Salman Rushdie is a man who is not afraid to speak his mind. When Salman Rushdie wrote his novel The Satanic Verses it influenced chaos between the Muslim people and Rushdie. Socrates earned enemies by speculating on things far above and far below the earth. Rushdie can be considered a Socrates of the global village because Salman Rushdie is someone who publicly expressed his opinion about what he believed in and earned enemies like Socrates. Salman Rushdie was known for going against Islam, the prophet and the Quran. To this end, Salman earned enemies for writing The Satanic Verses. Salman Rushdie was sentenced to death without trial. Socrates had his own philosophical point of view and earned the enemies of Athens by saying that the respected men of Athens knew they were not wise. Socrates had to be present in court to defend himself against the charges brought against him. An Iranian cleric offered a cash reward to anyone who killed Salman Rushdie. Salman has offered a public apology to anyone who was insulted by his novel; however, Iranian officials did not approve his statement. Socrates makes no apologies for letting people know that they are not wise. Socrates keeps his words, no matter the trouble it might cost him. (Phillips 16, Plato 20) The Ayatollah's statement came after months of growing protests against Rushdie's novel The Satanic Verses by shocked Muslims, who blame Rushdie for insulting their religion. The protest involved British Muslims burning copies of Rushdie's book, the protest spread to Pakistan and India, where many people died in the aggressive demonstration. (Phillips 16) Socrates was viewed negatively by many Athenians for many years. Instead of violent protests, Socrates was mocked. A comic work by Aristophanes,......middle of paper......medieval times. Muslim leaders claim that the title of the novel The Satanic Verses disrespected their god, because it refers to their god as Satan. Even though Rushdie was raised as a Muslim and claims to follow no religion, Khomeini claims that Rushdie rejected the words of his former religion, so he joined the enemies of Islam and committed a crime. (Phillips 18) In Islamic tradition, the Quran is in fact the word of God, transmitted by the archangel Gabriel through the prophet Muhammad. The result of Rushdie's novel is seen as a mocking pun. (Phillips 19) Socrates earned enemies for his speculations on philosophy. Socrates had followers of wealthy young people who considered him an inspirational leader, so he was also accused of teaching young people his ideas. Both Salman Rushdie and Socrates were held responsible for religious insults. (Plato 20 - 24)