Shame - Chapter 1 - The Dumb Waiter

SHAME

By: Salman Rushdie

Chapter 1: The Dumb Waiter

Similarly to other novel, the first chapter is very important because it sets the stage for the whole book.

In this chapter, we learn that the novel takes place in a town called Q. This town is described as a remote border town that is shaped like an ill-proportioned dumbbell and a “hell hole”.


We are also introduced to the three characters displayed on the front cover of the novel; the three sisters Chhunni, Munnee, and Bunny, who were understood to be in their twenties.  Their father, Mr. Shakil, died right at the beginning of this chapter. The author explains Mr. Shakil’s hatred for his home town as British colonizers lived there. Mr. Shakil lived in a giant mansion located in an open area near a marketplace in Q. He was a widow for 18 years and raised his daughters with the help of a Parsee* wet nurse*, a Christian ayah* and following the Muslim culture.

* Parsee - a descendant of those Zoroastrians who fled to India from Muslim persecution in Persia during the 7th–8th centuries

* wet- nurse - a woman employed to feed another woman's child.

* ayah - a native maid or nursemaid employed by Europeans in India.

The three sisters were referred to as “whores” by their father prior to his death who kept them imprisoned in his mansion and uneducated. They grew up locked inside Mr. Shakil’s mansion and were “virtually uneducated” meaning they had some education but only to the extent of what they were able to teach themselves. They were also very close to one another and in fact, explored each other’s bodies harmlessly and innocently. The three sisters did spells in the evenings for their father to die.

The three sisters mixed their menstrual blood and burned it to ashes as they made an oath to remain united and share everything they ever had, will have or experienced. The girls had strong negative feelings towards their father for having raised them locked in his mansion. They were relieved when he died and had a party celebrating his death. The wealth that their father appeared to have was all a scam to conceal his reality of not owning anything but his mansion and being in huge debt as well as keeping his status within the elites of Q. Needless to say, the sisters were left with nothing but the mansion after his death. In addition, they were left paying off all their father’s debts.

Following the party, the sisters sent of long term servants, Hashmat Bibi, into town to hire a handyman and buy an iron pad lock for their mansion.  Hashmat Bibi had the handyman build a dumb-waiter large enough to hold three adults. This lifting device would use a wheel and a motor from the upper storeys of the house to the outside of the mansion and vice versa. This device will also include a spring with sharp blades that can be flanged from the inside of the mansion to protect the sisters from intruders. This dumb-waiter had many hidden secrets build into in. A few weeks after it was completed, the handyman who build it died of peritonitis. However, there is an insinuation made that he was poisoned by the three sisters so that the secrets of the dumb-waiter he build would be kept secret forever.

*dumb-waiter – an external elevator
 

When the servant, Hashmat Bibi, went into Q to hire the handyman, she dropped off letters to the best vendors in town of all items the sister will need and want brought to them to the mansion. The letter explained they should go to the dumbwaiter and it would make coded whistles and then descend to street level to pick up the items.

The three sisters were so close and were so alike as they got older that even the servants couldn’t tell them apart, “Although some five years separated Chhunni from Bunny, it was at this time that the sisters by virtue of dressing identically and through the incomprehensible effects of their unusual chose life, began resembled each other that even the servants made mistakes.” The girls had all their servants make an oath to keep all that happened in their mansion a secret. One of the sisters was pregnant and the two other sisters pretended to be pregnant as well. They used cushions, padding, and even faint-inducing vapors. The sisters slept in the same room, had the same cravings at the same time, weighted the same, were tired at the same time, woke up and went to sleep at the same time, etc. No one saw when one of the sister’s water broke and when she gave birth, it was in their bed room along with the two other sisters. One of them locked their room door from the inside. The baby was born on the same bed where his grandfather died. Their so was named Omar Khayyam Shakil.

It was implied that all three sisters were able to breast feed him.

Omar’s 7th birthday- Omar’s mother, Chhunni told him to whisper the named of God.

Omar-s 8th birthday – Omar’s mother, Munnee, told him he would never get his head shaved. He was also uncircumsized.

Omar suffered of Insomnia. He roamed around the mansion at nights.

“His wife, the elder daughter of General Raza Hyder, was an insomniac too; but Omar Khayyam’s sleeplessness is not to be compared with hers, for a while his was willed, she foolish Sufiya Zinobia, would lie in bed squeezing her eyelids shut between her thumbs and forefingers as if she could extrude consciousness though her eye lashes, like motes of dust, or tears. And she burned, she fried, in that very room of her husband’s birth and his grandfather’s death, beside that bed of snaked and Paradise….a plague on this disobedient time! I command this death scene back into the wings at once: shazam!”

* General Raza Hyder - Historically references Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq (6th president of Pakistan) https://www.pakistanarmy.gov.pk/AWPReview/TextContent.aspx?pId=150

* Shazam – This tells us that the passage quoted above, introduces the story of Omar Khayyam.
http://www-history.mcs.st-and.ac.uk/Biographies/Khayyam.html
 

When Omar was twelve, his birthday wish was to leave the mansion and go into town. His mothers, painfully granted him his wish. As he got older, he was physically described to be a, “fat fellow with a button missing at naval height”. He got together with a man who became his professor, mentor and perhaps the only manly figure he had in his life. At the age of 20, Omar learns about his younger brother, Babar Shakil, who just like him was claimed to be the son of all three sisters.

At the end of this chapter, there is a reference to a “hero”. Nevertheless, the qualities of this hero describe Omar based on what is learned about him in chapter one.  “Dizzy, peripheral, inverted, infatuated, insomniac, stargazing, fat: what manner of hero is this?”

Mohajirs and Color symbolism

The term mohajir refers exclusively to the Muslim migrant population from India and not to migrant Hindu or Sikh migrant populations.More than fifty years after Partition the mohajir community in Pakistan still sees itself as being displaced; this insecurity is rooted in the perception of the mohajir as an outsider by the native population of the country.

Symbolism of color green: Sufiya’s mother, Bilquis Kemal, can be seen as emblematic of the Muslim nation during and soon after partition - “naked, holding her green dupatta of modesty”(63) - the dupatta(scarf) is another example of Rushdie’s use of culturally coded symbols in the novel, which in this case signifies the modesty, shame, and honor of women. 

The color of the dupatta can be seen as a reference to Pakistan’s national flag.

Historical references in character's names

Raza Hyder’s name is an allusion to the despotic “maharaja”(king) of Mysore, Hyder Ali who ruled over the south Indian state of present-day Karnataka, and also refers more generally to the British rule.

Iskandar Harappa - The surname ‘Harappa’ glosses the archaeological site of the ‘Harappan

civilization that borders Bhutto’s family estate in the Sind province and is a ‘subtle reference to Bhutto’s reign of terror’. 

‘Iskander’ alludes to ‘Alexander the Great’, a figure both powerful and profligate who ‘invaded the part of India that is now Pakistan in 326 BC’, but it also refers to ‘the real-life ex-major-general Iskander Mirza’ as a way of casting aspersions on Bhutto’s democratic credentials.

Pages 188-200

Justyna Sz.

Shame pages 188-200
(Edited by Noelia Valero)

Iskander Harappa's rise and fall from power is discussed: “Six years in power, two in jail, an eternity underground…” (194). Raza Hyder’s nomination for the Army leader is mentioned and foreshadows the path that Harappa’s career will take. As well as Iskander’s career, his relations with his daughter Arjumand are discussed as well as the role other women played in his life. Pinkie Aurengzeb became a shadow of her former beautiful self, and Rani was “not so much as a person as an aspect of the estate” (198). Arjumand, on the other hand, had a strong character and fallowed her father political career. She was known as “the Virgin Ironpants”. At first it was a mocking and disrespectful nickname but late,r as her influence grew, her actions as a prosecutor gave “her nickname a new and less ribald meaning” (199).

Terms and References:

Hegiran calendar – The Muslim system of dividing a year of 354 days into 12 months and starting to count the years from the Hegira.

Pierre Cardin – French fashion designer and UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador.

“Alexander the Great” – reference to an epic movie from 1956 about the life of Alexander the Great. Macedonian king that conquered Persian Empire, he is remembered as a great military leader and legendary hero.

Virgin Ironpants - reference to Benazir Bhutto, Pakistan’s first female prime minister. Bhutto was the eldest daughter of former prime minister of Pakistan, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. 

Pages 181- 200

Summary of 181- 200 (Chapter 9)

By: Miller Schweizer

(Edited by Noelia Valero)

Isky appears everywhere on heroic posters announcing "A New Man for a New Century." Then, suddenly, Isky falls, is condemned to death, and thousands beg for his life to be spared. Then, Isky is dead and buried, but still casting his shadow, relentlessly murmuring in his enemies' ears. Arjumand, shut away in Mohenjo with her mother, fills herself with her father's legend in order to serve as his epitaph. Aged Rani cannot accept her dead husband being thus divinized.

Pakistan is divided into two Wings when Isky is elected prime minister under disputed conditions in the West Wing, but soundly repudiated in the East. President Shaggy Dog dispatches an enormous army to the East. Arjumand does not dwell on the fearful war, in which the idolatrous Indians backed the East to divide-and-conquer. The East Wing is reconstituted, laughingly, as a basket-case autonomous nation, Bangladesh. Hourly radio bulletins describe glorious victories by the Western regiments, right up to the admission of unconditional surrender. Isky places the shameful blame on Shaggy, but spares him a war crimes trial on the condition that he accepts house arrest. The people are cynical about the pardon, knowing Isky is the principal beneficiary of the civil war. He copies a scene from the film Alexander the Great, in which Richard Burton bares his chest to a cheering crowd to show the battle scars he bears. Isky packs away the old army leadership and installs Raza Hyder - which proves to be his worst error.

At Mohenjo, Arjumand remembers how fervently the people loved her father during the election and he reciprocated, diverting love from Pinkie. Arjumand hires photographers to snap pictures showing how old and pitiful Pinkie has become for her father to find. Isky knows without being reminded that he accelerates the aging process in the women in his life. Rani suffers less than Pinkie because she spends most of her time in Mohenjo. Precocious Arjumand, too mature for her age, realizes her father feeds on his women. At 23, Arjumand is also far too beautiful for her own good. She moves into the prime minister's residence and rejects her mother's letters proposing suitors. She and Haroun never communicate. She becomes a lawyer, joins the green revolution and prosecutes enemies of the state so ferociously that "Virgin Ironpants" takes on a new meaning. Isky comforts his daughter that there is no shame in being hated by enemies of the people. He is building a nation with strength and caring.

Isky is adept at handling mealy foreign interviewers, Arjumand sees, reviewing videotapes. Isky dislikes arguments and sets up the Federal Security Force (FSF) headed the clairvoyant Ulhaq, who can head off traitors. "Nobody can topple me," Isky's ghost says on tape, because he is the incarnation of the people's love. "Masses versus classes" is an old saw. The five who love Isky - Pinkie, Rani, Arjumand, Ulhaq and Haroun -- are so divided, Arjumand thinks, they may have caused his fall. Fat cats, smugglers, priests, socialites and factory bosses contribute, but the chief culprits are the ambassadors, U.S., British and Russian. The prime minister makes their lives miserable in every way possible. Having given the ninth U.S. ambassador a heart attack, Isky is prevented from working over a tenth when he is unseated in a coup.

Isky wastes away grimly in prison. The self-proclaimed "New Man for a New Century" used the glib slogan too early and Time takes revenge. Isky is hanged in the middle of the night, cut down and delivered to Ulhaq to be flown home to Mohenjo for burial. Rani demands to see Isky's face. Ulhaq is under orders not to show her. Allowed to kiss him through the shroud, Rani claws a hole with her nails to reveal the grey face with eyes open. A hanged man should have a blue face, bulging eyes and a tongue sticking out, Rani declares. Morticians might have fixed these things, but Isky's neck is clearly free of rope burns. Arjumand is disgusted by her mother and only understands when Rami declares, "They hanged a corpse." Rani knows about hangings because she saw Little Mir.

Important Explanations and Quotations:

1. “What is being born?- A legend. Isky Harappa rising, falling; Isky condemned to death, the world horrified, his executioner drowned in telegrams, but rising above them, shrugging them off, a compassionless hangman, desperate, afraid. Then Isky dead and buried; blind men regain their sight beside his martyr’s grave And in the desert a thousand flowers bloom” (Pg. 185).

This passage is important because it shows the cruel intentions of the time and the worldly matters ensuing. At the time, Pakistan is divided into two Wings when Isky is elected prime minister under disputed conditions in the West Wing, but soundly repudiated in the East. President Shaggy Dog dispatches an enormous army to the East. Arjumand does not dwell on the fearful war, in which the idolatrous Indians backed the East to divide-and-conquer. The East Wing is reconstituted, laughingly, as a basket-case autonomous nation, Bangladesh. Hourly radio bulletins describe glorious victories by the Western regiments, right up to the admission of unconditional surrender. Isky places the shameful blame on Shaggy, but spares him a war crimes trial on the condition that he accepts house arrest. The people are cynical about the pardon, knowing Isky is the principal beneficiary of the civil war. He copies a scene from the film Alexander the Great, in which Richard Burton bares his chest to a cheering crowd to show the battle scars he bears. Isky packs away the old army leadership and installs Raza Hyder - which proves to be his worst error.

2. “By the end of the period of house arrest, when Arjumand had Captain Ijazz imprisoned and tortured slowly to death, he was twenty- four years old; but his hair, like that of the late Iskander Harappa, had gone permanently white as snow. When they took him to the torture chambers he said just three words before he started screaming: ‘So, what’s new?’” (Pg. 200).

This passage shows the gruesome situation ensuing as well as the humor. While Isky wastes away grimly in prison, the self-proclaimed "New Man for a New Century" used the glib slogan too early and Time takes revenge. Isky is hanged in the middle of the night, cut down and delivered to Ulhaq to be flown home to Mohenjo for burial. Rani demands to see Isky's face. Ulhaq is under orders not to show her. Allowed to kiss him through the shroud, Rani claws a hole with her nails to reveal the grey face with eyes open. A hanged man should have a blue face, bulging eyes and a tongue sticking out, Rani declares. Morticians might have fixed these things, but Isky's neck is clearly free of rope burns. Arjumand is disgusted by her mother and only understands when Rami declares, "They hanged a corpse." Rani knows about hangings because she saw Little Mir.

Pages 161-180

Rushdie (pages 161-180) Summary and References

By: Matheus Salles

(Edited by Noelia Valero)

As Haroun Harappa continues to look over some pictures of his soon-to-be fiancée, Naveed Hyder, it seems he comes to fall under a trance that strongly influences him in deciding that he wishes to marry Naveed. While this is ongoing, Haroun’s cousin, Arjumand, cannot help but feel disgust towards Naveed. While Haroun wishes to have Naveed because, in his eyes, she is the “loveliest bride in the world”, Naveed, herself, wants to marry Haroun because he is rich and famous (Rushdie 161). Although Naveed’s mother attempts to dissuade her from marrying Haroun because of his reputation, it is not enough because Naveed’s mind is already made up. As a result of accepting the marriage proposal, Naveed will now have to get to know Haroun better.

Although Arjumand Harappa, also known as The Virgin Ironpants, is still very relatively young, many men chase after her in order to declare their love for her. To their disappointment, she rejects them all. Dissatisfied with her gender, she does everything she can to look like a man. However, while she does this, she only grasps the attention of more men, resulting in her request to be sent to a Catholic boarding college in Lahore (Rushdie 162).

Lahore is the capital of Punjab, a province in Pakistan. It is the second largest city in the country and contains the largest population of Punjabis in the world. This capital is well known for its economy, politics, transportation, entertainment, and education. As a result of its high affiliation with poets and artists, Lahore has the highest number of educational institutions in Pakistan. Lahore is also known for being a very cultural location, hosting most of the arts, festivals, and music in the country, thus often being referred to as the cultural heart of Pakistan. Lahore also bears another name, “City of Gardens.” This is because it contains not only the finest gardens in the continent, but also the oldest, dating back to the Mughal period (Wikipedia).

However, a new problem arises, for women too are also starting to fall for Arjumand. There is one girl in particular who is very much in love with Arjumand that she ends up going to Heeramandi because she is not able to have Arjumand’s love (Rushdie 163).

Heeramandi is located in Taxali Gate, Lahore, Pakistan. The name Heeramandi translates to “Diamond Market,” and is also known as Shahi Mohalla, which translates to “The Royal Neighborhood.” Heeramandi is considered to be a red-light district, an area containing a high concentration of prostitution and other sexual establishments. Originally, Heeramandi was the center of the Tawaifan culture, influential female elite that contributed to music, dance, theater, film, and Urdu literary tradition, during the Mughal period. However, Heeramandi is now known for being the center of prostitution in Lahore. Other than being known as the red-light district, Heeramandi is also known for being a bazaar that contains good food, shops for musical instruments, and traditional Mughal footwear (Wikipedia).

Realizing that women are being affected the same as men towards her, Arjumand writes to her father to take her out of the boarding school.
Once Haroun comes back from London, Arjumand notices a very great resemblance between Haroun and her father. As a result, she believes that she can help Haroun find his better-self just as she did with her own father. While she tries to close the distance between her and Haroun, her body language towards Haroun drive him away, towards Naveed.

In an instance where Arjumand is looking at herself in the mirror, Rushdie decides to include that she is reflecting her mother’s habit, who as of now is in Mohenjo (Rushdie 164).

Mohenjo, also called Mohenjo-daro is an archeological site in Sindh, Pakistan. The word Mohenjo-daro translates to “Mound of the Dead.” Built around 2600 BCE, it was the largest settlement of the ancient Indus Valley Civilization, earliest urban civilization that developed new techniques for handicraft and metallurgy. Mohenjo-daro was abandoned in the 19th century BCE and later discovered in 1922 (Wikipedia).

Rushdie later comes to talk about himself as a child and his conversation with The Greatest Living Poet. The conversation entails the Beauty and Beast. Through this, The Greatest Living Poet identifies the possibility of one having two identities such as the Beast who later turns into a Prince. Rushdie eventually comes to think that the Beauty can also be the Beast, that it is not always the Beast that is the Beauty. He also introduces this idea when he includes Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (Rushdie 165).

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is a novella by Robert Louis Stevenson. The novella goes by Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (actual title), Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, or Jekyll & Hyde (both common titles today). The novella is about a London lawyer, Gabriel John Utterson, investigating peculiar occurrences between Henry Jekyll and Edward Hyde. The novella is usually associated with split-personality, also known as D.I.D., dissociative identity disorder (Wikipedia).

This implies Sufiya Zinobia, who beautiful to Omar Khayyam Shakil, is a Beast in the inside. She has two personalities.

As time passes, Omar misses the opportunity to propose to Sufiya, resulting in the younger daughter, Naveed, marrying first. However, when he does ask permission, Sufiya’s parents are taken aback, especially her father, Raza Hyder, who has taken a liking towards Sufiya. Raza attempts to dissuade his wife from allowing the marriage, but eventually becomes persuaded by his wife. As a result, Raza comes to notice that his wife wants to rid herself of Sufiya just as quick as Raza wants to rid himself of Naveed (Rushdie 167). Once the marriage is approved, the Hyders decide that Naveed’s wedding will precede Sufiya’s and Sufiya’s wedding will be in “secrecy.”

Naveed and Haroun agree to meet at the polo field. Once both of them meet and they begin conversing with one another, she realizes that there is nothing in for her by marrying Haroun. Originally, she told her mother that she would be able to “fix” Haroun, but notices that that is not possible. As she disengages from the conversation, between her and Haroun, she makes eye contact with one of the polo players from the police team, Talvar Ulhaq. Neither of them could take their eyes off of each other. From then on, Naveed knows that she wants Talvar and begins to spend time with him. During one of their encounters, a fisherman observes the situation and threatens to blackmail the inappropriate behavior unless Talvar pays him. As a result, Talvar pays the fisherman and gives Naveed an ultimatum; it is either him or Haroun. At the last possible minute, Naveed makes the decision that she will only marry Talvar. Infuriated with Naveed, Raza goes to her room with a pistol in order to kill her, however, he does not have the strength to do so. Raza then informs Iskander Harappa about his daughter rejecting Haroun.

Although the marriage between Haroun and Naveed is cancelled, the marriage between Naveed and Talvar is still on. Raza, still infuriated wishes that once the wedding is done that both Naveed and Talvar disappear.

In the morning of Naveed’s wedding day, a riot seems to break lose and wreak havoc upon authority vehicles, the British Council, and the United States Information Service (Rushdie 175).

The British Council aims to develop cultural relations by sharing the United Kingdom’s culture, English, arts, and education. They work with governments so as to help transform education in hope that there will be an increase in opportunities and employability through learning English. They also help develop events that link thousands of organizations, artists, and audiences worldwide. Not only that, but they also help develop leadership, professional networking, and cultural educational programs through the efforts of joint arts programs (British Council).

The United States Information Service known as United States Information Agency also goes by the name of Propaganda Agency of the United States. It was created by President Dwight. D. Eisenhower in 1953 until 1999. Their mission was to “streamline the U.S. government’s overseas information programs and make them more effective.” Their goals were:
1. Credibly and meaningfully advocate/explain U.S. policies in foreign cultures.
2. Provide information about policies of the U.S., about the people, values and institutions that influence policies.
3. Bring benefits of international engagement to U.S. citizens and institutions by building stronger long-term relationship overseas.
4. Advise the president and U.S. government policy makers on the methods of foreign attitudes that will have a direct bearing on the effectiveness of U.S. policies (United States Information Agency).

The riot is a result of the lack of democracy. Through General Shaggy, the riots cease and the nation will be led towards democracy. As a result, the people ended the riot and instead began celebrating.

Alliance Française (Rushdie 175)

Created in Paris on July 21st, 1883, the Alliance Française is an international organization whose goal is to spread both the French language and the French culture throughout the world (Wikipedia).

Goethe Institute (Rushdie 175)

The Geothe Institute is Germany’s worldwide operational cultural institute. Their main focus is to promote the study of German. Not only that, but they also encourage for there to be a cultural exchange in the process. By providing cultural, societal, and political education and training, the international learning community has been able to reach out farther than before, giving more opportunities to those who seek it (Geothe Institut).

While Iskander is still in shock of what has happened in regards to the wedding, Arjumand, seeks to comfort him. It is during this time that Arjumand declares her love for her cousin, Iskander. However, heartbroken, Iskander rejects her.

When it is time for Naveed’s wedding to take place, all of the guests appear looking un-presentable. Naveed’s entire family is there including her sister’s fiancée, Omar. While the ceremony is underway, Omar notices something strange, but by then it is too late. Sufiya decides to attack Talvar, twisting his neck almost to the breaking point. Naveed grabs her sister and tries to rip her from Talvar, but it is of no use. The rest of the family and Omar takes part in helping free Talvar from Sufiya, in which they succeed. But, just as they rip Sufiya from Talvar, she is able to bite Talvar in the neck. After the wedding scandal occurred, Raza became nicer towards Talvar because of the incident. Nonetheless, Talvar’s polo career was over.

During election time, Iskander’s Popular Front would do very well. Not forgetting about Naveed cancelling the wedding date, Iskander seeks revenge on Raza. When Iskander becomes Prime Minister, he appoints Talvar as police chief and promotes Raza to General, placing him in command of the army. This forces the Hyders to move up north along with the Harappas. This results in Iskander being able to have control over Raza.

Works Cited

"About the British Council." British Council. British Council, 2013. Web. 16 Mar. 2013. .
"About Us."  - Goethe-Institut . Geothe Institut, 2013. Web. 16 Mar. 2013. .
"Alliance Française." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 13 Mar. 2013. Web. 16 Mar. 2013. .
"Heera Mandi." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 03 Sept. 2013. Web. 16 Mar. 2013. .
"Lahore." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 14 Mar. 2013. Web. 16 Mar. 2013. .
"Mohenjo-daro." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 14 Mar. 2013. Web. 16 Mar. 2013. .
"Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 16 Mar. 2013. Web. 16 Mar. 2013. .
"USIA, The United States Information Agency Homepage." USIA, The United States Information Agency Homepage. United States Information Agency, 1999. Web. 16 Mar. 2013.

Pages 130-140

Nataliya Korostensky

Pg. 130-140 Shame Blog
(Edited by Noelia Valero)

Summary:
-We learn of Sufiya Zinobia’s purity and innocence. She was never loved, appreciated, or shown affection like Naveed. She was labled as her mother’s shame.

-Sufiya Zinobia’s blushing: she was born blushing and continued to frequently blush throughout the years. Basically we learn she has developmental issues (that seemed to get intensified by the time she spent in Q) that cause her to blush frequently.

-Bilquis employed a Parsee ayah named Miss Shahbanou who complained about being scauled by water which was almost boiling because of Sufiya’s embaressment (blushing).

VOCAB: Ayah- A native nurse for children; also, a lady's maid.
http://www.wordnik.com/words/ayah

-Sufiya’s blushing was not all internal; it was in large part because she absorbed her surroundings and blushed because of the world she was living in. Basically, Sufiya experiences shame for all the things people do shamelessly around her. Her mother explains it as an outcry for attention.

-Blushing: psychosomatic event –“a sudden shut-down of the arterio-venous anastomoss of the face floods the capillaries with the blood that produces the characteristically heightened colour.” (p132)
(Mind has the ability to influence the body by direct nervous pathways)

-The year in which Isky Harappa and Raza Hyder were 40 years old Iskander found out that his cousin, Little Mir, cozied up to President A. and was about to get a promotion. Iskander is furious (jealous). He is sleeping with Pinkie Aurangzeb who is a widow but leaves her after finding out this news. He decided to put an end to everything that was a distraction or limit on his spirit. He cleaned up his act (stopped gambling and sleeping around) and his political vocabulary. He also decided to cut communication with Omar.

-Isky’s daughter Arjumand is thrilled about her father’s transformation and is later on in life labeled the “virgin Ironpants”. She hates her own mother and Omar. Her father tells her to overcome her gender because they live in a “man’s world”. She takes this advice to heart and binds her breasts when they begin to develop.

-Meanwhile, Omar has aged (silvered) and stayed at the top of the medical and academic field. He wears all grey’s in an attempt to subdue his physiognomy (appearance) because he is still fat and ugly. His hypnotic eyes and voice have not changed (he used them to sleep with white women at academic conferences). For a while he stopped visiting Isky because he has returned to Q to visit his mothers because his brother, Babar, is dead (murdered). All that is left of his brother (whom he had never seen) is a bunch of notebooks.

-Babar was raised very much in the shadow of his older brother (the mothers idolized him, keeping medals, news paper clippings, school books, etc. to honor their first son). Babar burned all these things and entered the streets of Q at age 20. As soon as he left the house, Q experienced an earthquake.

*Possible reference to the 1974 Hunza earthquake that was ranked a 6.2 earthquake. The earthquake killed 5,300 people with approximately 17,000 injured. A total of 97,000 were reported affected by the tremor. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1974_Hunza_earthquake)
-Babar proceeded to celebrate his birthday by getting drunk in a cheap bar.
Good source for help with references: http://postcolonialstudies.emory.edu/salman-rushdie/