J.G. Farrell's Empire Novels

Despite its name, the real subject of J.G. Farrell's three-and-a-half-book Empire Series is not the British empire, but the human condition, a state characterized by 'fall' – like the empire, like the human race itself according to the biblical story of the Fall from Eden. Farrell lets us know that this is his primary interest by giving one of his major characters a dog named The Human Condition. He actually uses the falling empire as an overarching metaphor, as well as a rich source of imagery