I've not read Salman Rushdie's fiction, so I was surprised to learn that
his 1981 novel _Midnight's Children_ has a strong _Prince and the
Pauper_ theme. Here's a brief notice of Rushdie's book from a
contemporary issue of _Time_ magazine:

"Rushdie's version of _The Prince and the Pauper_ becomes a cartwheeling
parable about the fate of modern India. At the stroke of midnight on
August 15, 1947, the date on which India proclaimed itself independent
from Great Britain, 1,001 children are born with supernatural powers.
Two are switched at birth, the illegitimate son of a poor Hindu woman
and the offspring of wealthy Muslims. Rushdie follows them through 30
years of partition, violence and Indira Gandhi's iron-fisted rule. The
personal is the political here with a vengeance, as history becomes
farce, becomes legend becomes memory becomes history again."- R.L.

My question for Forum members is simply this: Do the parallels between
Mark Twain's and Rushdie's novels go any deeper than the simple act of
baby-switching described in the _Time_ notice? Or, to put this another
way, does Rushdie's book show any sign of having been influenced by Mark
Twain's book?