The God of Small Things Allusions & Cultural References

Literary and Philosophical References

• F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby (2.15)
• Joseph Conrad, Heart of Darkness (2.92, 5.17)
• Rudyard Kipling, The Jungle Book (2.152)
• William Shakespeare, The Tempest (2.151)
• Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities (2.168)
• William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar (2.362, 14.49-58)
• Homer, The Odyssey, Book 11 (6.19)
• Georg Friedrich Handel, Water Music (8.13)
• The Brothers Grimm, Rumpelstiltskin (8.169)
• Baroness Emmusca Orczy, The Scarlet Pimpernel (8.171)
• William Shakespeare, Macbeth (10.32)
• Sir Walter Scott, "Lochinvar" (14.27-30)
• The Brothers Grimm, Hansel and Gretel (16.27)

Historical References

• Bill Clinton, President of the United States (1.63)
• Karl Marx (1.167, 2.214, 5.17)
• Vladimir Ilyich Lenin, Communist revolutionary (1.167)
• Jawaharlal Nehru, first Prime Minister of India (2.211)
• Mao Tse-tung, first Chairman of the Communist Party of China (5.16)
• Neil Armstrong, first man to walk on the moon (8.33)

Pop Culture References

• The NBA (1.63)
• Grand Slam Tennis (1.63)
• The Bold and the Beautiful, an American soap opera (1.63)
• Santa Barbara, an American soap opera (1.63)
• WWF Wrestling Mania (1.64)
• Hulk Hogan, an American wrestler (1.64)
• The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) (1.166)
• The Sound of Music (2.3)
• Meet Me in St. Louis (2.26)
• The Bronze Buckaroo (2.26)
• Charlie Chaplin (2.45)
• Modern Times (2.45)
• Reader's Digest World Atlas (2.38)
• Mutiny on the Bounty (2.392)
• Phil Donahue (3.7-12)
• "Somewhere Over the Rainbow," from The Wizard of Oz (3.7)
• Hatari (4.31)
• "Baby Elephant Walk," from Hatari (4.31)
• "Colonel Bogey's March," a British military march (4.31)
• Christopher Plummer (4.33)
• AC/DC (9.29)
• The East German Olympic swim team (14.34)
• The Rolling Stones, "Ruby Tuesday" (21.5)