The Enchantress of Florence: Fabulous Blather

Abstract

Salman Rushdie's The enchantress of Florence glances at history on a grand scale. This, his ninth novel, offers a comparative view of two worlds:Mughal India and Medici Italy. The two dynasties ruled at about the same time- the Mughals in India from the sixteenth through the eighteenth century, the Medici in Florence from the fourteenth through the eighteenth century. Rushdic fabricates a link between the two through an account of Mughal princess-sister of Babar, the founder of the dynasty who shows up in Florence and sways men in power through her sheer beauty. At a later time, a golden-haired man claiming to be the son of the princess arrives in Akber's court and tells the emperor the story of the princess. He calls himself "Mogor dell' amore" or " a Mughal born out of wedlock" (Rushdie's emphasis) (91). The story he tells will make or break his fortune. Either it will earn him the status of a Mughal or it will lead to his ignominious exit from the court or a worse fate.