The Road to Corbyn: A Modern Day Pilgrim's Progress

Following the style of Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s Progress, The Road to Corbyn begins with the conceit of a dream in which Pilgrim, a contemporary seeker after truth, is introduced to the characters Hope, Charity, and the Interpreter. The Interpreter is Pilgrim’s guide, the voice that presents the big picture of the human species and their development, particularly within the last two hundred and fifty years. The Interpreter’s underlying beliefs about truth serve in this work as a secular counterpart to Bunyan’s belief in evangelical Christianity. The Interpreter’s concerns are with inequality and the unjust distribution of wealth, the suffering that is thereby caused, and the deceptions of self and others that are needed to justify the power structures and politics that reinforce these inequalities and injustices. Pilgrim finds that his specific journey is through the lifetime of the 2010-2015 UK government, continuing past the general election of May 2015 and on to the emergence of Jeremy Corbyn as leader of the Labour Party in opposition. Pilgrim meets those in charge of the prime offices of state such as Health and Welfare, Education and the Treasury – and the Prime Minster himself, as well as the leader of a state similar to the modern Russian federation. Rob Donovan has created a fantasy novel that is hostile to the ideology now shaping the government of the UK. The Road to Corbyn is a telling insight into the mindset of a right-wing government and will appeal to those interested in the UK government and 21st century politics.