Salman Rushdie - “Knife” & Freedom of Expression | The Daily Show

00:19:54
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjOLVFshZ0I

Summary

TLDRSalomon Rushdie, a world-renowned author, discusses his recovery from a traumatic attack and the release of his new book, 'Knife: Meditations after an Attempted Murder.' He looks back at the incident and creatively introspects on his experiences, offering readers a deep insight into his thought processes. Despite enduring the trauma, Rushdie speaks positively about his recovery and highlights the role of his wife, Eliza, as a significant support system. The interview touches on themes of fundamentalism, societal violence, and the changing landscape of threats against free speech—suggesting that algorithms and misinformation have potentially altered the nature of radicalization. Rushdie shares a fictional Socratic dialogue with his attacker, demonstrating his approach to engaging with his thoughts on the incident. Additionally, Rushdie humorously speaks about life after recovery, making future plans and declarations of ongoing resilience and the importance of artistic expression. The book is presented as a mixed narrative of love, trauma, and the complexities of human mind.

Takeaways

  • 💪 Salman Rushdie has largely recovered from a traumatic attack.
  • 📖 His new book offers introspection and understanding of his thought process.
  • 👫 The supportive role of his wife Eliza is crucial to his recovery.
  • 🎭 The book merges love and trauma in a narrative revealing deep personal insights.
  • 🧠 Rushdie engages with thoughts on his attacker through a fictional dialogue.
  • 🔖 He addresses modern fundamentalism and algorithm-driven radicalization.
  • 🇺🇸 Describes the American nature of violence in his attack.
  • 📉 Calls for reducing societal anger and increasing dialogue.
  • 🎉 Mentions planning a joyful 100th birthday party with his wife.
  • 🎤 Advocates for free artistic expression amidst societal threats.

Timeline

  • 00:00:00 - 00:05:00

    The host introduces his guest, Salman Rushdie, discussing his new book 'Knife Meditations' which reflects on an attempted murder he recently experienced. Rushdie describes his recuperation process and provides insights into how this traumatic event influenced his writing. He speaks about introspection, the thought process, and personal influences reflected in his latest work. Rushdie acknowledges the support of his wife, Eliza, and touches on the unanticipated chapter where he revisits pivotal moments and locations related to the attack.

  • 00:05:00 - 00:10:00

    Rushdie and the host discuss the nature of the attack against him, considering whether it was a result of religious extremism or a different kind of radicalization familiar in American culture. Rushdie talks about the attacker's background and questions whether algorithms and isolation can induce such behavior. He reflects on broader societal themes of violence without noble causes, questioning how modern radicalism compares with older, more ideologically driven attacks, speculating on whether it’s a symptom of broader societal issues, like those seen in frequent violent occurrences in the U.S.

  • 00:10:00 - 00:19:54

    Rushdie discusses themes of mortality and his health scare of a potential cancer diagnosis amidst recovery from the attack. The conversation transitions to broader thematic concerns of free speech, fundamentalism, and societal anger. Rushdie addresses the difficulties of artistic expression amidst growing hostilities and how societal narratives around free speech have evolved. He remarks on the intensifying cultural tendencies to police language, contrasting current and past societal attitudes, and reiterates the ongoing need to engage in the fight for free expression.

Mind Map

Video Q&A

  • How is Salman Rushdie feeling after the attack?

    He's surprisingly well and pretty much recovered.

  • What is 'Knife: Meditations after an Attempted Murder' about?

    It's a book about introspection, combining elements of love and a traumatic incident, revealing Rushdie's thought process.

  • How does Salman Rushdie view his assailant?

    He considers his assailant as someone radicalized by online media, viewing him as a victim of brainwashing.

  • Do Salman Rushdie and his wife compete as writers?

    No, they are very supportive of each other's work.

  • Why did Rushdie visit the jail after the attack?

    He wanted to visit the scene of the crime and stand up where he fell, and later decided to see the jail without meeting his attacker.

  • Was there any philosophical discussion about the attacker in the book?

    Yes, Rushdie includes a Socratic-like dialogue with his fictionalized version of his attacker.

  • What is Rushdie's view on modern fundamentalism?

    He believes algorithms may have changed fundamentalism, leading to a more American, violence-driven radicalization.

  • How does Rushdie plan to cope with mortality?

    He humorously mentions planning his 100th birthday party with his wife, aiming to continue enjoying life.

  • Has Rushdie felt impacted by religious threats historically?

    Yes, since the fatwa in 1989, although he regained normalcy in his life for many years.

  • Does Rushdie consider himself an advocate for free expression?

    Yes, he feels involved in the fight for free expression, especially in current societal climates.

View more video summaries

Get instant access to free YouTube video summaries powered by AI!
Subtitles
en
Auto Scroll:
  • 00:00:00
    my guest tonight A world-renowned and
  • 00:00:02
    bestselling author his new book is
  • 00:00:04
    called knife meditations after an
  • 00:00:06
    attempted murder please welcome to the
  • 00:00:08
    program Salomon rushy
  • 00:00:13
    sir good to
  • 00:00:23
    see nice to see you nice to see you
  • 00:00:27
    first question obviously how how are you
  • 00:00:29
    this was obviously a traumatic
  • 00:00:30
    experience how are you feeling I'm okay
  • 00:00:32
    you know I mean surprisingly yes but
  • 00:00:36
    sometimes there are good surprises this
  • 00:00:37
    was one I'm I'm pretty much recovered I
  • 00:00:41
    have to say and I know this it's it
  • 00:00:42
    sounds peculiar to say this because of
  • 00:00:45
    the the traumatic experience that you
  • 00:00:47
    endured I love this book it's it's it's
  • 00:00:51
    a
  • 00:00:52
    beautiful work of introspection I feel
  • 00:00:56
    like I know now how your mind works you
  • 00:01:00
    know i' I've read other of your books
  • 00:01:02
    but you really do a wonderful job of
  • 00:01:06
    taking us through how you think yeah uh
  • 00:01:10
    it's weird how I
  • 00:01:13
    think I mean I have this kind of free
  • 00:01:16
    associating mind which goes from the
  • 00:01:19
    Moon to a movie to a book to a piece of
  • 00:01:22
    Mythology to a
  • 00:01:25
    joke I had to read this book with
  • 00:01:27
    another book next to me to get to just
  • 00:01:30
    some of the references
  • 00:01:31
    it's but it's it it allows you you know
  • 00:01:35
    sometimes you read an author's Memoir
  • 00:01:36
    and there's a certain self-consciousness
  • 00:01:38
    to it but maybe because this is about a
  • 00:01:41
    traumatic incident I feel like your
  • 00:01:44
    defenses were down and it was very
  • 00:01:46
    revelatory yeah I mean there's there's a
  • 00:01:48
    subject right I
  • 00:01:50
    mean
  • 00:01:52
    it's what I felt is that it's it starts
  • 00:01:55
    off there's a love story which turns
  • 00:01:58
    into a murder story
  • 00:02:00
    which turns back into a love story yes
  • 00:02:03
    the Love Story by the way is with his uh
  • 00:02:05
    wonderful wife Eliza who is uh really
  • 00:02:08
    the hero maybe of the book yeah no I
  • 00:02:09
    mean she she did a huge amount and I
  • 00:02:13
    wouldn't be here in good shape without
  • 00:02:15
    her and plus she's an amazing writer
  • 00:02:19
    right there's that too I I I say with
  • 00:02:22
    certain amount of gritted teeth yes is
  • 00:02:25
    there competition in in writerly
  • 00:02:27
    families no not really actually the one
  • 00:02:29
    of the nice things about this is there
  • 00:02:31
    isn't we enormously supportive of each
  • 00:02:33
    other's work I thought a really
  • 00:02:35
    interesting part of the book is spoiler
  • 00:02:38
    alert at the end when you go back to
  • 00:02:41
    shitakwa shiaka is the famed community
  • 00:02:44
    in Upstate New York where they bring in
  • 00:02:45
    speakers and where this unfortunate
  • 00:02:47
    event happened yeah and you go back to
  • 00:02:50
    revisit the scene of it but also the
  • 00:02:53
    jail yeah where they are holding this
  • 00:02:56
    person that that attacked you yeah it
  • 00:02:59
    was a lot last minute decision we were
  • 00:03:01
    actually on the plane flying up to
  • 00:03:03
    because I I had this desire to go and
  • 00:03:05
    revisit the scene of the crime and show
  • 00:03:07
    myself that I was standing up where I
  • 00:03:10
    fell down right you know sort of
  • 00:03:12
    important for me but then on in the
  • 00:03:14
    flight up there I thought CH was a
  • 00:03:16
    really small town and and if he's in the
  • 00:03:18
    county jail how far is that from the
  • 00:03:20
    institution and it turned out it was
  • 00:03:22
    like five minutes drive so I thought
  • 00:03:24
    well let's go to the
  • 00:03:26
    jail I just it it blows my and but you
  • 00:03:29
    didn't have a desire necessarily to see
  • 00:03:31
    this individual no I just wanted to see
  • 00:03:32
    the
  • 00:03:35
    jail but I just you get that it's a it's
  • 00:03:38
    a really boring
  • 00:03:39
    jail it's a little cell block and a wall
  • 00:03:42
    with some barb wire but I thought you
  • 00:03:45
    know he's in there I'm out here that
  • 00:03:48
    feels good you win and what happened is
  • 00:03:50
    a weird thing happened my feet started
  • 00:03:53
    dancing you were dancing no my feet were
  • 00:03:58
    dancing what is that look like it's just
  • 00:04:00
    just shimmying but the body stayed well
  • 00:04:03
    my Eliza my wife said stop doing that I
  • 00:04:07
    can imagine this gentleman just glancing
  • 00:04:09
    out the window for no apparent reason
  • 00:04:11
    going is that the guy
  • 00:04:13
    like yeah and he's ding at the
  • 00:04:17
    copac you you know you talk a lot about
  • 00:04:20
    your your thoughts about this gentleman
  • 00:04:22
    and whether you wanted to confront him
  • 00:04:23
    there's actually a really wonderful
  • 00:04:25
    section of it almost like a Socratic
  • 00:04:28
    litigation that you do in four parts
  • 00:04:31
    yeah I make him up you make him up yeah
  • 00:04:33
    but you don't make him defenseless no
  • 00:04:37
    the the litigation that you and the
  • 00:04:39
    dialogue that you have with him is
  • 00:04:41
    challenging yeah well I thought you you
  • 00:04:44
    know you got to give the enemy an even
  • 00:04:46
    break you know if you're going to have a
  • 00:04:48
    serious conversation mhm then it's it
  • 00:04:51
    can't just be me yelling at him telling
  • 00:04:53
    him what a bad person is which I think
  • 00:04:56
    yes but he wasn't it makes you wonder
  • 00:05:00
    about you know you spent since 1989 this
  • 00:05:02
    this fatwa is put upon you and it's
  • 00:05:04
    these
  • 00:05:06
    fundamentalists and these are religious
  • 00:05:09
    extremists who have decided they're
  • 00:05:11
    going to punish you for whatever their
  • 00:05:13
    reasoning was you WR though that this
  • 00:05:16
    gentleman is sort
  • 00:05:18
    of a copy of a copy of a copy of a copy
  • 00:05:21
    of that 24 he wasn't even born right
  • 00:05:24
    when this thing happened and he by his
  • 00:05:26
    own account had read nothing I'd written
  • 00:05:30
    and yet he was willing to commit murder
  • 00:05:32
    I mean that's stupid
  • 00:05:36
    yes but
  • 00:05:40
    it's I wonder if you think of it does it
  • 00:05:43
    strike you as a change in fundamentalism
  • 00:05:46
    you know you you say he was radicalized
  • 00:05:49
    by Iman Ubi yeah that he watched YouTube
  • 00:05:52
    videos and do you think this attack had
  • 00:05:55
    more to do with like John Lenin's attack
  • 00:05:59
    or with a religious attack no I think
  • 00:06:01
    it's I think in some ways it's a very
  • 00:06:03
    American attack right he spent four
  • 00:06:06
    years in a basement playing video games
  • 00:06:08
    and watching
  • 00:06:09
    videos and it kind of messed with his
  • 00:06:12
    head and also you know I mean he's born
  • 00:06:15
    in Brad in New Jersey slow
  • 00:06:18
    down I I think I know where this is
  • 00:06:22
    going well then you know you're ahead of
  • 00:06:26
    me but you know we live in an America
  • 00:06:29
    where people kill each other every five
  • 00:06:30
    minutes right you know and I think maybe
  • 00:06:33
    in his New Jersey brain
  • 00:06:37
    yes that is how we describe it as well
  • 00:06:40
    by the way ah he's got that New Jersey
  • 00:06:42
    brain
  • 00:06:44
    exactly do you think that there is a
  • 00:06:47
    shift you know we think of
  • 00:06:49
    fundamentalism as primarily a
  • 00:06:52
    religious
  • 00:06:54
    artifact have the algorithms made
  • 00:06:57
    fundamentalism something different from
  • 00:06:59
    that I think maybe they have I mean I'm
  • 00:07:01
    too I'm too old to know really CU I
  • 00:07:03
    don't algorithms don't know what to do
  • 00:07:05
    with me right give them a
  • 00:07:08
    chance no I I
  • 00:07:11
    do but they don't know what to do so so
  • 00:07:14
    I'm not algorithmically influenced right
  • 00:07:18
    but people are people are all the time
  • 00:07:21
    and yeah I mean I think he was something
  • 00:07:25
    happened in him which made it possible
  • 00:07:28
    for him to decide to murder you're a
  • 00:07:29
    total stranger right and that has to be
  • 00:07:33
    brainwashing of some kind right what
  • 00:07:36
    whatever you want to call it but I call
  • 00:07:37
    it brainwashing yeah as I read the story
  • 00:07:40
    I started thinking you know we're so
  • 00:07:42
    used to this idea that of violence with
  • 00:07:46
    a cause this idea that these you know
  • 00:07:48
    there is something deep inside them that
  • 00:07:51
    can almost be Noble or
  • 00:07:54
    understandable this is not that it
  • 00:07:57
    struck me more as more in with the
  • 00:08:00
    school shootings we see here or or the
  • 00:08:02
    other things that you were just this
  • 00:08:04
    thing he saw and you know what's so
  • 00:08:06
    strange about it is first of all he must
  • 00:08:08
    have known that he was messing up his
  • 00:08:10
    own life as well right you know not just
  • 00:08:12
    mine at 24 at 24 and you know the last
  • 00:08:15
    thing he did before he got on the bus
  • 00:08:18
    from Fairview New Jersey to Cha last
  • 00:08:21
    thing he did he canceled his gym
  • 00:08:25
    membership because he knew the he prison
  • 00:08:28
    had weights he wasn't coming
  • 00:08:30
    what he knew he wasn't coming back and
  • 00:08:31
    why should he keep his standing order
  • 00:08:33
    going wow so he's he's going through it
  • 00:08:36
    and going like I don't need serious
  • 00:08:37
    radio anymore I don't exactly so this
  • 00:08:41
    was he suicidal or was he I don't know I
  • 00:08:44
    mean maybe we'll find out if whenever if
  • 00:08:47
    this trial happens we might find out
  • 00:08:48
    more about him but do you dread
  • 00:08:50
    something like that is that something
  • 00:08:52
    that still visits you no I mean I I
  • 00:08:54
    think you know if I I they' if they need
  • 00:08:56
    me to testify I'll go testify and
  • 00:09:00
    I'll be in the courtroom with him but my
  • 00:09:01
    view is he should be scared about being
  • 00:09:04
    in the courtroom with
  • 00:09:05
    me absolutely
  • 00:09:09
    absolutely do you wonder
  • 00:09:11
    sometimes you know and this is not not
  • 00:09:14
    not to get but you and I are both get
  • 00:09:16
    getting older and you write a lot in the
  • 00:09:18
    book about speak for yourself FR settle
  • 00:09:20
    down I was just on jury duty by the way
  • 00:09:23
    I don't know if you saw that picture of
  • 00:09:25
    My
  • 00:09:26
    Doppelganger
  • 00:09:27
    uh but there is
  • 00:09:30
    there's mortality you you you write
  • 00:09:31
    about Martin Amos yeah and Paul AER and
  • 00:09:34
    people that you've lost even during the
  • 00:09:37
    writing of this book lost to esophageal
  • 00:09:40
    cancer um you had a cancer scare I did
  • 00:09:45
    in the middle of Rehabilitation yeah in
  • 00:09:48
    the middle of all this repair work
  • 00:09:50
    suddenly apparently I might have
  • 00:09:52
    prostate cancer I thought that's not
  • 00:09:55
    fair no well you're right he writes he
  • 00:09:58
    goes to the doctor well you you can tell
  • 00:10:00
    yeah I mean I I went to the doctor and
  • 00:10:02
    they examining your prostate is not
  • 00:10:05
    fun again speak for
  • 00:10:09
    yourself
  • 00:10:11
    it's it depends on if you have a jersey
  • 00:10:16
    brain anyway the first examination they
  • 00:10:19
    they thought they found a bump on the
  • 00:10:20
    prostate and then I had to have an MRI
  • 00:10:23
    scan and the MRI scan you know it grades
  • 00:10:25
    from one to five and five is really bad
  • 00:10:27
    and I came out at four right and it said
  • 00:10:29
    cancer probable and then it turned out
  • 00:10:32
    that it was not probable that it was had
  • 00:10:35
    this bump on had been caused by some
  • 00:10:37
    other infection and and and a medicine
  • 00:10:40
    that they had actually given you yeah
  • 00:10:42
    exactly and so then a second doctor the
  • 00:10:46
    first doctor's boss also examined my
  • 00:10:48
    prostate more thoroughly were they lined
  • 00:10:51
    up down the hallway what are they what
  • 00:10:52
    are we doing here no this was very
  • 00:10:55
    thorough
  • 00:10:59
    and also he was an Indian doctor and he
  • 00:11:01
    was a fan of mine so he
  • 00:11:04
    was nothing more uncomfortable than that
  • 00:11:07
    extra thorough yes and he said no I
  • 00:11:10
    think this might be caused by this other
  • 00:11:12
    infection and so so they had to go back
  • 00:11:14
    and have another MRI scan and it said
  • 00:11:16
    one to five is one no cancer so I had
  • 00:11:20
    cancer for two months and then I
  • 00:11:22
    didn't it's so incredible because you
  • 00:11:25
    face this as you write in the book this
  • 00:11:27
    27 seconds yeah was just 27
  • 00:11:31
    seconds and yet can't do do you think
  • 00:11:34
    about and pardon the question but do you
  • 00:11:37
    think does it matter how you die as you
  • 00:11:40
    watched your friends and you thought
  • 00:11:41
    about yeah
  • 00:11:43
    your fate and your brush with mortality
  • 00:11:47
    and then to have this cancer scare did
  • 00:11:48
    it make you think it mattered how you
  • 00:11:51
    die I you prefer not
  • 00:11:54
    to I've got some bad news it's coming
  • 00:11:58
    for all of bad news for all of us yes
  • 00:12:01
    but I mean I you know I my wife Eliza
  • 00:12:03
    and I have decided we're planning our
  • 00:12:05
    100th birthday party by 100th birthday I
  • 00:12:07
    think it has to be a dance
  • 00:12:09
    party yes so we just your feet though
  • 00:12:11
    not the whole body so we're try to
  • 00:12:14
    decide who should
  • 00:12:15
    DJ any I'll pick
  • 00:12:18
    somebody but it strikes me because you
  • 00:12:22
    whether you've wanted this mantle or not
  • 00:12:24
    and I'm assuming you don't you represent
  • 00:12:27
    something you represent
  • 00:12:30
    a courage and a freedom of artistic
  • 00:12:32
    expression of the importance of artistic
  • 00:12:34
    expression and of the danger that
  • 00:12:38
    artistic expression often visits upon
  • 00:12:42
    the people yeah who who do it it's a
  • 00:12:45
    it's a noble Shield to carry but not an
  • 00:12:48
    easy one I don't imagine not an easy one
  • 00:12:49
    and I in a way there's bits of me that
  • 00:12:51
    would prefer to be well known for being
  • 00:12:55
    you know a good writer well I I have to
  • 00:12:58
    tell you I'm pretty sure that's in there
  • 00:12:59
    too is that in
  • 00:13:07
    there you know it used to be when I
  • 00:13:09
    started out as a riser when people would
  • 00:13:11
    write about my books they would mention
  • 00:13:13
    that they were
  • 00:13:14
    funny and then after the attack on the
  • 00:13:17
    Satanic Verses everybody stopped saying
  • 00:13:19
    I was funny really they did because that
  • 00:13:22
    book is satirical it's and it's it's and
  • 00:13:24
    people who read it I get I get two
  • 00:13:26
    reactions to people who read it now one
  • 00:13:29
    is where's the dirty bit because we
  • 00:13:33
    can't find it yeah and the second is who
  • 00:13:35
    knew it was
  • 00:13:37
    funny and I say people who read
  • 00:13:41
    it but it's you know with that on you do
  • 00:13:46
    you feel there's an idea that that you
  • 00:13:49
    have to wear that heroism I don't know
  • 00:13:51
    about the heroism but I think I have to
  • 00:13:53
    be part of the fight right you know I
  • 00:13:55
    mean I mean there is a fight about free
  • 00:13:57
    expression in America at the moment MH
  • 00:14:00
    and I'm I'm I feel like I'm in that
  • 00:14:03
    fight I have a dog in that fight what
  • 00:14:06
    what do you think the how the the nature
  • 00:14:08
    of fundamentalism has changed and
  • 00:14:11
    how that affects artistic expression
  • 00:14:14
    like even now when we see all the
  • 00:14:15
    protests you know up at Columbia
  • 00:14:17
    University some students protest this
  • 00:14:19
    others think that's uh going too far and
  • 00:14:21
    they're threatening people and we're
  • 00:14:24
    crossing all those difficult lines you
  • 00:14:26
    spoke at the pen uh Bank yes yeah last
  • 00:14:30
    year last year which is uh a Consortium
  • 00:14:33
    of writers and Poets and a lot of people
  • 00:14:36
    truly Defenders of free speech yeah I
  • 00:14:39
    just got a text today they've cancelled
  • 00:14:41
    they've canceled the prize giving
  • 00:14:43
    because they have people attacking them
  • 00:14:45
    for not being
  • 00:14:48
    sufficiently um anti-israeli or Pro
  • 00:14:50
    Palestinian or something right I mean
  • 00:14:51
    everybody's so angry right now right
  • 00:14:54
    that nobody can listen or talk to
  • 00:14:55
    anybody else so people have shouted each
  • 00:14:57
    other listen there was a Critic and this
  • 00:14:59
    this is going to sound like a joke a
  • 00:15:00
    Critic of Taylor Swift's new uh music
  • 00:15:03
    album The Torture post Society they had
  • 00:15:06
    to remove the critic's name from the
  • 00:15:09
    critique because of death threats
  • 00:15:11
    because he didn't like the
  • 00:15:13
    record I didn't read
  • 00:15:16
    it because I love the record
  • 00:15:19
    yeah and I don't want to hear any
  • 00:15:22
    negativity no so do I John but but it's
  • 00:15:26
    it speaks to in 1989 there was an
  • 00:15:30
    Ayatollah and a fatwa and a a group of
  • 00:15:33
    religious mmcks who delivered the law
  • 00:15:37
    from high above and now we're all
  • 00:15:40
    fundamentalists everybody's an expert
  • 00:15:42
    everybody's got an opinion and a
  • 00:15:44
    hostility and hostility the the level of
  • 00:15:46
    anger is is crazy right now do you think
  • 00:15:50
    of you know you have a dog in the fight
  • 00:15:53
    in that creative how do we and I think
  • 00:15:55
    about this a lot how do we manage that
  • 00:15:59
    and is that just a function of the
  • 00:16:00
    algorithm it might be I think to an
  • 00:16:02
    extent it is yeah I mean I don't know
  • 00:16:04
    frankly I don't I'm glad you asked me
  • 00:16:06
    because I'm the answer have the answer
  • 00:16:07
    to the world's
  • 00:16:09
    problems it's actually on page if I
  • 00:16:11
    would right there exactly but you were
  • 00:16:13
    thoughtful enough and you've been
  • 00:16:15
    through it enough that I know you have
  • 00:16:17
    an opinion yeah I mean I just think
  • 00:16:20
    people have to get draw stop having such
  • 00:16:23
    thin skins mhm you know at the moment
  • 00:16:26
    we're all very easily offended and and
  • 00:16:29
    what's more is we also believe that
  • 00:16:30
    being offended is a sufficient reason
  • 00:16:33
    for attacking something right but
  • 00:16:36
    actually everything offends somebody you
  • 00:16:39
    always always I mean occasionally you
  • 00:16:42
    what how dare you sir I am
  • 00:16:45
    offended you see and and then if you go
  • 00:16:48
    down that road then we can't talk to
  • 00:16:50
    each other anymore right you know but
  • 00:16:52
    haven't groups always had a way of
  • 00:16:56
    policing language or be Behavior I I I
  • 00:16:59
    think I'm trying to think has my
  • 00:17:01
    perspective changed on it or has the
  • 00:17:04
    dynamic changed I think what's happened
  • 00:17:05
    is the temperature has got risen right I
  • 00:17:09
    I me yes of course people have always
  • 00:17:10
    disagreed and people have always said
  • 00:17:11
    you can't say that you got to say this
  • 00:17:14
    that that's not new what's new is the
  • 00:17:17
    the volume and the heat right you know
  • 00:17:20
    and so what do we do by taking down the
  • 00:17:22
    volume and taking down the heat that's
  • 00:17:24
    the question I mean and and again not to
  • 00:17:26
    make you the Avatar of this but this is
  • 00:17:28
    coming from from a man who because of
  • 00:17:30
    threats from fundamentalists had to
  • 00:17:32
    basically alter your entire life well it
  • 00:17:36
    did certainly have an impact yeah yeah I
  • 00:17:38
    mean what what is sad is that I'd
  • 00:17:39
    actually got my life back really I mean
  • 00:17:41
    I've been living in New York City for
  • 00:17:43
    getting on for 25 years right well you
  • 00:17:46
    had made a decision I'm going to come
  • 00:17:48
    out of this and make myself and for 23
  • 00:17:51
    years it was fine right you know and I
  • 00:17:53
    mean I you know I mean I was doing
  • 00:17:55
    everything that Writers Do book tours
  • 00:17:57
    readings lectures you oh I know I'm a
  • 00:18:00
    writer don't
  • 00:18:01
    stop I've been there with the coffee
  • 00:18:03
    clotches yeah and Oprah yeah well I
  • 00:18:07
    haven't been with Oprah none of us have
  • 00:18:10
    none of us but anyway so it was a shock
  • 00:18:14
    when this thing out of a quarter of a
  • 00:18:16
    century ago more than that 30 years ago
  • 00:18:19
    sort of came out of a crowd at me you
  • 00:18:23
    know it was I really was very surprised
  • 00:18:26
    do you find yourself now freed of that
  • 00:18:29
    fear or is there still that PTSD like
  • 00:18:32
    what where's your what does that do to
  • 00:18:34
    you well I mean it doesn't you know
  • 00:18:36
    nothing good right but but uh it's now
  • 00:18:39
    been what 20 months or something I think
  • 00:18:41
    I'm pretty much back to myself at this
  • 00:18:44
    point do you feel like you're you're in
  • 00:18:45
    that writing rhythm again does your has
  • 00:18:47
    your mind started to to dream again
  • 00:18:49
    finish this and by the way let me tell
  • 00:18:52
    you something and I and and we don't
  • 00:18:55
    have people on where I don't either you
  • 00:18:58
    know read it or or take a look it's such
  • 00:19:00
    a beautiful and and Incredibly
  • 00:19:04
    interesting and revelatory uh book I
  • 00:19:07
    really thank you for writing it because
  • 00:19:10
    you had to endure something
  • 00:19:12
    awful but your insight into that
  • 00:19:15
    experience is is really a remarkable
  • 00:19:19
    gift to give to other people and and I
  • 00:19:22
    really do and it's got funny
  • 00:19:25
    bits a couple of funny bits no yeah for
  • 00:19:28
    a writer not for a comic for a writer uh
  • 00:19:31
    but it really is a fantastic piece of
  • 00:19:33
    work and I and I I thank you for doing
  • 00:19:35
    it uh the book is called knife it is
  • 00:19:39
    available uh as we speak salmon rushy
  • 00:19:45
    [Music]
Tags
  • Salman Rushdie
  • Knife Book
  • Recovery
  • Fundamentalism
  • Free Expression
  • Attack Aftermath
  • Introspection
  • Artistic Expression
  • Radicalization
  • Societal Violence