems both the angel and Mahound. As angel, what is his relationship to Mahound, especially in the scenes of revelation? What do these scenes imply about responsibility for the Qu'ran?
5. Consider the character of Jahilia as a tribal, polytheistic, commercial city. What is its relationship to Bombay or London? Is there a comparison to be made between Mahound bringing Islam to Jahilia and the emigration of Muslims to London? To what extent can Islam be seen as an effort to react against or correct practices in Jahilia? In what ways does Islam appeal to the people of Jahilia? Why does Mahound leave the city?
6. Mahound has powerful opponents in Abu Simbel and his wife Hind. Why do they oppose him? Do they do so for the same reason? Do we understand their opposition? Do we feel sympathy for it? (Does Rushdie or Gibreel the dreamer?)
7. The goddess supported by Hind is Al-lat, and she is also one of the three mentioned in 'the satanic verses." What does Al-lat represent, what is she goddess of? What if anything can you make of the linguistic similarity of Al-lat to Allah, or of the similarity of Al-lat/Allah to Allie Cone (not to speak of Allie Cone to Mt. Cone)?
8. What is the role of Baal, especially as it seems to represent the social role of the writer? He is paid by Abu Simbel to satirize Islam. To what degree, then, is the writer an independent figure? Is he even a likeable character?
9. Why is the satanic verses incident important to Islam and the ideas that it represents? What is its religious significance? What is the test it represents for Mahound? Does he pass? What does Khalid mean when he tells Mahound (p. 125) that "you brought us the Devil himself, so that we could witness the workings of the Evil One, and his overthrow by the Right"? What do you make of Mahound's response?