Essay Questions

Why does Alfred become enraged with the soldiers after Hermann's death?

Although Hermann's death angers and saddens Alfred, it doesn't make him enraged; after all, the men half expected that they would be killed, especially if the Nazis found them in possession of the book, and Hermann's actions deliberately drew the soldiers to him so that Fred could escape unnoticed. Alfred was sad that Hermann died, but not enraged. His rage comes after Hermann's death when it becomes apparent that his life had no worth to the soldiers.

The soldiers are looking for the book, and when they cannot find it, they kick at Hermann's body as it lies in front of them. It is no more than an object to them; a piece of detritus on the ground that might be hiding the book that they are looking for. When it becomes clear this is not the case, they kick the body anyway because they have no further use for it. Clearly Hermann's life meant nothing to them because his death means nothing. They kick the body because they do not see him as human (dead, or alive) and this is why Alfred finds himself so filled with rage.

Why did the author choose to use a pseudonym when she published the book?

Burdekin had two reasons for writing the book under another name. The first was that in her experience society would accept only certain types of novels that were written by women. Futuristic dystopian fiction tended not to be one of these, and so she believed that the book would be more acceptable to both publishers and readers if it was seen to be authored by a man. She selected a male name so that fans of this genre would not be put off, or dismiss the book before they even opened it.

The second reason for the pseudonym was fear of reprisals. After all, war had not even been officially declared when the book was published, although it was close. Literature that raised the country up and showed the Nazis in defeat was what was needed, not novels that showed what might happen if the Allies lost. The book is also rather left leaning at Britain at the time was a far more middle-ground kind of country where Communism was as frowned upon as Fascism despite the fact that Russia became an ally during the conflict. Fearing that reprisal might harm her family as well as herself, Burdekin opted for a pseudonym as a form of security and protection.