The great inquiry

"The Great Inquiry" by Hilaire Belloc is a humorous send-up of early 20th-century British governance. The story is structured as a fake government investigation, poking fun at Britain's economy and its territories around the world. Belloc uses silly stories told during inquiry meetings to make fun of the problems with how Britain was run, mixing important ideas about trade, supporting local businesses, and what it meant to be British. Different characters give funny evidence about how the country's economy is failing, and they introduce some very strange solutions. The inquiry slowly turns into a mess of foolish rules and exaggerated statements about the economy, which shows how out of touch politicians were with real-world problems. Through his funny writing, Belloc makes readers consider important questions about who is responsible in politics and how bad choices get made.