Examine Salman Rushdies use of catachresis in Chekov and Zulu to represent the tensions between Hindus and Sikhs after the assassination of Indira Ghandi by her Sikh bodyguards in 1984.
The short story, Chekov and Zulu' happens around an incident of the assassination of the Gandhi in 1984. Gandhi was the Prime Minister at the time of his murder. Gandhi was killed by her bodyguards that were both Sikhs. Both Zulu and Chekov were friends from childhood. After the two had met in England following the incidence of assassination, their talk showed that they hailed from different heritages. In particular, Chekov who was a Hindu hardly understood the Zulu's feelings which had been dealing with tensions towards Sikhs. In this short story, Salman Rushdie employed the tactic of catachresis which involves the wrong use of words. In essence, this technique was useful in representing the tension between the Hindus and the Sikhs after the incidence of assassination.
In essence, the storyline claims that the members of a Sikh religion are violently subjected to persecution for the action of their peers. As a catachresis aspect, the story presents two men as endlessly likening their mission of assassination through a humorous presentation. Indeed, Chekov is the thinking behind operations executed by the assassinators while Zulu is embedded in the terrorist organization that they refer to as Klingons. In his spare time, Chekov made money through entertaining of the wealthy that are associated with the donation of money to the Indian government. Chekov was reported associating freely with the Indian colonizers though he states, has been plundered by burglars.' In the latter Catachresis statement, he refers to the fact that there are a huge number of Indian arts within the English museums while the majority of the success of the British Empires was anchored on suffering and toiling of Indian people. On the other hand, Zulu is an ordinary family man that prefers focusing on the simple mission at hand.
Another expression of catachresis in the short story is the character obsession with Star Treks as an interesting detail included by Rushdie. The characters were leveraged by the American television program though Chekov also demonstrates that although Chekov admitted that they had never seen the show at childhood but directly employed imaginations to establish legends surrounding the characters they had earlier heard. Catachresis was a significant aspect of this short story as it presented an illustration of illusions that surrounded the increased tension after the incident. The two groups Sikhs and the Hindu, therefore, had profound anxiety as they were presumed ignorant of some perennial happenings that surrounded the occurrences during childhood as they grew in separate geographical settings.
Every character has a distinct love for the western culture which also entails Zulu's strong readings of the Lord of rings. The use of the following false reference is critical for covering up the feelings concerning the involvement of English in the Indian terrorism and politics. In a dinner party comprising of wealthy Indian lovers countries, Salman states, England has always been a breeding ground for our revolutionists,' which he says with a note of approval that suggests that he appreciates England for undertaking such an immense service to the Indian. These aspects are very elusive and create a sense tension between Hindus and Sikhs that is nurtured around the two sects. In particular, such revolutionists were frequently considered the beginning for bloody struggles as well as terrorist organizations.
Finally, according to the ideals of this story, Zulu perceived England with a significantly grave perception including terrorism. In a small note of the false use of words to create tension, "terrorists of all sorts are my foes but not, apparently, in certain circumstances, yours. This assertion was about the fact that evidence involved in the English Congressmen in the attack of Indira Gandhi was the same individual that Chekov associated with during the dinner parties. This assertion demonstrates the widespread use of catachresis to shape tension between Hindus and Sikhs.
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