Jane Loudon (1807–1858)

[The Mummy!: A tale of the twenty-second century] by Mrs Jane (Webb) Loudon
Published in 1828 this very Victorian novel is now claimed as Proto science fiction along with Mary Shelley’s The last Man published a year earlier. There was of course no such genre as science fiction in those days, but both of these books could lay claim to being part of the genre as we know it today, although in both cases the science fiction element is background to a Romantic Novel.

Rely not on your own strength— seek not to pry into mysteries designed to be concealed from man ; and enjoy the comforts within your reach — for know, that knowledge, above the sphere of man's capacity, produces only wretchedness ; and that to be contented with our station, and to make our selves useful to our fellow-creatures, is the only true path to happiness.”

The final words of wisdom from the Mummy (Cheops) who flits in and out of the novel: stalking around London using his supernatural powers to bend characters to his will. The story is the familiar trope of star crossed lovers at a time in England (the twenty second century) when the population are content once again to live under the rule of an enlightened female monarch. The queen chosen is hereditary, but she must gain the support of the people’s elected representatives. She lives in a palace surrounded by her courtiers who are all members of the aristocracy, because as we all know it is only the aristocrats who are fit to rule (at least according to Jane Loudon) and this theme highlights the odd mixture that makes up this novel. It is as though early Victorian society with all its culture has been transposed to the twenty second century. People still travel by horseback, war is conducted largely on horseback with the use of cannon fire. Victorian values abound and heroes act heroically and ladies faint and swoon at appropriate moments. Science seems to be in the hands of mavericks like Dr Entwerfen who with his galvanising machine brings the Egyptian king Cheops (the Mummy) to life.

Society in the twenty second century seems to be much as it was in Victorian times with a few notable inventions; the delivery of mail by the use of cannons and safety nets, houses that can be packed up and wheeled to different locations, tunnels built under the sea (connecting England to Ireland) and the use of balloons as a method of transport, both private and public. There are other examples, but these have not significantly changed the way people live although all the population have been educated to an incredibly high standard: all fluent in most other languages (otherwise how would they understand Cheops).

The book (free on Google Books) is in three volumes. Volume I sets the scene in England and introduces us to the characters who will feature in the story, it also covers Dr Entwerfen and Edric’s trip to Egypt where they are intent on an experiment to bring back to life one of the ancient kings of Egypt. The journey into the great Pyramid is suitably creepy and atmospheric, but Dr Entwerfen and Edric’s capture and trial by the Egyptian authorities is farcical and when reading this I am not sure whether it is Jane Loudon being satirical/funny or a typical Victorian attitude to a justice system abroad. In Jane Loudon’s defence in Volume III she is equally satirical about the British justice system. Volume I ends with a very British pageant to welcome home Edmund (brother of Edric) who has successfully led the English army in its defeat of the Germans on the continent of Europe: there are so many balloon ships hovering above London and with a suspicion of some sort of insurrection; a spectacular tangle of airships brings many of them tumbling down injuring Queen Claudia in the process. Loudon is at her best in describing the fiasco.

In Volume II we discover that Cheops has escaped to England where he is intent on playing power games with the conspirators who are trying to secure the throne for their favourite Royal daughter. He appears and disappears seemingly at will and the reader is left to wonder just what he is trying to achieve. The majority of Volume II is set in Spain to where Edric and Dr Enterwerfen have managed to escape and describes the Irish king Roderick’s campaign against the Spanish republicans. Loudon is again very good with the action scenes and although her heroes perform superhuman feats in the battles, she also takes time out to describe the horrors of warfare; not only for the combatants but also for the innocent people caught up in the conflict. The last couple of pages of this volume are missing, but the story can easily be picked up at the start of Volume III which describes Roderick's assault on Seville. The scenario switches to England where a diplomatic battle is still going on to secure the throne with Cheops making his timely interventions. Roderick the hero of Spain now crosses over to England in support of the novels favourite candidate for the throne and everything is more or less resolved. The book ends with Cheops revealing his reasons for his actions and presents a satisfying conclusion.

I enjoyed the read and could not help but compare it to Mary Shelly’s The Last Man (her Frankenstein is in a different class ). There is perhaps more science fiction in The Mummy for instance; automatons, galvanisation and tunnels under the sea, but they are peripheral to the action and storyline. Jane Loudon also has a wicked sense of humour and her storytelling is very good, tying up all the loose ends and although there are some amazing coincidences we can forgive these in the interest of the fiction. Science Fiction readers may be disappointed, but it is responsible for starting one of the most abiding tropes in the horror and fantasy world and I liked it well enough to give it 3.5 stars.… (mehr)

The opening of the third volume of The Mummy! is a bit bizarre; the Irish forces are invading Spain, and yet we are meant to see the Spanish as awful people for attacking the Irish camp. This is, of course, because the Spanish believe in democracy, which is the tyranny of the majority and the very worst of political systems. I mean, vote on people if you want, but make sure a sovereign is in charge of the whole thing. The last volume also has my favorite sequence, when we see that even if you replace all the lawyers with robots, they still given long, irrelevant speeches no one wants to hear.… (mehr)

Despite reading The Mummy! once, I ended up having to read it again in short order because I decided to write about it, and the version that I read was unfortunately abridged. So an impromptu journey through the full version-- thankfully available on Google Books-- was born. The Mummy! was definitely slower this time around, though I don't know if that's because it was unabridged or because I'd read it all before. But it was still enjoyable, and the full version includes more scenes of the lower classes being overeducated, which was one of my favorite jokes in the book. The best additional scene, though, was when Dr. Entwerfen and Edric are put on trial in Egypt for violating a pyramid, only it turns out the witnesses are more interested in what they ate for breakfast.… (mehr)