THE QUESTION MARK / AUTHOR: MURIEL JAEGER / PUBLISHER: BRITISH LIBRARY / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW
Dystopian fiction has a long history across all media; it’s a genre that has been cultivated for well over 150 years. The Question Mark, published in 1926 by Yorkshire writer Muriel Jaeger, is a novel which evolves the concept as begun by writers such as HG Wells, yet it pre=dates some of the more definitive literary classics such as Huxley’s Brave New World and Orwell’s 1984.
The Question Mark revolves around Guy, a resentful office worker who hates his job and has no significant relationships in his life. Until one night when he is visited by a figure in white, who takes him two hundred years into the future. Guided by Dr. Wayland, Guy sees a society that has resolved its issues with religion and economics, individuals are encouraged to be expressive, mountaineering is a popular pastime and everyone is provided with a “power box” which is used for communication and entertainment. However, amidst this world, Guy soon learns that the future may not be all it’s cracked up to be.
What is interesting about The Question Mark is its prophetic nature; particularly as the power box can be likened to a smartphone. Jaegar also makes some interesting points about how liberty can be taken for granted and how it can breed overly sensitive consumers. However, The Question Mark has an unusual narrative style. There are points when it reads like a typical piece of fiction, building up Guy’s mediocre existence for the reader’s empathy, but then will read as if it is providing evidence for a much wider hypothesis (Jaeger’s intention with this novel was to provide an alternative approach to writing about utopia); it can be off-putting.
Given the writing style, The Question Mark isn’t a seminal piece of dystopian fiction but more a critique of one. However, it demonstrates the need, back in 1926, for the genre to introduce hints to the reader that they take the time they live in for granted; this in itself makes The Question Mark memorable despite its narrative flaws.
