With close reference to the text of the short story Billenium explore the following questions in

detail. Remember to include quotations and page numbers for the quotations in your answers:

1- Write a detailed synopsis of the story.

The story billenium, written by J.G. Ballard, deals with a distant future and a city that is facing the
problem of overpopulation. The protagonist of the story, Ward, lives in a small cubicle as there are
too many people for him to live in a bigger place. In the story, there is a moment in which the
protagonist starts living with a man named Henry Rossiter. They become friends, despite of their
different personalities. Once, they found a victorian wardrobe where they can have much more space
than they had before. In there, they enjoyed a lot of time together, as they have never had such a
“huge” space before. They invited their girlfriends to live there with them, that ended up inviting their
own families. With the passing of time, they started having less space for them to live. Ward, though
he could get money from it and people started paying to live in the wardrobe. He became in what he
hated the most, he only cared about the money and prefered that instead of spending time alone with
his friend. At the end of the story, they dismantled the victorian wardrobe as it occupied a lot of space.
This shows how they ended up destroying what actually made them happy only for some money.
2- Discuss the theme of over-population and the effect it has on both the way of life and quality
of life of the inhabitants of the city.
 Overpopulation is a very present and important theme in the story. We can see how, in a distant
future, this affects daily life and, how things like money lose value due to the fact that there are no
more spaces to be bought. It has a huge effect on the way and quality of life, to a certain extent that
there is a phenomenon as it is the “pedestrian jam”. This is when the number of people living
somewhere is so big that there is a “human jam” on the street that does not allow anyone to advance.
It is so massive that the main character stays there for 48 hours.
 3- The quest for living space has become an overriding obsession with the people of the city.
Discuss this theme in detail. Include in your answer some discussion of the ways in which Ballard
makes the quest for space dominate the characters’ lives.
The search for living space, is something present in the people’s daily life as the overpopulation is
affecting their country and limiting his living space. Finding the victorian wardrobe is a key issue in the
story as it shows how not only the proganosists but also their girlfriends and family are desperate to
found a bigger space to live. To have a bigger living space is the purpose of each human being.
However, once Ward and Rossiter achieved this they ended up destroying it. The craving for money
ended up being more important than living in better condition which lead them to dismantling  the
victorian furniture and destroying the only thing that could provide them a better place to live.
Moreover, the threats of the government to reduce the space allowed, contributed to the constant
obsession of people to quest for more space as they are afraid of having no space to live.
 4- What sort of relationship does Ballard put forward between the inner world of the individual
(as represented by Ward and Rossiter) and the outer world in which they live. In other words,
how does Ballard conceptualise the effect of surviving daily life in a hopelessly over-crowded city
on the consciousness of the individual as demonstrated by the ways in which Ward and Rossiter
manage the gift of space in the secret room they discover?
Ward and Rossiter dislike and criticize the way in which the government deals with overpopulation.
They, instead of giving people more space, reduce the living space to make more cubicles for people
to live. This actually ends up increasing and contributing to overpopulation instead of solving the
problem. Moreover, the government also persuades people to have more children by telling them they
would actually have more space if they have a minimum of three children. This is ironic as the way of
solving this problem, in the eyes of this government, is to increase the population. The protagonist are
criticizing this as they are living in 3 ½ square meters and the government is failing to realize this. 
5- In the story, Ballard does attempt some sort of explanation of the social, political and
economic causes of the extreme over-population that has beset the world. Explain his views as
they are presented in the story.
In the story, Ballard does attempt some sort of explanation of the social, political and economic
causes of the extreme over-population that has beset the world. People are told to have 3 children,
however, the space wasn’t enough. When they had numerous families, some more space was provided
but it wasn’t too much so it was practically the same situation as before. The government is trying to
“solve” overpopulation by telling people to have several kids which is actually ironic as it won’t lead to
any solution. The author is trying to show how the persuade from the government to have various
kids may have lead to overpopulation.
 6- Do you agree with his argument? Do you think that current population growth projections
indicate that we are likely to end up in the situation portrayed in the story?
We, think we are not going to end up as the future portrayed in the story. Nowadays people are
having less children everyday and for the world to end up like that, a lot of time has to go by. For it to
happen, the government has to take very bad choices and population has to grow a lot in very few
time which is why we think it is not much possible for it to happen. We are not close to this happening
so we may think that this will never happen. However, we are not saying that is impossible. If people
start having more children and the rate of mortality goes down, with the passing of years this may be
our future. 
7- Describe and analyse Ward’s character in some detail. What values does he hold? Why does
Ballard make use of this type of character as the main character for this story?
Ward, the protagonist of the story, shares the living space with Henry Rossiter. He is not as
aggressive as his living partener and appreciates the time they spent together alone in the victorian
wardrobe. He is more affected than Rossiter when they destroyed the furniture as he appreciated
more. The wardrobe was very important for him and he ruined it by being convinced by his partner. He
hates the greedy landlords and ends up becoming one of them. 
8-What role does Rossiter play in the story?
Rossiter appears in the story as he starts living with Ward when he moves into a new cubicle. He has a
very different personality than Ward as he is more aggressive than the protagonist is. persuades Ward
to let their girlfriends into the spare room. This is a disastrous move as the girls bring in their families
too by and by. He sacrifices the one thing that symbolizes beauty in their lives, the Victorian wardrobe,
and ruin the little happiness they had achieved. 
9-Describe the role of the female characters in the story.
The women present in this story had a very important role as they convinced Ward and Rossiter to let
more people into the wardrobe. If they hadn’t been convinced, they would have been able to enjoy the
big space themselves and probably, Ward wouldn’t have become a greedy landlord. The fact that they
let a lot of people into the victorian furniture led to its dismantling at the end of the story which was
very significant as it showed how they destroyed the one thing that they had left which actually made
them happy and which they actually appreciate,
 10- Discuss the effects that over-population and its attendant ills has had on the nature of
family life in relation to Ward’s family as well as Judith and Helen’s family relationships.
In this distant future portrayed, having a family was beneficial as it provided you a bigger cubicle.
However, they were still trapped in that horrible reality. Despite receiving a bigger cubicle,
overpopulation was a serious problem and it wasn’t being solved. Moreover, it could happen that the
huge quantity of people kept families separated as there were too much people for them to live
together. 

11- What does the secret room symbolise in the story? 

We believe that the secret room actually symbolises freedom and a way of escaping as it provided the
protagonists with the extra space they desired. When they spent time in there they actually felt free,
as if there problems had been solved. The wardrobe was what made them happy for a while until they
ended up destroying it themselves. This one is very important as it shows how opprosed and limited
people where that they found a wardrobe as a place to escape reality and liberate. 
12- Why do you think Ward and Rossiter are unable to keep the gift of space to themselves? Is
Ballard making a comment on how our inner world ultimately reflects the shape of the external
world in which we live?
The protagonists of the story were unable to keep the gift of space to themselves as they weren’t use
to having so much freedom. They had been taught to live in small cubicles and their mind had been
accustomed to it. They were trapped in their limited minds which prohibited them from keeping the
wardrobe and getting used to the “huge” space. As it was something new to them, they didn’t know
what to do. They were used to living and even sharing small cubicles and they had to go from that to
a whole different situation in the one they found themselves having a lot of space left. 
13- What sort of living arrangement do they eventually end up allowing (and accommodating to)
in their secret room?
At the end of the story, they let more people into the wardrobe and by this limiting the amount of
space they could have. By inviting their girlfriends and families, they ended up having less space than
they had in the cubicles. Moreover, they ended up gaining profit from it as people had to pay to enjoy
the huge space provided by the secret wardrobe. By doing this, Ward ended up becoming in a greedy
landlord.
 14- Discuss Ballard’s style and language in the story? Consider also in what ways it is
appropriate to the nature of the story being told. 
Ballard tries to use different vocabulary that can express how overpopulation was affecting the
people  and how reduced the space of the cubicle actually is. Some examples of these expression are:
“tramp of feet”and  “pedestrian jam”. This sentences show how horrible and significant the
overpopulation was and how limited the space was for people. Their were so many people that you
could even get stacked in a pedestrian jam for forty eight hours. At every time of the day you could
hear the noisy people around you which created a very oppressive atmosphere.
 
In Billennium by J. G. Ballard we have the theme of confinement, corruption, paralysis, freedom and
acceptance. Narrated in the third person by an unnamed narrator the reader realises after reading
the story that Ballard may be exploring the theme of confinement. The world’s population has
reached 20,000 million and there is very little space for people to live in. The cities are full of people
who are living in confined conditions which in today’s terms would be deemed to be impractical. It is
also noticeable that the streets are heavily populated by people and Ballard highlights this on several
occasions notably when Ward can’t get to his cubicle for forty-eight hours. It is also interesting that
the landlords tend to adhere to the required legislation that is in place even though it is also
impractical. It is as though the government or those in authority are unable to get the balance right
between urban and rural space. Though the world’s population is excessively high there does not
seem to be any logic in the actions of those in authority who often doctor the figures to appease the
people. Which may suggest that there is a level of corruption within the corridors of power and which
would again highlight the lack of any real insight into urban or rural planning.
The theme of paralysis is self-evident in the story. Ward and Rossiter when they are on the street
have to move slowly due to the volume of people. Similarly Ward’s movements not only in his cubicle
but in the room that he and Rossiter discover are also limited. With there being little or no
movement. At no stage does the reader feel as though Ward has any freedom. Either in his
movements or in how he lives his life. Which may be important as Ballard may be suggesting that
one of the prices to be paid for having such a large population is the loss of personal freedom. Ward
rarely leaves his cubicle only doing so to go to work. The rest of his time is spent in his cubicle or
room. It is also noticeable that Ward is not the only one who suffers a loss of freedom. Rossiter too
along with those who move into the room with Ward also lose some element of freedom. With the
only privacy being the partitions that Rossiter has built.
It is also noticeable that what should have been a happy experience of moving into a bigger room
becomes something or a mini nightmare for Ward. He has less space than he ever had before and is
playing with the idea of moving out. The constant moving from room or cubicle by individuals in the
story could also be important as it suggests that people are in continual transition. They are never
afforded the important opportunity to settle in the one place. It may also be significant that the
minimum amount of children that a couple are allowed to have is three. This seems to be ridiculous
considering that there is no longer much space to provide housing and shelter to people. The best
they can hope for is a room of their own. If anything the situation in the story appears to be that as
the population of the world grows larger. The space for each individual gets smaller. There does not
seem to be any appropriate management of either the growth of the population or the space
provided to them. Which suggests that those in authority may have run out of ideas. Which may be
the point that Ballard is trying to make. He may be suggesting that those in authority have made no
plans for the future and the results will only be chaos.
It is also interesting that each character in the story accepts their position particularly Ward. He had
the ability to refuse others the benefit of living in the bigger room but he choose not to. The effect
being that Ward is the one who is suffering. Though some critics might suggest that Ward is just
being altruistic. He is nonetheless paying the heaviest price. He had the opportunity to live freely with
Rossiter but chose a different path. A path that leaves Ward paralysed. Both he and Rossiter on
discovery of the room could have said nothing to others. Giving them the chance to re-evaluate their
lives rather than being stuck in a confined space with others. It is understandable as to why Ward
may have acted so generously. It may be his nature not to see others he knows suffer. Though the
reality is all Ward and Rossiter have done is replicated what the government would have instructed
when it comes to living arrangements. At the end of the story there has been very little or no
movement for any of the characters. Their address or location may have changed but their conditions
are the same. Like others they live in a confined space while those in authority appear to be unable
to find the right balance between accommodating people and allowing them their own space or
freedom.

Metaphorical inferences
The wardrobe is more than just a wardrobe; it stands for beauty and freedom. When Rossiter and
Ward destroy the wardrobe, they are destroying the last traces of beauty from their lives. The word
‘cubicle’ appears several times in the story; it is used as a synonym for room. The word also
symbolizes the lack of personal space and the lack of control over their lives. Even if they wanted to,
they would not be able to move to more spacious accommodation.

Language

The author uses third person narrative throughout. Words are chosen to highlight the crammed
cubicles in which people live out their lives. There is no privacy or comfort. Describing Ward’s cubicle,
the narrator says “partition pressed against his knees and he could hardly move”.

6 Important Quotes - Analysis of Billenium

1. As soon as he saw the advertisement describing the staircase cubicle he had left (like everyone
else he spent most of his spare time scanning the classifieds in the newspapers, moving his lodgings
an average of once every two months) despite the higher rental. A cubicle on the staircase would
almost certainly be on its own.
John Ward lives in a city that teems with three million people with a million being added every year.
He used to share a room with seven other people. The lack of privacy and space used to reduce him
to despair. Most people were unhappy with their lodgings and were constantly on the lookout for
better accommodation. This one that Ward chose seemed promising as he did not have to share it
with anyone though it was tiny.

2. Two years earlier Ward had been caught in one outside the stadium, for fort-eight hours was
trapped in a gigantic pedestrian jam containing over 20,000 people, fed by crowds leaving the
stadium on one side and those approaching it from the other.

Pedestrian jams were one of the features of the dystopian city in which the protagonist lived. The one
in which Ward was caught involved 20,000 people and it carried on for forty-eight hours, during
which it was impossible to move at will. In spite of such gigantic crowds present at the sports events,
people attended them to get away from the tiny cubicles in which they lived.
3. Rossiter smiled. ‘That’s the ultimate argument, isn’t it? They used it twenty-five years ago at the
last revaluation when the minimum was cut from five to four.

Rossiter is the protagonist’s close friend. Unlike John, he is a realist. He is also sharp and matter of
fact. Since he works for the government, he hears bureaucratic rumors about the minimum space for
a cubicle is going to be slashed from four meters to a mere three and a half. Ward is not ready to
believe it as it would need too many adjustments to the existing cubicles which would have to be
shortened by half a meter. But Rossiter reminds him that such reductions have been enforced before
and the city council could well do it again.

4. Ward wiped his eyes, then stood up wearily and reached for the shelves. Relax. I’m on my way.
I’m going to live in a broom cupboard. “Access to staircase” – that’s really rich. Tell me, Louie, is
there life on Uranus?
Ward occupied a cubicle on a staircase that was a little over four meters. For a while it came to no
one’s notice though Rossiter often remarked on the room being spacious.

One evening the manager drops in to say that the authorities have specified that any cubicle that is
larger than four and a half meters will now be considered to be a double cubicle. If Ward wanted to
continue staying there, he would have to pay more rent. The manager’s “access to the staircase” is
ironic because the cubicle is off the staircase and it is really a drawback because the sound of people
trudging up and down is disturbing. There are several instances of dark humor in the story – “Tell me
Louie, is there life on Uranus?” is one of them. Life on Earth has become unlivable and it is time to
look at alternatives is Ward’s suggestion. He wonders whether it is possible to live on Uranus.

5. For an hour they exchanged places, wandering silently around the dusty room, stretching their
arms to feel its unconfined emptiness, grasping at the sensation of absolute spatial freedom.

Rossiter and Ward have moved into a double cubicle in a squalid building. The disturbing news that
Rossiter has brought from office is that the world population has grown by eight hundred million
people in just one year. This growth will necessitate further reduction in minimum specifications –
likely to three meters. Ward is depressed at the thought and punches on the panel next to him to let
off his anger and a small section breaks off and hangs loose.

Thinking he may have disturbed the people next door, he peers into the opening that has been
created and to his rapture he finds that it is a room that had been overlooked when the cubicles were
made. Rossiter and Ward go over the room exulting in its largeness. They have never experienced
such a large empty space before so they take turns to enjoy the freedom of stretching their hands
without hitting anything.
6. Then he pulled himself together. It was a beautiful wardrobe, without doubt, but when it was

gone, it would make the room seem even larger.

Ward and Rossiter buy furniture for the room that they have discovered. They choose heavy Victorian
furniture that no one wants as there is no space to fit it in. They are especially fond of a mahogany
wardrobe that has carved decorations. It symbolizes beauty in their lives, something that has been
missing so long. But once Judith and Helen and later their families move in, the wardrobe loses its
sheen as it is found to be occupying too much space. Slowly they start dismantling it. The wardrobe
stands for a kind of life and beauty that they can never get back into their lives.

Questions - Analysis of Billenium

1. Billenium tells us what could happen if there were too many people on earth. It’s dark and
foreboding but splashes of dark humor can be found here and there. What does it do to the story?
2. The landlords of Billenium are greedy and grabbing. How do Helen, Judith and Ward encounter
them in their worst aspects?
3. Does the discovery of the ‘secret’ room change the lives of Ward and Rossiter?
4. What is the significance of the wardrobe?
5. The discovery of the room makes Ward and Rossiter powerful. How?
6. Though Ward discovers the ‘secret’ room, soon he is made to feel like an interloper. How does this
happen?