Who can give an opinion about "All summer in a day" story by R.Bradbury?

Answer 1

"All Summer in a Day" is a short story by science fiction author Ray Bradbury. This story was originally published in 1959 in a Bradbury short story collection entitled, A Medicine for Melancholy.
The story deals with a group of frolicking schoolchildren residing on an colonized, tropical Venus at an unspecified time 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 which occurs only every seven years for an hour or two.
The story is mainly about Margot, a little girl who moved to Venus from Earth four years before the story takes place. She remembers the sun and the way it looked and felt. She doesn't play much with the other children and she is an outcast because of her sensitivity and the fact that it was rumored that she may return to Earth the next year. She almost had a nervous breakdown from living with the relentless rain because she got too sick of it.
She 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" or a "fire in a stove". The other children don't believe her and the class bully,William, starts to harass her physically and verbally. While the teacher is out of the room, he convinces the other children to lock Margot in the closet.
The teacher finally comes back and takes the children outside once the sun comes out. They finally see the blazing sun and the blue sky. In their astonishment and joy, they all forget about Margot. They run and play in the warm fresh air for the hour it is out.
Once the rain begins again, the children go back inside. Suddenly, one of the children remembers Margot, still locked in the closet. They all walk slowly towards the closet, realizing what they have done and let Margot out.
A short film version was made for television in 1982, featuring an expanded ending in which the children atone by giving Margot all the flowers they picked while the sun was out. In the movie she has one friend and never was emotionally distraught.
In this short story it is shown how Margot's individuality makes her peers jealous. However, they eventually feel guilty when they realize what they did was wrong. This story can also teach its readers about the bad qualities of discrimination by seeing the unfair way Margot was treated."

Not one of Bradbury's better efforts, in my opinion. But then, even his lesser stories are better than most sci-fi writers' best tries.

See the second link, please, for a very moving reflection on how great an impression the story made on one reader.

Answer 2

I won't go into a synopsis, since I can't improve on the wonderful one already given.

My opinion of the story is that it's a good solid sci fi story; much better than most sci fi writing that we get today which is either a rehash of Lord of the Rings or a rehash of I Robot. The irony of the fact that the one person who knows the truth is punished be her peers for telling the truth and then misses out on the one truly stunning moment that she would cherish more than the other kids is incredibly poignant.

It also shows a certain amount of cynicism (justified, I think) in the nature of humans - that they're quick to condemn someone who doesn't toe the party line (bullying the little girl who tells them that the sun does exist) and are capable of inflicting great sorrow through neglect (forgetting all about the girl they locked in the closet while they frolic and have a great time enjoying the sunshine).

Answer 3

I think it was a very well-written and thought-provoking story. It showed what envy can lead to, even with children. The idea of the sun only coming out once every few years was interesting.

Answer 4

It's a great story, I read it years ago, but still remember it.
So revealing and reminding of how cruel children can be.