The Expression of Lost Time Through Creative Minds
This paper is based on Salman Rushdie’s and Edward Said’s articles and their views on the relationship between the experience of being displaced and creative work in comparison to one another. First in Rushdie’s article, “Imaginary Homelands”, he talks about reclaiming your home country using “imaginary transcendence”. In contrast to that, Edward Said’s “Reflections on Exile” is far more based on looking into the past and using creative writing to express oneself to what they have been through and how writing or documenting their migration could be beneficial to their own wellbeing. The tone of voice for each article is very different from one another, the overall opinions were similar as they both referred to the past as a form of reflection as Said’s article’s title states or in “fragments” as Rushdie mentions.
In Rushdie’s article, he sets the tone by being positive towards migration reasoning that it is beneficial to people like him as it widened his range of literacy and gave him the chance to “cross-pollinate” with other culture’s views like many other writers in his time. He uses his experiences in his writing, treating his memories like pieces in his time puzzle. He says that the distance between his current residence and his home country gave him a chance to write freely as a way of “self-validation”. He picks from what he remembers of his home country and being able to create fictional ideas and themes with those memories. He talks about his book “Midnight’s Children” a few times, talking about how he was able to come up with the character as well as the theme by linking it to his past and now his present life. He explains his way of coping to encourage other writers in his position that could be reading this feeling some sense of loss from their obstacles to reclaim themselves or to look back at the experiences and with that knowledge, use it to the advantage and restore what can be. In Rushdie’s case, an India of his mind helped him to create fictional yet very realistic imagery from the memories of his childhood.
In Said’s article about “Reflections on Exile”, he states that exile is a “cripple sorrow of estrangement” [1]. He states how being exiled can be a choice. There should be freedom seen expressing one’s defiance and loss from their home country in a secure environment with like what Rushdie was stating, distance can become the benefit. Unlike Rushdie, Said is more understanding about exile also not being a choice given the person’s situation or state. He gives examples of this as some people who are forced to leave their country do in fact suffer the consequences of their new and estranged way of life. He also questions how exile can be connected to nationalism as nationalism is the support for one’s nation and its interests by excluding the possible interest of foreign countries, therefore migrants as well. Essentially nationalism is a way for people to limit themselves to their own specific country, which can be interpreted the opposite as those from that nation could be seen as exiled from the cultures and traditions of foreign countries. Said speaks more on this topic and shows examples of how at the base of a nation, there are inhabitants who are forced into expulsion from their rightful way of life to create a sense of community either by language, customs, culture, etc.
The similarities between each article are they both state how creative works can help heal oneself from their migration to another country. They state that they look back in the past to find themselves a better understanding of how they got to where they are and whether it be from guilt or desperation. Said states in his article the term “literary expression” which ties into Rushdie’s views on how he, through his time of exile, expressed his memories and feelings of loss through making up fictional stories as he goes onto mention throughout his article “Midnight’s Children”.
In conclusion, I personally prefer Rushdie’s point of view, as it is more appealing with its more positive way to express a sense of loss. Said also is very predominately speaking about loss or alienation of exile yet Said talks about it being a more permanent loss, whereas Rushdie talks about the migrant in their newfound country being a new chance of freedom to share their experiences without the ramifications of their home country. With Rushdie admitting that he himself is a former exile, he shares how he copes with the guilt and loss of leaving India by expressing himself through creative writing. He hopes that by sharing this he can show the freedom of being able to have a more critical lens because he is an outsider. Rushdie’s distance from his home country gives him safety from possible threats he could and did encounter in his time of residency in his home country. This in comparison to Said’s, “Reflections on Exile”, Rushdie’s tone of voice was very more relaxed whereas Said’s article was much more about the “estrangement” that an exile must go through to move into the refuge and how others who are not in the shoes of the migrant are unaware and unable to imagine the loss to those who are exiled. By Rushdie adding in his own personal anecdote creates a sense of a more relatable and understanding point. Even though Said’s Article also has used personal anecdotes, I did not get an attachment to him as I did while reading “Imaginary Homelands”.
Citation
- Said, Edward W. “Reflections on Exile” (2000) pg. 173, par. 1
Asynchronous Assignment 3
As simple as it may sound, something I hadn’t ever considered was to find sources by looking for an expert in the field of choice. When I was growing up it was always more about the authenticity of the webpage by it being a “.org” or something along those lines, never about who wrote it and their connection to the subject. So, in conclusion to the video clips, I will make an effort to find people as my sources over the website information may be displayed onto.
Keywords: “modern migrant”, travel, “flexible work”, “travel bug”