The Fun They Had
Beehive : Chapter 1
ISSAC ASIMOV
(2nd Jan 1920- 6 th April,
1992)
He was an American writer and professor of
biochemistry at Boston University. He is best
known for hard science fiction, mysteries,
fantasies and nonfiction.
. (Fact: Hard Science Fiction is the relationship of
the science content and attitude to the
narrative. The story should be scientifically
accurately. Example: Arthur C. Clarke’s novel ‘A
Fall of Moondust’. The term was used in print
first time by P. Schuyler Miller while reviewing
John. W. [Link]. novel ‘Islands of Space’ in
1957.)
Author’s Purpose
• ‘The Fun They Had’ was first written for a friend by Issac Asimov but
ended up becoming the biggest surprise of his life as it became
popular among children. The story propagates the irony that the
knowledge of modern technology advancing the world is actually
hampering childhood and it’s
Main Idea
• The story is about computerised homeschooling and what children
miss out on by not being in school together and lacking the fun
children have when they come to school and get to interact and
socialize.
Message of the story
• Technology is making us progressive, taking us to a reality of
digitalized world, but it is snatching away the joys of a normal
childhood. A future without ‘real books’ is an upcoming reality. The
pandemic showed us how education can be digitalized but the real
fun of real school buildings and collaborative learning with people of
the same age group is also a mode of socialization which digital
advancement is hampering.
Summary of the story
• Set in the year 2157, when children learn individually at home using a
mechanical teacher (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 what it must have been like for "the fun they had".
Homework
• Revise what is being done in class.
• Watch the YouTube link on wakelet.
