Ch1- THE FUN THEY HAD
Summary
Isaac Asimov is the author of the story "The Fun They Had", who visualizes his views on the
future. The story takes place in the future where books and schools are digitally conducted
through virtual classrooms. These classes are taken by a mechanic (robotic teacher instead of a
human class teacher.
The story starts with two Children- Margie(11 years old) and Tommy(13 years old). They are
living in the world of the future where computers control everything. With the advent of virtual
schools, the concept of books and classrooms has undergone a considerable transformation
from the old days.
They found it hilarious to read the book as the words stood in a place instead of moving around
as they saw it on a computer screen. From here, it is clear that in the future there will be only
telebooks and that no paper copies of the books will be available. Tommy proclaims that it is
useless to read a book and throw it away once completed. He feels that their monitor screen
has millions of books and can store even more without throwing after use.
On May 17, 2157, Margie wrote in her diary about how Tommy came up with a real book. It is an
old book that consists of stories. Margie remembers her grandfather, who once said that when
he was younger, his grandfather used to study through printed books. Tommy and Margie were
excited and started to turn the yellow crumpled pages of the book to learn more about the
ancient days.
Soon after they started reading about schools in the ancient days, they found that the teachers
were actual human beings rather than mechanical (robotic) teachers. Though Margie hated the
concept of schools, she was surprised by the human teachers at the school. Margie and Tommy
don't even know about physical schools, as they both study in a virtual classroom that is filled
with electronic gadgets, robots, etc.
They study their lessons through computer screens that teach them all the subjects like Maths,
Science, etc. Margie remembers that Margie's mother once called a County Inspector to fix the
mechanical device on which Margie attends the virtual classes. He fixed the big black screen
together again on which all the lessons were displayed and questions were asked. But the little
girl was so disappointed as the device got fixed sooner. She needs to put the homework and
test papers through a punch code.
As they both continue to read the book, Margie's mother calls her to attend the classes. Margie
attends her class on fractions, taught by the mechanical teacher. But, her mind starts wondering
about the fun their grandparents had while attending school in the olden days.
1
In the olden days, the school used to be a special place where all the students of James's age
studied together. She started to imagine how the kids from different areas came together and
attended school happily. Thereby, Margie gets strongly attracted to the fun the children had in
the end times when they went to a real, physical school.
Characters Sketch
Margie Jones
● Margie is an eleven-year-old girl who represents future students in the twenty-second
century
● She is a typical young girl who dislikes school which is highly personalized and includes
a television and a mechanical teacher. She studies in the comfort of her home. Her
homework is checked by her mechanical teacher, a computer and she also gets lessons
from it.
● Margie does not like her school because she is confined to a room and has to study
alone at a fixed time every day. Margie is a curious girl. When she finds a real book in
Tommy's hands, she is eager to know about its contents. She read the book herself.
● However, she is surprised that the book describes a school of the old times that had real
men as Teachers, and classes were conducted in a special building.
● She is fascinated to learn that in those times students of the same level studied together.
She Concludes that the old system was much better as the students had so much fun
when they Studied together and could help each other.
● It is through Margie that the author has projected a contrast between the schools of
today and The schools of the future.
Tommy
● Tommy, a young boy of thirteen years, plays an important role in the story as he is the
one who finds a book about the schools from earlier times.
● The entire action of the story begins after that. He represents the students of the future
era when education will be mechanized and automated.
● Tommy is very curious. As soon as he discovers a real book, he starts reading it.
However, he does not like the idea of printed books which, according to him, are a waste
once they have been read.
● Compared to Margie, he is not as sensitive to the contents of the book. He has an air of
superiority - he snubs Margie when she expresses her ignorance about old schools.
● Tommy has been used by the author to contrast the school education of the twentieth
century with that of the twenty-second.
2
Mechanical Teacher
● The mechanical teacher is a robot programmed to individually suit Margie's learning
needs. Margie hates the teacher, who is described as "large and black and ugly" with a
slot where she has to insert homework.
Mrs. Jones
● Mrs. Jones is Margie's mother. She appears in the story only about Margie's schooling,
about which she has strong opinions.
● Example: she called the Country Inspector to come fix Margie's teacher when it kept
giving her geography tests that were too hard.
● She also enforced the timing of Margie's schooling, believing that school should happen
at the same time every day.
Theme
The main theme in the short story 'The Fun They Had' is that of education. More specifically, the
narrative deals with the future of education which will become increasingly computerized and
estranged from social interactions.
