Episode 15: Daniel Jenkin-Smith, Bureaucracy, Utopia, Dystopia

In this episode, we speak with Daniel Jenkin-Smith, who teaches at the University of Wales Trinity Saint David and is an expert in English and French literature of the long 19th century. Daniel also co-hosts the spectacular Save Me From My Shelf Podcast.In our chat with Daniel, we turn our attention to the topic of bureaucracy: what are its origins, is it fundamentally utopian or dystopian, and where does it feature in utopian and dystopian texts? With reference to Kafka's The Trial, Morris's News from Nowhere, and Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four, among other works, our chat features a number of insights on the utopian and dystopian genres.Daniel's book, The Rise of Office Literature: Bureaucratization and Aesthetics in Britain and France, 1810-1900 (2025) is published by Bloomsbury.The Save Me From My Shelf podcast can be found on Spotify and all other good podcasting services.Daniel can also be found at dcjenkin-smith.bsky.socialIf you enjoyed this episode, please let us know! You can follow and rate the podcast, leave us a comment, or email us on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]