As the last guest in this academic year's Lecture Series, prolific British-Indian author Salman Rushdie steps onto Miami University's campus Monday, March 23.
Tickets for his lecture, titled "At What Cost Safety? Today's Moral Compass," became available Wednesday and more than 730 tickets were in the hands of students by 3 p.m. the next day, according to the Miami Box Office.
Lana Kay Rosenberg, Lecture Series chair, said Miami began planning for Rushdie's visit in May 2008. Rosenberg said it was lucky Hall Auditorium was available the day Rushdie was.
"He is probably one of the best authors of the century," Rosenberg said. "He received the Booker Award in 2008 for his book Midnight's Children, and that is very prestigious."
Rosenberg said the people brought in for the Lecture Series each year are intentionally diverse to provide the most varied series to Miami's community.
"I really hope that students will think critically about what Rushdie says," Rosenberg said. "Someone of this caliber coming to campus, someone who was willing to speak out for what he believed in regardless of receiving death threats, that is important."
Rosenberg said she has a great level of respect for Rushdie for his courage to put his feelings in print despite the consequences.
Joseph Bates, visiting assistant professor in English, said he was impressed Miami was able to bring such a big name to campus.
"Rushdie is a name that a lot of people know whether or not they are familiar with literature," Bates said. "Due to his integrity of work, he has become a household name."
Bates said it will be beneficial to students to have the opportunity to see an author like Rushdie who is known for intelligent and humanistic worldviews.
"Rushdie creates fantastic and complex worlds (in his work) that force us to question our own," Bates said. "Rushdie can be a very difficult writer. His books need to be experienced as well as read and that is the pleasure of reading Rushdie, the complication of his style and subject matter."
Bates said Rushdie changes minds with ideas and civil discourse rather than bombast.
"Rushdie wants people to think, not scream," Bates said.
Rosenberg said while Rushdie is on campus there will also be a seminar at 4 p.m. for students from various departments-religion, sociology, political science, English and the honors program. Rosenberg said there will be an open reception directly following the lecture in the living room of Bishop Hall.
"With the open reception people can greet Rushdie in a more informal setting and ask him questions," Rosenberg said.
Rosenberg said students who were unable to obtain a ticket can get on the waiting list at 7:10 p.m. March 23 at Hall Auditorium.
Rushdie's lecture will be at 8 p.m. March 23 in Hall Auditorium.
