Good Advice is Rarer than Rubies

Irony is a literary device that involves a discrepancy between expectations and reality. Rushdie uses irony throughout the narrative to critique the notion that one person (or people) can know what is best for another. For example, Muhammad Ali truly believes giving Miss Rehana a British passport is the greatest gift he can offer; when she doesn’t accept, this creates tension for the reader and for the self-styled advice expert. Yet Muhammad Ali’s assumption that Miss Rehana needs his advice, and that the advice he gives is beneficial, proves ironic once Miss Rehana reveals her circumstances and true desires.

Rushdie’s use of irony is therefore integral to the story’s exploration of gender norms, the postcolonial world, and the way in which those things intersect. Because readers likely see women (particularly non-Western women) as oppressed, Miss Rehana’s agency is surprising. Similarly, because readers likely see life in England as preferable to life in Pakistan, Miss Rehana’s preference for the latter upends expectations. These narrative ironies challenge readers to think more broadly about the assumptions they bring to discussions of gender and imperialism—e.