Shades of Grey 1: The Road to High Saffron
 Shades of Grey |
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| Author | Jasper Fforde |
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| Cover artist | Steven Wilson |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Genre | fantasy, science fiction |
| Publisher | Viking Adult (US), Hodder & Stoughton (UK) |
| Published | December 2009 |
| Media type | Print (hardcover) |
| Followed by | Shades of Grey 2: Painting by Numbers |
Shades of Grey 1: The Road to High Saffron (simply titled Shades of Grey originally) is a dystopian novel, the first in the "Shades of Grey" series by novelist Jasper Fforde. The story takes place in Chromatacia, an alternate version of the United Kingdom wherein social class is determined by one's ability to perceive colour.
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[edit] Plot Summary
Chromatacia is a future dystopian society that exists at least five hundred years (although possibly more) after the collapse of our own society's future, identified as 'the Previous'. All life is governed by the laws set by Munsell, the supposed and revered founder of Chromaticia. The rules range from sensible, such as outlawing murder, to bizarre, such as outlawing the manufacture of spoons (though old spoons are often kept as personal heirlooms). The social hierarchy of Chromatica is defined by the ability to see colour, which is limited in most people to varying degrees of one shade, or at most two. The perception of colour also affects their health and wellness: certain colours have medical effects on people, and doctors in this world are called "swatchmen", since they show swatches of colour to their patients. Shades of green, especially Lincoln green, act as a narcotic, and are often abused as recreational drugs. People without the ability to see color are called Greys and are lowest in the social order. Surnames and names of towns are usually derived from various shades of colour, such as jade, Carmine and saffron.
Protagonist Eddie Russett is a 'Red' sent to the outer-fringe town of East Carmine to conduct a chair census, which he speculates is punishment for a practical joke played on the son of a prefect. There he meets Jane, a Grey with a retroussé nose and a fierce temper, who often causes personal injury to whoever she meets. His father becomes the swatchman of the village and is well liked by the Greys. In the course of the story, Eddie discovers that much of what the government has told the public is not true; in particular, that misfits sent to the deserted town of High Saffron are not brainwashed, as he had believed, but killed, as a building there is a colour that is poisonous to look at. Eddie falls in love with Jane, who is re-classified as a 'Green' when she takes a colour perception test, making their love illegal, due to the incompatibility of green and red. However, they plan to investigate the mysterious past of Chromatacia in secret, namely the mysterious 'Something That Happened' that led to the creation of their society.
Details within the story reveal that East Carmine is located in Wales (the A470 road is mentioned) and the description of the town close to the lower of a series of five dams reveal it to be Rhayader at the foot of the Elan Valley.[1] Nearby Rusty Hill was once Builth Wells [1], whereas the town of Vermillion used to be Hereford.[1] The town of High Saffron is on the coast beyond the dams, which suggests Aberystwyth.
The color values as described in the book come from the Munsell color system as described by Albert Henry Munsell, and the "Ishihara", a test used to determine one's colour vision, is most likely a reference to Shinobu Ishihara, the inventor of the colour perception test.
[edit] Inspiration
The beginning of the book contains a quote from philosopher Alfred North Whitehead on the subject of colour that reads,
| “ | There is no light or colour as a fact in external nature. There is merely motion of material. ... When the light enters your eyes and falls on the retina, there is motion of material. Then your nerves are affected and your brain is affected, and again this is merely motion of material. ... The mind in apprehending experiences sensations which, properly speaking, are qualities of the mind alone. | ” |
[edit] Allusions to Popular Culture
The society of Chromatacia holds an emphasis on literalism, and therefore rejects works of fiction from the past civilizations (aside from the encouraged "very racy novels"). Because of this, several obsolete and poorly understood allusions are made throughout the novel. One novel, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, is referenced frequently. For example, when a Chromotacian is scheduled to go to Reboot, they often call it going to, "Emerald City on the night train." Additionally, flying monkeys are a cultural equivalent of the bogeyman. Perhaps because of the literal nature of society, flirtation is often misinterpreted or completely disregarded. This is seen when Eddie happens upon footage from Raiders of the Lost Ark, and doesn't understand why the male and female protagonist are kissing when, mere moments before, they appeared to be having an argument.
[edit] Physical Alterations
It is suggested throughout the novel that the race in Chromatacia is not entirely human. While they are surrounded by images from past civilizations and reference actual cultural artifacts and events, numerous comments are made about how strange and "pig-like" human appearance is, suggesting that citizens of Chromatacia may have evolved from something else, or have human ancestry and have evolved to look physically different. However, aside from the mention of Jane's nose, their physical attributes are not explored in-depth. All that is known is that Chromatacians can only see certain colors, and their pupils do not dilate, meaning that they cannot see in the dark. Both of these conditions appear to have been created somehow by the government rather than being an actual evolutionary feature.
[edit] References
- ^ a b c Fforde, Jasper. "Shades of Grey - Sleuthing". http://www.jasperfforde.com/grey/sleuth.html. Retrieved December 9, 2010.
[edit] External links
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