The yellow sign: reputation and ruining in speculative fiction

The King in Yellow: The Repairer of Reputations:

We all care about what others think of us — we are social animals; it would be hard for people to not care. And yet, we are at our most isolated today than at any other point in human history. Image is all that matters, we are told. It does not matter who you are or what you believe in; the only things that matter are who people think you are or what people think you believe in. You can’t fake influence, after all.

These are not new problems or new fears — they were being explored in weird fiction over a hundred years ago. “The Repairer of Reputations” (1895) by R. W. Chambers is a haunting and psychologically intricate story that blends elements of speculative fiction, psychological horror, and political intrigue.

Set in 1920, the world has evolved into a nationalistic dystopia where the concept of reputation has evolved into a central, almost terrifying, societal force. The story begins with the protagonist and narrator, Hildred Castaigne, attending the inauguration of the first Government Lethal Chamber in Washington Park, New York City, following the repeal of the federal laws prohibiting suicide. (Anyone remember the booths from Futurama?) As Castaigne goes about his daily life, the eeriness of his world begins to set in.

His friend and confidante, Mr. Wilde, is a strange man with a stranger cat, a repairer of reputations who is paid tens of thousands of dollars to fix men’s social reputations for ills ranging from being unlucky in betting to failing in military duties. He has five hundred men at his beck and call, including some of the best and brightest of New York City.

In Mr. Wilde’s possession is a manuscript titled “THE IMPERIAL DYNASTY OF AMERICA,” a proof of lineage that Hildred Castaigne is, and would be, in line to be King of America. The only problem in their way is the fact that the United States is still a democracy. With the backing of the mysterious King in Yellow, hundreds of thousands of people across the country would rebel at a moment’s notice upon seeing the Yellow Sign.

Castaigne’s ambitions come to a head when he opens the steel safe in his room to try on the Imperial Crown of America, a beautiful, hammered gold crown inset with jewels that defied description. It is at this moment that we, the readers, begin to question the world that Castaigne has described to us. His cousin, Louis, walks in and asks if Hildred is feeling ill. Why is he wearing a tattered crown made of brass and paste? What follows is a rapid downward spiral, where Castaigne’s grip on his reality is shown to be drifting further and further from the world that everyone else lives in.

Upon being questioned, Castaigne dons the robe and crown of his “birthright,” attempting to use his authority as king to order his cousin’s execution. When that fails, he runs to Mr. Wilde’s house, intending to have the Yellow Sign sent out across the country. When he arrives, Castaigne finds Mr. Wilde dying, having been mauled by his own house cat. The story ends abruptly, with Castaigne hauled off to an asylum immediately after finding Mr. Wilde’s body. A simple editor’s note states that Castaigne died the next morning.

What is there to learn from this spiraling story of ambition amidst dystopia? What really connects to today?

Remember that people are exactly that — people. Check in on your friends, especially if they are going through a hard time. Reputation is not everything, and be wary of those who are integrally tied to games of reputation. Finally, don’t try to be the king of America.