Like its predecessor,

(2002), Hari Kunzru’s second novel,

(2004), is an intellectual comedy which raises philosophical and sociological questions about the construction or simulation of what we take to be reality and about the nature of the self. The extent to which the self is socially constructed is explored in

in the context of the Indian caste system and of English imperialist discourses, whereas in

it is through the messages transmitted by the globalised media networks of the World Wide Web, mass culture, and the “Total Brand Mutability” (Kunzru, 2005, 20) of consumer fashion and marketing. Kunzru focuses on three representative characters – Arjun Mehta, Leela Zahir (“India’s dreamgirl”), and Guy Swift, the…

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Citation: Robinson, Alan. "Transmission". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 27 April 2009 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=20089, accessed 26 November 2024.]