Has the battle for free speech been lost? The author of The Satanic Verses is recovering in hospital, more than 30 years after his controversial novel challenged core Islamic beliefs.
Salman Rushdie ‘defiant’ after stab attack
Has the battle for free speech been lost? The author of The Satanic Verses is recovering in hospital, more than 30 years after his controversial novel challenged core Islamic beliefs.
In the year 786, Harun al-RashidA ruler who is widely credited with kicking off the so-called Islamic Golden Age of learning and cultural advancement in the Islamic World. His surname, "al-Rashid", means "rightly-guided". became caliph of the Abbasid EmpireThe third caliphate to rule the empire created by the Prophet Muhammad. It lasted from 750 until 1258 and presided over the Islamic Golden Age.. This made him one of the most powerful rulers, and the figurehead of Islam.
Harun was a great scholar. He attracted intellectuals to BaghdadA city in Iraq built by the Abbasids. It remains the capital of Iraq today..
His court was full of poetry, music - and drinking. But it was also home to powerful clericsA religious leader. Collectively, clerics are known as the clergy. A form of clergy exists in all Abrahamic religions., who sought to dampen the fun with strict religious rules. Harun spent much of his reign protecting his effervescentEnthusiastic and spirited. court intellectuals.
Salman RushdieBritish-Indian novelist who had to go into hiding when his book The Satanic Verses was condemned as offensive to Islam by Muslim leaders. is an admirer of Harun al-Rashid.
Born into a Muslim family, it is little wonder he should feel such an affinity for a Muslim ruler who fought so hard to preserve freedom of speech and learning. When he wrote The Satanic Verses in 1988, he saw himself as working in this same long tradition in the Islamic world of dissent against clerical domination.
The book is a satire of Britain in the 80s. It is an exploration of migration, and the compromises forced on those who find themselves torn between cultures.
But it also depicts the Quran as the work of the Prophet Muhammad, and not of God; and it lampoonsPublicly makes fun of, mocks or ridicules. the Ayatollah KhomeiniAn Iranian cleric and revolutionary who led the Iranian Revolution in 1979 and became the country's Supreme Leader., Supreme LeaderThe Head of State and highest religious authority in Iran. of Iran, the man who was to issue a worldwide death warrant for Rushdie in response to The Satanic Verses.
On Friday, 33 years later, a US citizen tried to carry out this warrant by stabbing Rushdie. The author remains in critical condition.
In 1988, the response to The Satanic Verses In the West was mixed. Although some defended him, many of Rushdie's fellow writers thought he had brought it upon himself.
That is why some think the attack on Rushdie is the death knell of free speech. They argue that far too many people now believe there must be limits on speech. Many, they argue, have adopted self-censorship to ensure they never say anything controversial.
Others point out that Rushdie has received an outpouring of support from all over the political spectrum.
Some think the attack has nothing to do with westerners and their values. It is part of a much longer struggle within Islam. Although millions of Muslims protested, many Muslim intellectuals regarded Rushdie as a martyr for Islamic free speech.
Rushdie, they say, is simply carrying on the same battle for tolerance and freedom as Harun al-Rashid all those centuries ago.
<h5 class=" eplus-wrapper" id="question">Has the battle for free speech been lost?</h5>
Yes: No-one would publish The Satanic Verses today. We are all so terrified of offending others that we end up self-censoring. That is bad for freedom of expression and bad for literature.
No: It has never been possible to write without risks. Even if almost everyone believes in free speech, one individual might still decide to kill you for their beliefs. The attack on Rushdie does not indicate any deeper free speech crisis.
Or... There have always been certain things you cannot write. We would not defend someone who wrote a book denying a genocide. As times change, so do taboos.
Level 5 - Level 3
Harun al-Rashid - A ruler who is widely credited with kicking off the so-called Islamic Golden Age of learning and cultural advancement in the Islamic World. His surname, "al-Rashid", means "rightly-guided".
Abbasid Empire - The third caliphate to rule the empire created by the Prophet Muhammad. It lasted from 750 until 1258 and presided over the Islamic Golden Age.
Baghdad - A city in Iraq built by the Abbasids. It remains the capital of Iraq today.
Clerics - A religious leader. Collectively, clerics are known as the clergy. A form of clergy exists in all Abrahamic religions.
Effervescent - Enthusiastic and spirited.
Salman Rushdie - British-Indian novelist who had to go into hiding when his book The Satanic Verses was condemned as offensive to Islam by Muslim leaders.
Lampoons - Publicly makes fun of, mocks or ridicules.
Ayatollah Khomeini - An Iranian cleric and revolutionary who led the Iranian Revolution in 1979 and became the country's Supreme Leader.
Supreme Leader - The Head of State and highest religious authority in Iran.
Salman Rushdie ‘defiant’ after stab attack

Glossary
Harun al-Rashid - A ruler who is widely credited with kicking off the so-called Islamic Golden Age of learning and cultural advancement in the Islamic World. His surname, “al-Rashid”, means “rightly-guided”.
Abbasid Empire - The third caliphate to rule the empire created by the Prophet Muhammad. It lasted from 750 until 1258 and presided over the Islamic Golden Age.
Baghdad - A city in Iraq built by the Abbasids. It remains the capital of Iraq today.
Clerics - A religious leader. Collectively, clerics are known as the clergy. A form of clergy exists in all Abrahamic religions.
Effervescent - Enthusiastic and spirited.
Salman Rushdie - British-Indian novelist who had to go into hiding when his book The Satanic Verses was condemned as offensive to Islam by Muslim leaders.
Lampoons - Publicly makes fun of, mocks or ridicules.
Ayatollah Khomeini - An Iranian cleric and revolutionary who led the Iranian Revolution in 1979 and became the country’s Supreme Leader.
Supreme Leader - The Head of State and highest religious authority in Iran.