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| Agatha Christie |
Under a
blanket of darkness and fears (and under my own blankets, as well), I read
Agatha Christie’s odd little novel, Passenger to Frankfurt. Published in
1970 when Christie was in her 80s, she says in her introduction: “This story is
in essence a fantasy. It pretends to be nothing more.” (xv) And so it was. It
was part spy novel, with the main plot centred on a group of dedicated Brits
who uncover a secret anarchist plan to usurp governments around the world.
There was no “chief inspector” or “clever Belgian detective” to solve the
mystery. The main character was the ironic-to-the-core, mid-level diplomat Sir
Stafford Nye ("Staffy"), who is taken under the wing of the
investigating team by the beautiful and mysterious Countess Zerkowski. There is
also the great-aunt of Sir Stafford’s, Lady Matilda who, though approaching
ninety is sharp as a tack and still has connections with Intelligence agencies
as well as in political and scientific circles, making her a valuable agent in
the service of what today we might call, the “cointelpro” (counter intelligence
program) of our heroes.
The novel
is also part science fiction, with a quest to discover and secure a British
scientist’s secret “Project Benvo”, and keep it from the clutches of the
anarchist cabal. So: it’s a fantasy with a set of odd-ball British characters
and batch of not-as-clever-as-they-thought-they-were baddies (who, of course,
lose in the end).
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| Soldiers Patrol Streets of Montreal, October 1970 |
Throughout
the novel there are depictions of growing civil strife, of strikes and
picketing, protests and riots, and as the anarchist plan for global dominion
(if that’s what anarchists do) meets with increasing success, cities and
regions in various parts of the world (though strangely not in London or in
England) descend into chaos and misrule. We learn that the plotters are led by
a small group of fabulously rich industrial magnates who use their wealth and
power to direct such things as an “Aryan” revival and the creation of a cult
centered around the son of Adolf Hitler who, for those in the know, did not
commit suicide in that bunker in Berlin in 1945 with his girlfriend and their
pet schnauzer. (It was a double--Hitler, not the schnauzer.) Au contraire! Hitler secretly fled
Berlin and headed for every Nazi’s favourite holiday spot—Argentina. And as
luck would have it, he had a son who grew up to be a cross between Jim Morrison and Jesus
on the charisma-scale, and who then proceeds to wow young audiences everywhere
and lead young minds astray with his neo-nazi rhetoric. Fourth Reich here we
come!
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| UK Miner Strike, 1969 |
A further
development occurs later on when Aunt Matilda, Staffy and the rest of the
crew learn that the baddies are searching for retired scientist Professor
Shoreham who had developed a secret formula for a gas that induces in humans a
permanent state of—wait for it!—benevolence, hence the name, “Project
Benvo”. Professor Shoreham decided to develop a weapon that didn't blow
things up or make people glow in the dark. He took a different tack. It’s
unclear by the end whether his weapon is used against the rioters and guerilla
armies of anarchists, or whether people will have to rely on old-fashioned
natural expressions of human benevolence to keep things on an even keel. But at
least Sir Stafford and Countess Zerkowski will marry. Gotta love those happy
endings!
Oddly
enough, this rather predictable thriller, as forgettable as it was—or should
be—had some resonance with me: It was Christie’s depictions of increased social
tensions, of strikes and riots and looting, and eventually the overthrow of a
number of governments that gave me pause.
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| Protestors: Democratic Party Convention 1968, Chicago |
In the
novel, it is the youth, the young people of the world who were manipulated and
recruited into the ranks of the wealthy industrialists’ militias, and supplied
with weapons and strategic support. They were caught up in the “disinformation”
propaganda campaigns and “fake news” generated by the cabal’s leaders and
channelled into movements and organizations funded and directed by them. (So,
it's kind of like the “Bilderbergers”, right?) Oh, if only there were real
life conspiracies that worked half so well, then we could all be happy,
healthy sheep, getting fleeced only occasionally.
As of
this date, the protests in the wake of the murder of George Floyd in
Minneapolis continue, most notably in the city of Portland Oregon, and the full
effects of them have yet to be felt. As well, failure on the part of the
courts to thoroughly prosecute the police officers responsible for the crime
could lead to further and perhaps more violent protests. Time will tell.
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| French Student Protests, May 1968 |
As I said, the novel had resonance for me, what with the civil distress
and disorder we’re now experiencing. I couldn’t just toss it onto my “DONE!”
pile and ignore it as a so-so fantasy. Christie herself must have been thinking
about the disorders she was witnessing, or those that had recently occurred as
she wrote Passenger—disorders, such as the UK's miner’s strike in 1969,
the activities of the German, far left terrorist organization, the “Red Army Faction” (also known as the Baader-Meinhof
gang) in Europe, the PLO (remember them?), the
Viet Nam war protests, riots at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago
in 1968, Martin Luther King and Robert Kennedy’s assassinations, the Black
Panther movement, plane hijackings, the IRA, and so on.
So she rolled them up into
one big set of fictional no-goodniks and let her chipper band of do-gooder Brit sleuths go get the goods on the
baddies who were causing all the trouble.
Except today, the troubles are real. Some of them have been caused by cabals
and hidden shysters, but most of the reasons for the unrest are out in the
open, even if we don’t recognize or acknowledge them. We have riots and
strikes and terrorism, and wars and conflicts, and we also have a pandemic and
a failing economic system to contend with (as well as climate change). And try
as we might to change gears that darn clutch keeps grinding and grinding.
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| Portland Police-Violence Protest Last Week |
I can see the youth of today--globally--the Millennials, GenZ who, like
Christie's youth in her novel, are getting really annoyed with how things are going,
and how their futures and their children’s futures have been dramatically
impacted by past generations' wayward practices and indulgences. We need
generational change, a turning of the page, a changing of the guard—however
you want to say it. Let the new generations clean house, though hopefully in ways that support and promote democratic principles and rights. Then let all the grandpas and grandmas hoe their gardens,
drink their tea and mind their business.
Nuff said, Jake.
Agatha
Christie, Passenger To Frankfurt,
G.P. Putnam’s Sons. Penguin group (USA) Inc., 1970.
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