Preferred Position

In Short

This story depicts a futuristic society where “New Energy-Sources” have provided total security, rendering illness, poverty, and work obsolete. The narrative follows Les and Janet, a married couple living in a state of terminal ennui, as Les attempts to break the monotony by applying for one of the few available jobs. It is a cautionary tale about the human need for struggle and purpose, highlighting how a life devoid of risk—while physically comfortable—can leave the spirit desperate for the very danger it was designed to escape.

The Story

Les and Janet live in a high-tech apartment where their bed, furniture, and service-droids handle every daily need. They are part of a society that has perfected leisure, yet they are profoundly miserable. With lifespans extending well into their second century and no threat of accident or want, their days are filled with aimless activities and petty, repetitive arguments. Les, a man in his sixties, is particularly restless, lamenting that he has decades of guaranteed safety ahead of him. He finds the prospect of a predictable, painless existence unbearable.

Their stagnation is interrupted by a broadcast from the State Executive Office. The Governor announces that, despite the state’s commitment to universal leisure, a rare opportunity has arisen: a limited number of "desirable" jobs are open to men. The catch, however, is that applicants must undergo a rigorous evaluation. Those who fail to secure the top positions are sentenced to a lifetime of the most menial, soul-crushing labor available. Despite the risk, Janet encourages Les to apply, sensing that a change—any change—is necessary to save them from their mutual malaise.

Les enters the competition, which involves brain-wave analysis and a merit-based selection process. For the first time in years, the couple experiences genuine suspense. Janet waits at home, finding a strange, illicit pleasure in the act of worrying about her husband’s fate. When Les eventually returns, his arrival is dramatic; he descends toward their terrace "like some portentous bird." He informs her that while he did not secure the top position of "powderman," he did land the "second best" job: a high-altitude rigger.

The ending is colored by a dark, ironic optimism. Janet is ecstatic to learn that Les’s new career involves genuine, life-threatening danger—fixing flagpoles, topping trees, and working with structural iron. She envisions the cables snapping and the heavy loads falling, thrills that were previously impossible in their sterile environment. The story concludes with Janet ordering a celebratory meal, joyfully remarking that it might be the last one she ever serves him. By embracing the peril of his new occupation, the couple has finally achieved the excitement they lacked, finding fulfillment only in the shadow of their own potential destruction.

How It Unfolds

The sterile morning The story opens with an automated bed waking the couple, followed by the appearance of a puppet-like robot serving coffee. Les and Janet’s dialogue reveals their deep-seated frustration with a life that provides every physical comfort but offers no meaning.

The call to labor A broadcast interrupts their listlessness, announcing that the state is opening a few select jobs to applicants. Les and Janet debate the risks, weighing the boredom of their current life against the potential for failure and the subsequent drudgery of menial labor.

The test of merit Les decides to participate in the selection process, which uses advanced technology to judge the applicants. While Les undergoes the testing, Janet finds herself uncharacteristically anxious, discovering that the capacity to worry is a welcome relief from her usual apathy.

The dangerous promotion Les returns home to deliver the news that he has secured a position as a high-climber. The couple reacts with genuine, intense happiness, celebrating the fact that his new profession carries a real possibility of injury or death.

The People

Les is a physically imposing man of sixty, six and a half feet tall with a full head of blond hair. Despite his vitality, he is crippled by a lack of agency. He feels trapped by the "guaranteed security" of his world, viewing his remaining sixty-five years of guaranteed health as a life sentence. He is not looking for success in a traditional sense; he is looking for a reason to exert himself.

Janet is fifty-five, described as having an "appealingly childlike" appearance that she maintains through spray-on film-dresses. She is initially just as bored as her husband, but she possesses a sharper, more pragmatic edge. Where Les wallows in his misery, Janet actively pushes him toward the competition. She is the catalyst for his change, and her transformation is internal: she learns to enjoy the "delightful new pleasure of worrying," which she finds more exhilarating than the frictionless life she was living before. Together, they represent a desperate middle-aged couple willing to sacrifice safety for the sake of feeling alive.

In Its Own Voice

"I've got sixty-five more years of longevity, according to the doctors--and they're never wrong, curse them!"

Les expresses his despair over a future that promises only long, uninterrupted life.

"I know you'll enjoy this one--it really might be your last!"

Janet celebrates her husband's new career as a high-altitude rigger, clearly relishing the prospect of his mortality.

What It's Really About

The central theme is the necessity of struggle in the human experience. The book argues that when humans reach a state of total security—where accident, poverty, and risk are entirely removed—they do not find paradise; they find a vacuum. The Governor’s broadcast, which treats "desirable" jobs as a commodity to be auctioned to those who fear boredom, serves as a sharp critique of a society that has traded the vitality of survival for the numbness of comfort. The "preferred position" of the title is not the high-paying job, but the rare privilege of having something to lose. It asks whether humanity is fundamentally designed for ease, or if we are wired to seek out the very dangers we claim to despise.

Why Read It Today

Readers who enjoy mid-century science fiction will appreciate the concise, sharp world-building here. It doesn't rely on massive info-dumps, but instead drops the reader directly into a domestic scene that feels familiar yet deeply wrong. The prose is clean and rhythmic, mirroring the sterile, mechanical nature of the world the characters inhabit.

However, the reader should be prepared for the mid-1950s gender dynamics presented in the text. The roles are quite rigid; Janet is portrayed as being preoccupied with her appearance and domestic duties, while the "jobs" are explicitly reserved for men. The humor is dry and cynical, often bordering on the macabre. You will likely feel a sense of unease as the characters celebrate the potential for a fatal accident, but that is the point. The book stays with you because it challenges the modern aspiration of a life without friction. It poses a haunting question: if you had the power to turn off all the risks in your life, would you really be happy, or would you eventually become like Les and Janet, waiting for a catastrophe just to feel a spark of genuine emotion? It is a brisk, thought-provoking read that prioritizes a philosophical punch over complex world-building.