Summary

In “Texts for Pen,” Rushdie makes an address at the Congress of International PEN in 1986. He describes his relationship with the PEN organization. Many of his memories at PEN events are positive and amusing. However, he asserts that the gravity of PEN’s events are paramount in his memory (223).

When the PEN World Voices Festival began, Rushdie gave another address, in which he described PEN America’s “invaluable support” when he was under attack for his book The Satanic Verses (224). He asserts that the newly established PEN World Voices Festival allows “the finest voices in world literature to spend a few days . . . in dialogue and debate with one another” (225).

In 2012, Rushdie gave The Arthur Miller Lecture at the PEN World Voices Festival. He considers the relationship between absence and presence. He considers the role of...