Khattam-Shud enforces these rules spectacularly, as he is the only one who is not required to take a vow of silence, just like the Ayatollah. He talks and talks, and simply enjoys being able to hear only the sound of his voice, and silence. Khattam proves this point against him as he lectures Haroun on his ship of shadows chastising, "[Haroun would] have done better to keep [his] feet on the ground but [he has his] head in the air, [He would] have done better to stick to Facts, but [he is] stuffed with stories" (Rushdie 155). He despises the Guppees and their endless stories, and requires all the Chupwalas to be silent to the utmost extent, as Ayatollah forces his people to do that same in a figurative way. Because of the extreme oppression enforced by Khattam-Shud, most of the Chupwalas are hateful of him for suppressing their abilities to speak their minds. Most Chupwalas wish to revolt against Khattam, but they do not have the power or strength to defeat him. The amount of silence that is induced by Khattam-Shud is ridiculous, and causes the people to be extremely unhappy, and hate him all the more.
The Guppees believe that all of the Chupwalas are evil, and that they all hate stories and the freedom of speech, so the Guppees indulge in their abilities to speak their mind and somewhat abuse it. This is a good comparison between Americans and Muslims. Americans have the right to the freedom of speech and expression, while the Muslims do not have these, and they are judged because they have no rights to speak out against their leader. While some of the Guppee warriors are about to go out to battle to save the Ocean of the Streams of Stories-where their supply of stories comes from- they argue amongst themselves to come up with a plan to defeat the Chupwalas and save the Ocean. Haroun watches them carefully and muses, " 'What an army!'. 'If any soldiers behaved like this on Earth, [they would] be court-martialed as quick as thinking.
