The Fun They Had

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"The Fun They Had"
Short story by Isaac Asimov
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Genre(s)Science fiction
Publication
Published inBoys and Girls Page
Publication typePeriodical
Media typePrint (Newspaper, Magazine, Hardback & Paperback)
Publication date1 December 1951

"The Fun They Had" is a science fiction story by American writer Isaac Asimov. It first appeared in a children's newspaper in 1951 and was reprinted in the February 1954 issue of The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, Earth Is Room Enough (1957), 50 Short Science Fiction Tales (1960), and The Best of Isaac Asimov (1973).

Written as a personal favor for a friend, "The Fun They Had" became "probably the biggest surprise of my literary career", Asimov wrote in 1973.[1] He reported that it had been reprinted more than 30 times with more being planned. It is about computerized homeschooling, and what children miss out on by not being in school together. He surmised that the story was popular with children because "the kids would get a bang out of the irony."[2]

Summary

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Set in the year 2157, when children learn individually at home using a mechanical (robotic) teacher, the story tells of 11-year-old Margie Jones, whose neighbour Tommy finds a "real" book in the attic of his house. This reminds Margie of the stories her grandfather used to tell about the earlier school days. The book tells about a time when children used to learn in a group of the same age of students in large schools that were not merely designated rooms in private houses as in Margie and Tommy's time. Margie and Tommy discuss what it must have been like to study together with a real person as a teacher, and though at first Margie is sceptical about the notion, by the end of the story she daydreams while sitting on the chair before the mechanical teacher about "the fun they had". Asimov boldly predicted the transformative impact of computers and technologies in 1951, setting his short story in a futuristic 2157, describing how the world has changed. Mechanical devices have replaced institutional schools and teachers. Advanced, efficient technology caters to the needs of learners. Even books are no longer printed on paper but rather shown on screen.

Margie, the narrator of our story, however, despises her school. She finds her lessons monotonous and boring. The rare book gave her a glimpse of the past traditional school, and she started to idealise the concept of human teachers, school buildings, and fellow students, daydreaming about the children having fun, cleverly instigating us to probe the purpose of schooling and education. Virtual classrooms strip away the social and emotional aspects of education. She feels confined and isolated from her peers. Her longing reflects a universal desire for communication, proving technology, while progressive, can dehumanise human experiences.

The title suggests the ironical human nature of romanticising the past. Tommy and Margie envision the old schools through the dusty old book, reflecting our nostalgic nature of looking at the past with rose-coloured glasses. Traditional schools, while idealised, are not without shortcomings, and it was not always fun, as suggested by the title. Asimov subtly compares the old and the new. He did not overly criticise the technology but warned us of our overindulgence in it.

[3]==References==

  1. ^ Asimov, Isaac (1973). "Introduction". The Best of Isaac Asimov. Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday. pp. xi. ISBN 0-385-05078-X. LCCN 74-2863.
  2. ^ Asimov, Isaac (1980). In memory yet green : the autobiography of Isaac Asimov, 1920-1954. Internet Archive. New York, NY: Avon. p. 626. ISBN 978-0-380-75432-8.
  3. ^ https://brainstormnotes.in/technology-vs-traditional-education-who-wins-the-fun-they-had/
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