All Summer in a Day

Infobox short story
name = All Summer in a Day
title_orig =
translator =
author = Ray Bradbury
country = United States
language = English
series =
genre = Science fiction
published_in = The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction
publication_type =
publisher =
media_type = Magazine
pub_date = 1954
english_pub_date =
preceded_by =
followed_by =

"All Summer in a Day" is a short story by science fiction author Ray Bradbury. This story was originally published in the March 1954 issue of "The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction". [ [http://authors.wizards.pro/books/titles/58363/all-summer-in-a-day Publication history for "All Summer in a Day" at Author Wars web site] ]

Plot Summary

The story is about a group of frolicking nine-year-old schoolchildren residing on cold, wet Venus, which was colonized by "rocket men and women who had come to a raining world to set up civilization and live out their lives" in the future. The thick atmosphere of Venus still exists at this time, and it is constantly raining. Therefore, seeing the sun is a very rare event, occurring only every seven years for just one hour.

Margot is a little girl who moved to Venus from Earth five years before the story takes place. She is described as "a very frail girl who looked as if she had been lost in the rain for years, and the rain had washed out the blue from her eyes, and the red from her mouth, and the yellow from her hair. An old photograph dusted from an album, whitened away; and if she spoke at all, her voice would be a ghost." She fondly remembers the sun and the way it looked and felt. She does not play much with the other children in the underground city where they live. She is an outcast because of her sensitivity and the fact that it is rumored that she may return to Earth next year.

The kids are jealous of Margot because she remembers the sun from her time on Earth. They were only two years old when it was last visible from Venus and do not remember it. She almost has a nervous breakdown because she gets so sick of living with the relentless rain. For example, once when she was supposed to take a shower at school in the locker room, she refused to get wet. She clutched her hands over her head and screamed that the water must not touch her head.

Margot writes a poem about the sun: :::"I think the sun is a flower,:::That blooms for just one hour."She also describes it as "a penny". She also says the sun is like a "fire in the stove." The other children do not believe that she wrote the poem. The students bully her. While the teacher is out of the room, a boy convinces the other children to lock Margot in the closet.

The teacher finally comes back. The sun is actually about to come out after seven years of rain, and the teacher takes the children outside to experience it. They finally see the blazing sun in the blue sky. In their astonishment and joy, they all forget about Margot. They run and play in the warm fresh air until the two hours of sunshine are over. All at once, a girl starts to cry because she feels a raindrop in her hand. She sadly realizes the rain is returning. The thunder sounds, and the children run back inside. Suddenly, one of the children remembers Margot, still locked in the closet. They stand frozen realizing what they have done. The children walk slowly towards the closet and let Margot out. The precious sun has come and gone, leaving Margot still pale in gloom and darkness.

Adaptations

Television Episode

A 25 minute adaptation was originally broadcast the PBS children's series "Wonderworks" in 1982. It was directed by Ed Kaplan from a screenplay by S. Murdock Donaldson [cite web |url= http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0195517/|title= IMDB: All Summer in a Day|accessdate=2008-08-07] . In the adaptation, Margot has one friend and is never emotionally distraught. The ending is expanded to show the children atoning for their horrible act by giving Margot flowers that they picked while the sun was out.

External links

* [http://bestsciencefictionstories.com/2008/04/02/all-summer-in-a-day-by-ray-bradbury/ All Summer in a Day at BestScienceFictionStories.com] - A review of the story with resources for finding it.

Footnotes