René's Film

Throughout René's narration, René's film symbolizes Rushdie's novel itself. By alerting the reader that he wants to make a fictional representation of the Golden family through a movie, René reminds the reader that the novel itself is only a fictional representation of the Golden family. At times, René's narration in the novel will acknowledge its own fictionality: when writing about his parents, René says he wants to "take a break to compose [himself]," revealing his status as an author and his account's status as a novel (149). Within the action of the novel, René's film is the reader's constant reminder that René's narration is, at least in part, fictionalized.

Vespian

Vespian symbolizes the end to the Golden tragedy and the beginning of a new life for René and Suchitra. Vespian's name recalls the name of a Roman emperor who was...