Tuesday, July 03, 2007

So Sayeth Lady Rushdie: Padma Refuses to Take the Blame





















Well, possums, it's early yet, but it seems as though this divorce has become, with apologies to Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner, the war of neuroses. Yesterday, Sir Salman Rushdie struck the first blow, pointing the henna'd finger of blame at Lady Rushdie, via his publicist Jin Auh, who put it thus: "Salman Rushdie has agreed to divorce his wife, Padma Lakshmi, because of her desire to end their marriage."

Now Lady Rushdie reminds us, via her own publicist, Christina Papadopoulos, that when you point the henna'd finger of blame, there are three other henna'd fingers pointing back at you: Lady Rushdie "has agreed with her husband-author, Salman Rushdie, to end their marriage." (That "husband-author" business thrills our little CompLit-major soul to the core. It's as if Galatea had turned on Pygmalion, as if we were watching Ibsen's A Blow-up Doll's House.) "After an 8-year relationship including over three years of marriage, Lakshmi regrets that their mutual efforts failed to make the marriage work," the press release added.

Oh dear, Salman Rushdie truly did win the Book Her Prize with this one, didn't he?

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

...and the No Belle prize!

Unknown said...

Love the site, but CompLit references aren't very bitchy you know. ;)

kora in hell said...

"That "husband-author" business thrills our little CompLit-major soul to the core"

It's completely diacritical.

That little hyphen in "husband-author" makes all the differánce in the world, n'est-ce pas?

If I may...

A comma would have placed a space between the roles of her husband, author Salman Rushdie, suggesting he could separate these ideas. The hyphen, on the other hand, connects the concepts of husband-author.

Both words are rooted in the idea of cultivation. Early meanings of husbandry [from the root bond] refer to the bonding and cultivation of the female body and mind.

The concept of author is rooted in a complex of ideas of power, agency and writing. It extends to an association with the ultimate creator, God. When the word "author" is used metaphorically, this association is unavoidable.

Thus, by stating that the decision was mutual Lady Padma was challenging the authority of her husband who saw himself as empowered to grant her, benevolently, her request of a divorce, by the power vested in him as her husband-author/Creator.

In other words, what a dick.

Anonymous said...

I love you, Trixie!

Anonymous said...

Trixie's heavy-handed "humour" would have worked a little better if she knew the difference between "différance" (right) and "differánce" (impossible and wrong). What a "différence" an accent aigu makes...

kora in hell said...

wanker

(And lighten up. It's just a lark.)

Anonymous said...

ah, trixie, I see your true level of wit emerges when it's you that's the target.

Anonymous said...

Yes, Anonymous, do lighten up, please. Besides, shouldn't it be, "when it's you WHO's the target"?

hughman said...

in other news...

does anyone really give a fuck about padama's "divorce"? anyone?

i thought not.

Anonymous said...

It is odd... though..how a woman of such immediate beauty... loses that beauty after about 3 minutes of watching her talk. It must be some kinda Guinness Book World Record for vapidity. I'd still bang her.

Vic said...

It's these comment, Charlus (besides your fab posts) that makes your blog rock. Well done, Trixie.