Perspectives

Literary period

The short story “Examination Day” belongs to the science fiction genre. While science fiction is a difficult genre to define, Henry Slesar’s story does have several characteristics that are common for his genre: the Jordans live in a futuristic, technologically advanced, dystopian society, led by a government that strictly controls its citizens.

The story was published in 1958 in men’s magazine Playboy and fits in the New Wave movement, which defines most of science fiction literature published between the late 1950s and the 1980s. During the New Wave movement, the science fiction genre entered mainstream culture and science fiction stories began to be published in large-circulation magazines.

In terms of narrative techniques, “Examination Day” uses irony, which is often found in works about dystopian societies. The use of irony highlights the dangers of allowing governments to interfere in citizens’ lives through an exaggerated scenario in which individual and collective intellige...