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Abstract
Salman Rushdie is one of the most accomplished authors of the twentieth century, with several accolades being claimed by his first novel, Midnight’s Children. The 1981 work follows Saleem Sinai, a narrator with magical powers who comes to mirror the political progression of India after being born at its precise moment of independence. A wealth of criticism exists in examination of this work, especially as it relates to concepts such as nationalism and identity in a postcolonial context. Scholars researching magical realism, a literary mode popularized in Latin America and the Caribbean, have also made note of the novel. However, few researchers have drawn connections between the use of magical realism and the political contexts of the novel. This thesis draws from previous essays to establish broad trends in criticisms for the novel, and then synthesizes these trends with an understanding of magical realism and the political context of the novel before examining specific examples of magical realist themes or scenes, then explaining their interaction with the political elements.