My Enjoyment of That Story Is For Sale

My Enjoyment of That Story Is For Sale

            Among other pieces of recycled, yet valuable advice I have received from my grandfather over the years, lies the phrase “Sometimes you have to take a step back to really see the situation.”  To my interpretation, this was my grandfather’s way of advising me to always keep a ‘cool head’, to avoid being caught up by emotion, and look at every situation with ideal reasoning.  Although I am never totally sure what exactly he is trying to say, author Salmon Rushdie seems to be giving out the same advice through his short story “At the Auction of the Ruby Slippers.”

            The story takes place in a sort of convention, auction room setting, where the main event happens to be the auctioning off of a pair of Ruby Red Slippers, made famous and apparently the most desirable things on earth by their role in the classic film “The Wizard of Oz”.  I believe the slippers to be a representation of different facets of modern society.  To begin with, I get the feeling that Rushdie is referring to the odd obsession with things that hold no real value, but are desirable because of their rarity, and have somehow come to serve as a symbol of one’s status in the world.  Rushdie often refers to the narrator’s belief that these glorified shoes are somehow going to perform basic wizardry, and make their rightful owner’s every wish come true.

            The group of bidders that have come to the auction is very vast, and is well represented by many different groups of society.  Rushdie also makes a mockery of modern society and their obsession with movie stars and fictional characters, which has driven the obsession of this pointless waste, otherwise known as the desire to obtain fake possessions of fake people.  People, might I point out, who have done nothing in this world because they have not even existed.  With scenes like Gale caught being intimate with a fictional cave man, it seems as though Rushdie is alluding to the way in which fictional characters are magically, yet foolishly brought to life. 

            Toward the end of the auction, the auctioneers, who I might think to be a representation of different sources of media, start selling off everything.  Anything that has a title also has a number connected to it.  When informed that the item was sold for a five figure sum, the narrator’s employer replies that he has 300,000 of those, presumably referring to the amount of money the slippers were sold for.  The narrator then announces the sale of numerous strange items, things that are virtually useless and unattainable, like canine and feline pedigree, family trees, and royal lineages, pretty funny stuff when you really think about it.  This story definitely is Annie Leonard’s worst nightmare, with waste in abundance.

            Although exaggerated, Rushdie thrives off the uncanny ways of modern society.  Whoever reads this short story is probably left with a good idea as to how caught up modern society is with the marginal facets of life, things like celebrity and entertainment issues.  It is also serves as a reminder as to how strange, and unreasonable the human race can be.  Although only one step back, the vision of the reader is indeed improved, and they get a much better view.