E for Effort

Last updated
E for Effort
AuthorT. L. Sherred
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Genre Science fiction
Publisher Astounding Science Fiction
Publication date
May, 1947
Media typePrint (Periodical, Anthologies)

"E for Effort" is a science fiction novelette by American writer T. L. Sherred, first published in 1947, about the consequences of a time viewer, a machine that projects images of the past. It has been reprinted many times, including in The Science Fiction Hall of Fame . [1]

Contents

Publication

The story was Sherred's first science fiction publication. [1]

According to Algis Budrys, it was contrary to the spirit of Astounding Science Fiction , where it appeared, and it "dismissed" the "bourgeois aspirations" of ASF's editor, John W. Campbell. [2] It is said that the story was accepted in Campbell's absence [3] and that it was "shoehorned" into the magazine by L. Jerome Stanton, who for a short time acted "heretically" as Campbell's assistant. [4]

Synopsis

Taking place at some time in the near future (relative to when it was written), the story is briefly framed as a manuscript written by a civilian and delivered to the military under circumstances of great tension.

The manuscript is a long letter to "Joe", an otherwise unknown character, by Ed Lefko, one of the two lead characters. He describes seeing a silent but color movie aimed at Mexican-Americans in a run-down theater in Detroit. The movie depicts Cortés's conquest of Mexico with remarkably realistic sets and acting and a huge cast. The projectionist, a World War II veteran named Miguel "Mike" Laviada, tells Ed that he made the movie using a time viewer he invented, which he demonstrates. However, Mike has not been able to raise the capital needed to shoot the picture on high-quality film, add sound and other improvements, and get it distributed and advertised. He and Ed become partners, and at Ed's suggestion, they raise money by using the machine to blackmail wealthy people.

They spend a year making most of a new film out of time-viewed footage of Alexander the Great. They take it to Hollywood, where the high quality of the film easily convinces a producer and his associates to finish it, including using actors for scenes that appear in Alexander's biographies but did not really happen, and market it. The film is a great success with critics and viewers.

Mike and Ed produce a film on the Roman Empire, then one on the French Revolution. Both are successful, but the second arouses some controversy because of differences from widely believed myths. Through Mike's influence, Ed becomes less greedy and joins Mike in his plan to use the films against war. The next film, on the American Revolution, and the next, on the American Civil War, are banned in many places but still earn huge amounts of money.

The next film is about the First and Second World Wars. Ed and Mike admit the machine's existence to their associates and persuade them to join in their plan to expose the corruption of many famous people involved in the wars. The film causes riots in many countries and greatly increases international hostility.

Ed, Mike, and their associates are arrested for incitement to riot and other crimes. In their trial, they demonstrate the machine by showing the judge where he was on a certain day. They are acquitted, but the United States Army secretly takes them into "protective custody" and confiscates the machine. Mike and Ed's plan was to make war impossible by disseminating plans for the machine so every government and military could be watched. However, as the U.S. Army has the only machine, Ed expects other powers will attack preemptively before America can use its decisive advantage. He pleads with Joe to retrieve letters containing plans for the machine from their safe-deposit box—he has left Joe a key—and send them to their addressees around the world.

The story ends with military dispatches showing that Ed and Mike are dead, the bank and its contents have been destroyed by a direct hit with a nuclear weapon, and Washington, D. C. has been attacked with nuclear weapons. However the government's top officials fled before the attack began. The last dispatch refers to a "necessary and obvious cessation of hostilities".

Characters

Edward Joseph Lefkowicz, known as Ed Lefko. A worldly-wise opportunist with a love for gadgets. Initially unscrupulous, he becomes more idealistic as a result of his contact with Mike.

Miguel Jose Zapata Laviada, known as Mike. The son of Mexican immigrants. An Army radar technician during World War II, he invented the time viewer and wants to use it to end war. He and Ed share a fondness for beer.

Ruth: An attractive, fun-loving young blonde, she becomes the secretary of Ed and Mike's company (with little to do for a long time), and their companion for drinking and dancing. They talk her into going to Los Angeles with them; there she becomes an actress in B movies.

Edward Lee Johnson, known as Lee Johnson: The Hollywood figure in charge of the production company that finishes Ed's and Mike's films. A shrewd businessman, resourceful problem solver, and decisive executive.

Robert Chester Marrs: Johnson's young assistant, who complains about doing the difficult tasks but accomplishes them. He is a skilled writer of film dialogue and advertising.

Benjamin Lyle "Bernie" Bernstein: In charge of sound for the films.

Carl Wilhelm Kessler: In charge of other technical aspects of the films.

Samuels (no first name given): A lawyer who represents the production company, including defending the men listed above at their criminal trial.

Mercedes Maria Gomez: A teacher of deaf children who reads lips in Spanish to provide dialogue for the film on the world wars, and testifies at the trial as part of the defense's case that the film is factual.

Reception

Many people have called "E for Effort" classic, [5] [6] [7] [8] though some have limited the description to "a minor classic". [9] [10]

Fletcher Pratt cited it as an example of "a brilliantly original concept" with "no story at all... the science is dandy, but there is no fiction", so a reader would not reread it and would give it no more than a qualified recommendation. [11]

Algis Budrys called it "a coherent, logical, entertaining, believable" story. He said it was the first to disturb "the National Guard armory that science fiction had become", as it involved a struggle "between Man and the Establishment", showed a man of Mexican ancestry as a brilliant and idealistic engineer rather than an exotic villain, and saw something better for engineers than a safe, lucrative career. [2]

Jerry Pournelle said in 1985 that it was the only important story in modern science fiction, outside the work of Jack Williamson, that had "an easy, sophisticated view of international and corporate realpolitik" reminiscent of Eric Ambler and Graham Greene. [4]

Brian Stableford called it "perhaps the most perfect ironic fantasy" on the theme that the privileged will not permit new technology to undermine their privilege. [12]

James Gunn noted that Isaac Asimov's short story "The Dead Past" (1956) returns to the concept of "E for Effort". [13]

Related Research Articles

Larry Niven American science fiction writer

Laurence van Cott Niven is an American science fiction writer. His best-known works are Ringworld (1970), which received Hugo, Locus, Ditmar, and Nebula awards, and, with Jerry Pournelle, The Mote in God's Eye (1974) and Lucifer's Hammer (1977). The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America named him the 2015 recipient of the Damon Knight Memorial Grand Master Award. His work is primarily hard science fiction, using big science concepts and theoretical physics. It also often includes elements of detective fiction and adventure stories. His fantasy includes the series The Magic Goes Away, rational fantasy dealing with magic as a non-renewable resource.

James White (author) Northern Irish science fiction author (1928–1999)

James White was a Northern Irish author of science fiction novellas, short stories and novels. He was born in Belfast and returned there after spending some early years in Canada. After a few years working in the clothing industry, he worked at Short Brothers Ltd., an aircraft company based in Belfast, from 1965 until taking early retirement in 1984 as a result of diabetes. White married Margaret Sarah Martin, another science fiction fan, in 1955 and the couple had three children. He died of a stroke.

"Faith of Our Fathers" is a science fiction short story by American writer Philip K. Dick, first published in the anthology Dangerous Visions (1967).

Algis Budrys Lithuanian-American science fiction author, editor, and critic

Algirdas Jonas "Algis" Budrys was a Lithuanian-American science fiction author, editor, and critic. He was also known under the pen names Frank Mason, Alger Rome, John A. Sentry, William Scarff, and Paul Janvier. He is known for the influential 1960 novel Rogue Moon.

Lester del Rey American science fiction author (1915–1993)

Lester del Rey was an American science fiction author and editor. He was the author of many books in the juvenile Winston Science Fiction series, and the editor at Del Rey Books, the fantasy and science fiction imprint of Ballantine Books, along with his fourth wife Judy-Lynn del Rey.

Marooned off Vesta

"Marooned off Vesta" is a science fiction short story by American writer Isaac Asimov. It was the third story he wrote, and the first to be published. Written in July 1938 when Asimov was 18, it was rejected by Astounding Science Fiction in August, then accepted in October by Amazing Stories, appearing in the March 1939 issue. Asimov first included it in his 1968 story collection Asimov's Mysteries, and subsequently in the 1973 collection The Best of Isaac Asimov.

Anniversary (short story)

"Anniversary" is a science fiction short story by American writer Isaac Asimov. It was first published in the March 1959 issue of Amazing Stories and subsequently appeared in the collections Asimov's Mysteries (1968) and The Best of Isaac Asimov (1973).

<i>Time and Stars</i>

Time and Stars is a collection of science fiction short stories by Poul Anderson, published in 1964.

<i>Asimovs Mysteries</i>

Asimov's Mysteries, published in 1968, is a collection of 14 short stories by American writer Isaac Asimov, almost all of them science fiction mysteries. The stories were all originally published in magazines between 1954 and 1967, except for "Marooned off Vesta", Asimov's first published story, which first appeared in 1939.

Thomas L. Sherred was an American science fiction writer.

<i>Rogue Moon</i>

Rogue Moon is a short science fiction novel by American writer Algis Budrys, published in 1960. It was a 1961 Hugo Award nominee. A substantially cut version of the novel was originally published in F&SF; this novella-length story was included in The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Volume Two, edited by Ben Bova. It was adapted into a radio drama by Yuri Rasovsky in 1979.

"If All Men Were Brothers, Would You Let One Marry Your Sister?" is a science fiction short story by American writer Theodore Sturgeon. It first appeared in Harlan Ellison's anthology Dangerous Visions in 1967.

<i>Infinity Science Fiction</i> 1950s US science fiction magazine

Infinity Science Fiction was an American science fiction magazine, edited by Larry T. Shaw, and published by Royal Publications. The first issue, which appeared in November 1955, included Arthur C. Clarke's "The Star", a story about a planet destroyed by a nova that turns out to have been the Star of Bethlehem; it won the Hugo Award for that year. Shaw obtained stories from some of the leading writers of the day, including Brian Aldiss, Isaac Asimov, and Robert Sheckley, but the material was of variable quality. In 1958 Irwin Stein, the owner of Royal Publications, decided to shut down Infinity; the last issue was dated November 1958.

A fix-up is a novel created from several short fiction stories that may or may not have been initially related or previously published. The stories may be edited for consistency, and sometimes new connecting material, such as a frame story or other interstitial narration, is written for the new work. The term was coined by the science fiction writer A. E. van Vogt, who published several fix-ups of his own, including The Voyage of the Space Beagle, but the practice exists outside of science fiction: The use of the term in science fiction criticism was popularised by the first (1979) edition of The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction, edited by Peter Nicholls, which credited van Vogt with the creation of the term. The name “fix-up” comes from the changes that the author needs to make in the original texts, to make them fit together as though they were a novel. Foreshadowing of events from the later stories may be jammed into an early chapter of the fix-up, and character development may be interleaved throughout the book. Contradictions and inconsistencies between episodes are usually worked out.

Definitions of science fiction

There have been many attempts at defining science fiction. This is a list of definitions that have been offered by authors, editors, critics and fans over the years since science fiction became a genre. Definitions of related terms such as "science fantasy", "speculative fiction", and "fabulation" are included where they are intended as definitions of aspects of science fiction or because they illuminate related definitions—see e.g. Robert Scholes's definitions of "fabulation" and "structural fabulation" below. Some definitions of sub-types of science fiction are included, too; for example see David Ketterer's definition of "philosophically-oriented science fiction". In addition, some definitions are included that define, for example, a science fiction story, rather than science fiction itself, since these also illuminate an underlying definition of science fiction.

<i>Man of Earth</i>

Man of Earth is a science fiction novel by American writer Algis Budrys, first published in 1958 by Ballantine Books. "The Man from Earth", a "greatly different" earlier version of the story, was published in the debut issue of Satellite Science Fiction in 1956.

<i>Hoka!</i>

Hoka! is a collection of science fiction stories by American writers Poul Anderson and Gordon Dickson. It was first published by Wallaby in 1983. The stories originally appeared in the magazines Fantasy and Science Fiction and Analog Science Fiction and Fact.

<i>Niekas</i>

Niekas was a science fiction fanzine published from 1962–1998 by Ed Meskys – also spelled Meškys – of New Hampshire. It won the 1967 Hugo Award for Best Fanzine, and was nominated two other times, losing in 1966 to ERB-dom and in 1989 to File 770.

<i>Nebula Award Stories Sixteen</i>

Nebula Award Stories Sixteen is an anthology of award winning science fiction short works edited by Jerry Pournelle and John F. Carr. It was first published in hardcover by Holt, Rinehart and Winston in August 1982; a paperback edition was issued by Bantam Books in September 1983. British editions were issued by W. H. Allen (hardcover) and Star (paperback) in 1983; the latter under the variant title Nebula Winners Sixteen.

<i>The Best of Lester del Rey</i>

The Best of Lester del Rey is a collection of science fiction short stories by American author Lester del Rey. It was first published in paperback by Del Rey/Ballantine in September 1978 as a volume in its Classic Library of Science Fiction, with a Science Fiction Book Club hardcover edition following in December of the same year. It was reprinted by Del Rey Books in March 1986, February 1995, and June 2000. The book has been translated into German.

References

  1. 1 2 von Ruff, Al (1995–2011). "Bibliography: E for Effort". The Internet Speculative Fiction Database. Retrieved 2011-09-06.
  2. 1 2 Budrys, Algis (1985). Benchmarks: Galaxy Bookshelf. Southern Illinois University Press. p. 269. ISBN   0-8093-1187-9. A review that first appeared in the June 1970 Galaxy Science Fiction of Sherred's novel, Alien Island.
  3. ↑ Clute, John; Nicholls, Peter (1993). The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction. Orbit. p. 1101. ISBN   1-85723-124-4.
  4. 1 2 Pournelle, Jerry (1985). The Science Fiction Yearbook. Baen Science Fiction Books. pp. 9–10. ISBN   0-671-55983-4.
  5. ↑ Miller, P. Schuyler (December 1964). "Backlash". Analog. The Reference Library: 87.
  6. ↑ del Rey, Lester (1980). The World of Science Fiction, 1926–1976: The History of a Subculture. Garland Publishing. p. 111. ISBN   9780824014469 . Retrieved 2011-09-07.
  7. ↑ Dozois, Gardner (1986). The Year's Best Science Fiction: Third Annual Collection. Bluejay. p. 12. ISBN   0-312-94486-1 . Retrieved 2011-09-07.
  8. ↑ Stableford, Brian (2004). Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction Literature. Scarecrow Press. ISBN   0-8108-4938-0 . Retrieved 2011-09-07.
  9. ↑ Rogers, Alva (1964). A Requiem for Astounding. Advent Publishers. p. 145. Retrieved 2011-09-07.
  10. ↑ Ashley, Michael (2000). The History of the Science Fiction Magazine. Liverpool University Press. p. 191. ISBN   0-85323-855-3 . Retrieved 2011-09-07.
  11. ↑ Pratt, Fletcher (1953). "A Critique of Science Fiction". In Bretnor, Reginald (ed.). Modern Science Fiction: Its Meaning and its Future . Coward-McCann. pp.  73–90.
  12. ↑ Stableford, Brian (1995). Opening Minds: Essays on Fantastic Literature. Wildside Press. p. 72. ISBN   9780893704032 . Retrieved 2011-09-06.
  13. ↑ Gunn, James (1996). Isaac Asimov: The Foundations of Science Fiction. Scarecrow Press. p. 84. ISBN   9780810854208 . Retrieved 2011-09-06.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.