Mr. Tickle by Roger Hargreaves (1971)
Mr. Tickle was written in 1971 and if we wish to gain a greater understanding of this work, then we need to consider the political and historical landscape of the time, as so much of it is reflected in the subtleties of the text. This was the year that the UK changed its currency through decimalization. While Cambodia was ravaged by the Khmer Rouge, America opened Disney World as a shrine to capitalism and consumerism. These were turbulent times which saw the passing of old established world orders. The idea of whether the individual can have a meaningful impact upon the world during such an era is examined and stripped bare in Mr. Tickle, if one takes the time to find it.
Mr. Tickle was written in 1971 and if we wish to gain a greater understanding of this work, then we need to consider the political and historical landscape of the time, as so much of it is reflected in the subtleties of the text. This was the year that the UK changed its currency through decimalization. While Cambodia was ravaged by the Khmer Rouge, America opened Disney World as a shrine to capitalism and consumerism. These were turbulent times which saw the passing of old established world orders. The idea of whether the individual can have a meaningful impact upon the world during such an era is examined and stripped bare in Mr. Tickle, if one takes the time to find it.
Roger Hargreaves’ first work, Mr. Happy is regarded by many as his masterpiece. Mr. Tickle is something of a rarity amongst his body of work as it bucks the author’s previous style. The impact of excess or entrenched dogma, as seen in Mr. Greedy and Mr. Messy, are not explored in this story. Nor are the complex social ramifications of such monomanias dissected, as in those erudite cautionary tales, Mr. Nosey and Mr. Noisy. Mr. Tickle is a far more existential tale and easily the equal of Catcher in the Rye.
In many respects Mr. Tickle is an enigma, depicting a man free from the restraints of civilization. His pursuit of sensual enjoyment via the medium of tickling is both hedonistic and threatens the social order. For example he causes a postman to drop all his letters in a puddle, the tickling of a policeman ends in a traffic jam and his unbridled tactile stimulation of a Teacher leads to a rapid breakdown of classroom discipline. Yet it also demonstrates society’s inability to deal with anything outside of perceived social norms and customs. It is interesting to note that no sanction is taken against Mr. Tickle and the author cunningly infers that the protagonist actions ultimately liberate his “victims”, like a bizarre form of “Stockholm Syndrome”.
Does this make Mr. Tickle a terrorist? His weapons are laughter and his extraordinary long arms, yet they are as devastatingly effective to the establishment, as an AK-47 or a hand grenade. Though his principal targets wear uniforms, Mr. Tickle does not have the same goals as the contemporary revolutionary organisations such as the Red Brigade or the Baader-Meinhof Group. Hargreaves’ is not interested in over throwing the established order from without but seeking reform from within, by the removal of social conditioning. Freedom through “tickling” is used as a metaphor for existential self-realisation.
It should be noted that Mr. Tickle himself is not an unchecked force of nature. Indeed he is the embodiment of measured restraint and not tainted by the “shock and awe” excesses of the Robert McNamara generation. At the end of his day’s exploits he calmly reflects on events, in a sober and sanguine fashion from the comfort of his armchair. He extols the virtues of catharsis as an escape from restrictive social conventions and entrenched establishment dogma. He demonstrates that all humans need to embrace their desires to a degree and to deny them is to deny our very humanity. Cormac McCarthy takes two hundred and forty six pages to reach this conclusion, in his novel The Road. Hargreaves does it in thirty two.
Carnacki the Ghost-Finder by William Hope Hodgson (1913)
William Hope Hodgson (November 15, 1877 – April 1918) was an English author with a penchant for baroque and arcane horror, fantasy and science fiction. His style and insight drew heavily on his own colourful experiences. The son of a Priest he ran away to sea at an early age and travelled widely. He was a keen amateur photographer and achieved some renown as a bodybuilder and escapologist. He died in World War I at the age of 40. Although moderately successful during his lifetime it was not until after his death that his work, especially his short stories, received the acclaim they deserved. This was mainly due to posthumous publication of all the material regarding one Thomas Carnacki; investigator of the supernatural.
William Hope Hodgson (November 15, 1877 – April 1918) was an English author with a penchant for baroque and arcane horror, fantasy and science fiction. His style and insight drew heavily on his own colourful experiences. The son of a Priest he ran away to sea at an early age and travelled widely. He was a keen amateur photographer and achieved some renown as a body-builder and escapologist. He died in World War I at the age of 40. Although moderately successful during his lifetime it was not until after his death that his work, especially his short stories, received the acclaim they deserved. This was mainly due to posthumous publication of all the material regarding one Thomas Carnacki; investigator of the supernatural.
Hodgson’s work is in a similar vein to that of H.P. Lovecraft, M.R. James and Ambrose Bierce. He frequently hints at the horrific and implies that there are ancient and powerful forces at work. These are of a magnitude beyond human comprehension. Hodgson writes with such conviction you get the impression that he may have personally experienced the occult, something I have often suspected of Dennis Wheatley. Writing at the turn of the 19th century, Hodgson mixes modern science along with contemporary technology with the occult and the esoteric; a style later utilised to great success by Nigel Kneale.
The Carnacki stories are a variation on the tradition fictional detective such as Sherlock Holmes. Carnacki lives in a bachelor flat in Cheyne Walk, Chelsea. The stories are told from a first-person perspective by Dodgson, one of Carnacki’s four friends, very much in the style of John Watson. However where Conan Doyle never made use of the supernatural except as a red herring, its a pivotal theme of the Carnacki stories. The character of Carnacki was loosely inspired in part by Dr. Hesselius, scientist with a supernatural perspective, who appeared in short stories by the Irish fantasy writer Sheridan Le Fanu.
Hodgson’s short stories follow an established framework; Carnacki intermittently sends invitations to four friends, asking them to come to dinner and hear his latest exploits. One of these, Dodgson, then recounts the evening entertainment to us the reader. Carnacki avoids discussion of the case until after dinner, then lights his pipe, settles into his favourite chair and recounts the tale to his audience. Each of Carnacki’s adventures takes the form of an investigation into an unusual haunting, which Carnacki has been engaged to not only investigate but end. He employs a variety of scientific methods in his investigations, as well as resorting to more traditional folk-lore. He often uses such technology as photography as well as his own bespoke scientific device, the electric pentacle. He is not dogmatic and always uses evidence to establish conclusions, so in some stories he determines the haunting is real, while in others it is staged or faked by a third party. This variety and the exposure of an occasional hoax make the stories suspenseful. After the tale is complete, Carnacki usually answers a few questions from his guests, then unceremoniously turns them out onto the embankment to return to their respective homes.
What makes the Carnacki stories work so well is the credible and disquieting world of the supernatural he touches upon. He frequently refers to a fictional ancient text known as the Sigsand Manuscript, which is a source of information about protecting oneself from external forces and influences. Carnacki refers to Aeiirii and Saiitii manifestations, the latter being more dangerous and capable of overcoming Carnacki’s protective devices. There are several rites and ceremonies, including the Saaamaaa Ritual, with its mysterious eight signs and “unknown last line”. These are only invoked in times of abject crisis, when not only the physical life but the very soul is in danger. Then the forces that govern the fabric of space and time intervene to restore balance. These references to esoteric fictional occult writings are very much like H. P. Lovecraft’s Necronomicon.
If you like stories about the supernatural and traditional detective material, then Carnacki can provide a rather unique and interesting crossover. They offer an insight into the social and scientific attitudes of the Edwardian period; a time when scientific reason still struggled with entrenched religious dogma. They also serve as a great introduction to the works of William Hope Hodgson. His later novels are now considered to be milestones within the genre.