Roadside Decision Point

Matthew Oxenhay, recently unemployed and emotionally adrift, drives along the A303, wrestling with a binary decision: return home to his wife Judy if she answers his call, or turn back to Somerset and begin divorce proceedings if she does not. His mind, shaped by years of gambling on the financial markets, seeks clarity in randomness, delegating fate to the outcome of a phone call. This moment crystallizes his existential crisis—caught between the comfort of the known and the allure of change, between the past he's outgrown and a future he cannot yet imagine. The road becomes a metaphor for his life: long, monotonous, and leading to an uncertain destination.

Sixtieth Birthday Reckoning

Matthew's sixtieth birthday party, orchestrated by Judy, becomes a lens through which he views the hollowness of his achievements and relationships. Surrounded by family and acquaintances, he feels like a guest in his own life, disconnected from his wife, children, and friends. A drunken, ill-judged speech lays bare his bitterness and self-loathing, culminating in a collapse that mirrors his internal unraveling. The party is less a celebration than a reckoning—a moment when the cumulative disappointments of decades surface, and Matthew recognizes how little his life resembles the dreams of his youth.

Career Collapse Unveiled

Matthew's career as a futures trader ends abruptly when his boss, Rupert Loxley, offers a euphemistic "consultancy" role that is, in truth, a dismissal. The financial crash has made his old instincts obsolete, and the City no longer values his experience. Matthew's identity, long entwined with his work, is shattered. He hides the truth from Judy, maintaining the charade of employment while haunting his old office and drifting through days in coffee shops. The loss of purpose exposes the fragility of his self-worth and the emptiness of his domestic life, setting the stage for a deeper crisis.

Ghost in the City

Unable to admit his redundancy, Matthew becomes a spectral presence in his former workplace, greeting colleagues at the door and clinging to the vestiges of his professional identity. Rupert, both rival and reluctant benefactor, offers him the use of his old office under strict conditions. Matthew's pride is eroded, but the alternative—endless days at home with Judy—seems worse. The City, once a stage for his ambitions, now feels like a mausoleum. The routines that once gave his life structure now only highlight his irrelevance and isolation.

Serendipity at Tate Modern

A corporate errand to Tate Modern leads to a chance meeting with Anna, a woman from Matthew's distant past. Their conversation is playful, charged with the energy of old attraction and the possibility of renewal. Anna, enigmatic and self-sufficient, lives in Somerset and embodies a life very different from Matthew's. The encounter stirs memories of youthful promise and missed opportunities, and Matthew becomes fixated on the idea that Anna might offer him a second chance at happiness—or at least, meaning.

Anna's Invitation

Matthew arranges to visit Anna in Somerset under the pretext of a work-related wind-farm meeting. The trip is fraught with anxiety, self-doubt, and logistical mishaps—he gets lost, fails to find her house, and is forced to confront his own incompetence. Anna's absence when he finally arrives feels like a cosmic joke, a repetition of the missed connections that have haunted his life. Yet the journey itself becomes a rite of passage, forcing Matthew to confront the gap between fantasy and reality, and to question what he truly wants.

Marital Stalemate

Back in Barnet, Matthew's relationship with Judy is a study in mutual disappointment and unspoken grievances. Their marriage, once functional, now feels like a prison of routines and small talk. Judy's steadfastness and capacity for endurance contrast with Matthew's restlessness and self-pity. Social obligations, like a lunch with the Carsons, only underscore the gulf between them. The prospect of retirement or endless cohabitation fills Matthew with dread, and he contemplates leaving Judy—not out of passion for Anna, but out of desperation to escape himself.

Lost in Somerset

Matthew's attempt to reconnect with Anna in Somerset is a comedy of errors. Lost in the labyrinthine countryside, he is beset by self-pity, anger, and a sense of futility. A failed encounter at a pub and a night spent under a car park barrier epitomize his unraveling. When he finally finds Anna's cottage, she is gone, leaving only a note. The episode is both farcical and tragic, highlighting Matthew's inability to seize happiness or even act decisively. His journey becomes a metaphor for his lifelong pattern of omission and regret.

Blackdown Memories

Matthew recalls his first, brief romance with Anna in 1967—a sunlit afternoon on Blackdown Hill, filled with youthful optimism and the promise of love. The memory is bittersweet: he failed to follow her to France, and their connection was lost. This formative disappointment becomes a touchstone for all that follows, shaping his sense of missed opportunities and the belief that happiness is always just out of reach. The past, idealized and irretrievable, exerts a gravitational pull on his present.

Anna's Truths

When Matthew and Anna finally reconnect, their conversation is candid and searching. Anna reveals the traumas and choices that led her to Somerset—a failed career, a lost pregnancy, a series of disappointments. Both acknowledge the gap between their youthful ideals and their present realities. They make love, but Anna is wary, insisting that Matthew must resolve his marriage and his own confusion before they can have a future. The encounter is both a consummation and a reckoning, forcing Matthew to confront the limits of nostalgia and the necessity of honesty.

The Call Home

On the A303, Matthew finally makes the call to Judy. She answers, upending his plan to let fate decide. In a moment of impulsive clarity, he tells her he is leaving. Judy, calm and compassionate, reveals that she has known about his job loss all along and has conspired with Rupert to protect him. She urges him to seek help, suggesting he is unwell. The conversation exposes the depth of their estrangement and the futility of Matthew's attempts to control his destiny through chance.

Breakdown and Aftermath

Matthew spirals into a breakdown, oscillating between denial and acceptance of his illness. He returns to Anna's cottage in the middle of the night, disoriented and drunk, and is gently cared for by Anna, who recognizes his need for professional help. The next day, she takes him to a psychiatric hospital, and he is prescribed medication. The episode marks a nadir in Matthew's journey—a confrontation with the reality of his mental state and the limits of self-reliance.

Deckchairs and Realizations

Recovering in Anna's garden, Matthew reflects on the smallness of life and the importance of kindness. Anna, pragmatic and compassionate, refuses to become his caretaker or lover, insisting that he must first address his marriage and his own healing. Their conversation is tender but final—Anna will not be his savior. Matthew is left to reckon with the consequences of his choices and the necessity of facing his problems directly.

The Anna Illusion

In a final conversation, Matthew reveals to Anna his memory of their shared past on Blackdown Hill. Anna, however, denies any such history—her details do not match his recollections. The realization dawns that Matthew's memory may be unreliable, that he has projected his longing onto Anna, conflating fantasy and reality. The woman he has pursued is not the Anna of his youth, and perhaps never was. The collapse of this illusion leaves Matthew unmoored, forced to confront the emptiness at the heart of his quest.

Brother's Shadow

Driving away from Anna, Matthew revisits the death of his brother Alan, who may have taken his own life decades earlier. The unresolved grief and guilt from this loss have haunted Matthew, shaping his pessimism and sense of futility. The memory of Alan's despair becomes a mirror for Matthew's own, and he contemplates following the same path—either returning to Judy or ending his life. The chapter is a meditation on the enduring impact of loss and the difficulty of choosing between oblivion and endurance.

Final Choices

Matthew's journey ends in ambiguity. He drives toward Barnet, contemplating suicide or reconciliation, but leaves the outcome unresolved. The narrative closes with a sense of circularity—choices deferred, destinies unfulfilled, and the future as uncertain as ever. The novel's final image is of a man suspended between past and present, fantasy and reality, hope and despair, still searching for meaning on the endless road.

Characters

Matthew Oxenhay

Matthew is a man in late middle age, defined by his career as a futures trader and his chronic dissatisfaction. His relationships—with his wife, children, colleagues, and lovers—are marked by emotional distance, self-deprecation, and a tendency to sabotage happiness. Psychologically, he is a study in regret, indecision, and the corrosive effects of unaddressed trauma (notably his brother's death). Matthew's development is a slow, painful reckoning with his own limitations, as he oscillates between self-pity, fleeting hope, and moments of clarity. His journey is less about transformation than about the struggle to accept the smallness and imperfection of life.

Judy Oxenhay

Judy is Matthew's wife of thirty-five years, a woman whose identity is rooted in domesticity, stability, and endurance. She is older than Matthew, shaped by a generation that values conformity and security. Judy's love is expressed through care and sacrifice, but she is also capable of quiet manipulation—conspiring with Matthew's boss to protect him from the consequences of his job loss. Her emotional intelligence contrasts with Matthew's self-absorption, and her response to his betrayal is one of compassion rather than anger. Judy represents the comfort and constraint of the familiar, and her resilience is both admirable and, to Matthew, suffocating.

Anna Halfyard (née Purdue?)

Anna is the object of Matthew's longing—a woman from his past who embodies both the promise of youth and the reality of disappointment. She is intelligent, independent, and marked by her own traumas: a lost pregnancy, failed relationships, and a retreat from the world into rural isolation. Anna is both a mirror and a foil for Matthew, sharing his sense of regret but refusing to be defined by it. Her refusal to rescue or be rescued by Matthew is an assertion of hard-won boundaries. The ambiguity surrounding her identity—whether she is the Anna of Matthew's memory—underscores the novel's themes of unreliable narration and the dangers of nostalgia.

Rupert Loxley

Rupert is Matthew's former boss and the man who took the job Matthew coveted. He is both antagonist and ally, embodying the changing values of the City and the erosion of old certainties. Rupert's offer to let Matthew haunt his old office is an act of kindness tinged with pity, and his collusion with Judy reveals a capacity for empathy. Psychologically, Rupert is less complex than Matthew, but his presence forces Matthew to confront his own obsolescence and pride.

Sarah Oxenhay

Sarah, Matthew's daughter, is a voice of reason and compassion. She sees through her father's self-deceptions and tries to bridge the gap between him and the rest of the family. Her conversations with Matthew reveal both her loyalty and her frustration, as she struggles to help a man who resists help. Sarah represents the possibility of connection and understanding across generational divides.

Adam Oxenhay

Adam, Matthew's son, is less forgiving than Sarah, viewing his father's decline with impatience and skepticism. His relationship with Matthew is strained, marked by disappointment and a lack of empathy. Adam's perspective highlights the generational shift in attitudes toward responsibility, success, and emotional expression.

Aunt Lucy

Judy's elderly, wealthy aunt is a minor character who represents the burdens of family duty and the transactional nature of inheritance. Her presence in the narrative underscores the themes of aging, mortality, and the ways in which relationships are shaped by expectation rather than affection.

The Carsons (Brian/Ahab and Jezzy/Jezebel)

The Carsons are acquaintances whose visit exposes the superficiality and performative nature of middle-class social life. Their interactions with Matthew and Judy serve as a satirical commentary on politics, manners, and the emptiness of suburban respectability.

Ernest (the psychologist)

Ernest is a retired psychologist whom Matthew meets in a Somerset pub. Their brief encounter is both comic and poignant, offering Matthew a fleeting opportunity for self-reflection and external validation. Ernest's presence highlights Matthew's resistance to help and the randomness of meaningful encounters.

Alan Oxenhay

Matthew's older brother, who died in a car crash that may have been suicide, is a spectral presence in the novel. Alan's death is the original trauma that shapes Matthew's pessimism, fear of happiness, and sense of life's futility. The unresolved grief and guilt surrounding Alan's fate haunt Matthew's every decision.

Plot Devices

Binary Choices and Delegated Fate

The novel's central plot device is Matthew's tendency to delegate major life decisions to chance—whether by counting cars, tossing coins, or making phone calls at random. This reflects both his background as a gambler and his inability to take responsibility for his own happiness. The device serves as a metaphor for the illusion of control and the randomness of fate, while also highlighting the paralysis that comes from too many options and too little conviction.

Unreliable Narration and Memory

Matthew's recollections—especially of his past with Anna—are revealed to be potentially false or distorted. The ambiguity surrounding Anna's identity and their shared history destabilizes the narrative, forcing readers to question what is real and what is wishful thinking. This device underscores the novel's themes of self-deception, the unreliability of memory, and the dangers of living in the past.

Circular Structure and Recurring Motifs

The novel's structure is circular, with events and conversations echoing each other across time and space. Motifs of roads, journeys, and missed connections recur, reinforcing the sense of stasis and the difficulty of genuine change. The repetition of certain phrases and scenarios (e.g., the call home, the missed meeting with Anna) creates a sense of inevitability and entrapment.

Dialogic Introspection

Much of the novel unfolds through dialogue—between Matthew and Anna, Matthew and Judy, Matthew and his children—that doubles as internal monologue. These conversations are less about plot advancement than about psychological excavation, exposing the characters' fears, regrets, and desires. The device allows for a nuanced exploration of character and theme, blurring the line between thought and speech.

Foreshadowing and Retrospective Irony

The narrative is laced with foreshadowing—Matthew's references to pills, breakdowns, and his brother's death—that prepare the reader for his eventual crisis. Retrospective irony abounds, as Matthew's earlier bravado and self-justifications are undercut by later revelations and failures. The interplay of past and present creates a sense of tragic inevitability.

Analysis

Trading Futures is a mordant, darkly comic meditation on aging, regret, and the search for meaning in a world stripped of certainties. Through Matthew's journey—from the illusion of control in the financial markets to the chaos of personal collapse—Jim Powell interrogates the myths of self-invention, the perils of nostalgia, and the limits of reinvention. The novel is unsparing in its depiction of male midlife crisis, exposing the ways in which privilege, pride, and emotional cowardice conspire to produce unhappiness. Yet it is also a compassionate exploration of vulnerability, the need for connection, and the possibility of small redemptions. In an era obsessed with choice and self-optimization, Trading Futures offers a sobering reminder that the most important decisions are often the hardest to make—and that the past, however alluring, can never be reclaimed. The lesson is not one of grand transformation, but of learning to live with ambiguity, to accept the "little things" that constitute real life, and to find dignity in the act of carrying on.

The novel's use of binary choices and delegated fate as a plot device underscores Matthew's inability to take control of his life, while the unreliable narration and memory device challenges readers to question the veracity of Matthew's perspective. The circular structure and recurring motifs reinforce the sense of stasis and repetition in Matthew's life, while dialogic introspection allows for deep psychological exploration of the characters. Foreshadowing and retrospective irony create a sense of inevitability to Matthew's downfall, adding layers of meaning to earlier events as the story unfolds.

The characters, from the disillusioned Matthew to the steadfast Judy and the elusive Anna, are complex and flawed, each grappling with their own disappointments and unfulfilled dreams. Rupert, Sarah, and Adam provide different perspectives on Matthew's crisis, while minor characters like Aunt Lucy, the Carsons, and Ernest serve to illuminate aspects of Matthew's character and social world. The specter of Alan, Matthew's deceased brother, looms over the narrative, embodying the unresolved grief and trauma that shape Matthew's worldview.

Ultimately, Trading Futures is a nuanced exploration of the human condition, offering no easy answers but inviting readers to reflect on their own choices, regrets, and the possibility of finding meaning in life's small moments and ongoing struggles.

Last updated: July 11, 2025