Beehive Prose

The Fun They Had - by Isaac Asimov

Summary

The Fun They Had is a story set about 150 years in the future; to be precise on 17 May
2157. The writer describes a time in the future when every child has his own machine
teacher and schools like today do not exist anymore. There are telebooks, in which words
move across the screen. Considering that this story was written in 1951 before personal
computers were around, it is amazing how well the author predicts the future. We are not
living in 2155 yet, but it is already possible for us to read digital books on handheld
devices. Perhaps in the future, children really will be taught by mechanical teachers!

On that particular day, Tommy, a thirteen-year-old boy, nds a ‘real book’ in the attic of his
house. The book, which is really old, has been printed on paper and its pages are yellow
and crinkly. He and his friend, eleven- year-old Margie, take a look at the book together.
Both Margie and Tommy are amazed by the book that is di erent from the books they are
accustomed to. The book has words that are xed on the pages and do not move as on a
screen. Books like these don’t exist anymore. Margie recalls her grandfather had once
told her about stories being printed on paper in the time of her grandfather. Tommy thinks
of the book as being impractical because, unlike their telebooks that have a million books
and are good for plenty more, the book would have to be thrown away after one had
nished reading it.

Tommy tells Margie that the book is about school, but Margie, who hates school and
cannot understand why someone would write about it, is disappointed. She has been
having problems with learning geography from her ‘mechanical teacher’. It teaches
Margie, gives her exercises and asks her questions, all in a special room in her own
house. It can also calculate the marks in no time. Margie hates the slot where she has to
insert her homework or test papers.

Lately, her dislike for her school has intensi ed because the geography sector of her
mechanical teacher is malfunctioning. It has been giving her test after test in geography
and she has been doing worse and worse.

Her mother has sent for the County Inspector to look at the mechanical teacher and to
rectify the error. The Inspector takes the mechanical teacher apart and nds that Margie is
not at fault for her poor performance

The geography sector in the teacher gets xed at a speed that is too fast for the little girl.
Margie had been hoping that he wouldn’t know how to put it together again, but he knew
how to repair it all right, and, after an hour or so, the Inspector is able to set the speed to
Margie’s level. This leaves Margie disappointed as she had hoped her teacher would be
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 taken away for some time and she would be relieved of the trouble of taking so many
tests.

Tommy, who has been reading the book, tells Margie that the book is not about their kind
of school which has mechanical teachers with a TV, but rather, it was about the schools
hundreds of years ago when students had a person as a teacher who taught the girls and
boys, gave them homework and asked them questions. School was a special building the
children went to. And they learned the same thing if they were the same age.

At rst, Margie does not understand how a person could be a teacher and how the
students were taught the same thing because her mother says that education must t
each child’s mind.

Nevertheless, she wants to read more about it. They haven’t even read half the book,
when Margie’s mother reminds her it is time for school. Though Margie’s schoolroom is
right next to her bedroom, she has to study at regular hours because her mother
considers it right to study at xed timings every day.

Margie goes to the schoolroom in her house, where the mechanical teacher is already on
because the lessons are always at regular hours. As the mechanical teacher teaches the
addition of proper fractions, Margie is lost in her thoughts about the working of schools in
old times. Though at rst Margie had been skeptical about the notion, by the end of the
story she believes that the kids must have enjoyed going together to school. They must
have had fun going to the same school, studying the same things and being able to help
one another.

The Fun They Had Title

The title of the story The Fun They Had has been derived from the closing words of the
story. They re ect the opinion of Margie, a young girl in the year 2157, about the students
centuries ago. In 2157, children are taught individually by mechanical teachers who are
adjusted to t the mind of each boy and girl they teach and each kid is taught di erently.
Their “school” is just another room in the house. They have no interaction with a human
teacher or with other children during school hours. Tommy nds the book about schools,
centuries ago when students had a person as a teacher who taught the girls and boys.
School was a special building, the children went to. And they learned the same thing if
they were the same age. Margie thinks about the old school system and how much fun
the children must have had, learning and spending time together.

The Fun They Had Setting

The setting of the story is 17 May 2157. Two children, thirteen-year-old Tommy and
eleven-year-old Margie are at Margie’s house looking at a ‘strange’ book Tommy found in
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 his attic. Their life is di erent from that of the children of today. Children no longer have a
person as a teacher, nor do all children go to a school and learn the same thing with other
children of the same age. In 2157 children are taught individually by mechanical teachers
who are adjusted to t the mind of each boy and girl they teach and each kid is taught
di erently. Children read telebooks and have no interaction with a teacher and little
interaction among themselves.

The Fun They Had Theme

The main theme in The Fun They Had by Isaac Asimov is that of education. Speci cally,
the story deals with the future of education which will become increasingly computerized.
As a result, students will become estranged from social interactions.

By contrasting the schools of the present day with those expected to exist in the twenty
second century, the writer draws the conclusion that the present day schools are much
more fun. Schools in the future schools will impart knowledge but students will miss out
on the fun they could have while going to the same school, studying the same things,
adjusting with the same teacher and being able to help one another. The author’s
message is one of warning against the dangers of computerized homeschooling which
deprives children of the bene ts of the personal interaction between students and
teachers, which helps them develop social skills.

The Fun They Had Message

The author’s message in the story is that education is not merely accumulation of
information. Computerised homeschooling can certainly help gain information in a better
way, but present day schooling is much more than acquisition of facts. It is a life-
experience where children interact with others, have fun and learn the values of sharing
and caring. If in the future schools have mechanical teachers attuned to speci c needs of
every student and books available only in electronic form, our children will be deprived of
the privilege of interaction with human teachers and other students and developing of
social skills.

The Fun They Had Characters

Margie

Margie is an eieven-year-old girl who lives in the twenty second century. She is taught by
a mechanical teacher in the comfort of her home. The mechanical teacher is highly
personalised and adjusted to suit her level. Yet, Margie dislikes her school. Probably this
is because she is con ned to a room and has to study alone at a xed time every day.

Margie is a curious girl. When she nds a real book in Tommy’s hands, she is eager to
know about its contents.

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In fact, she wants to read the book herself. However, she is surprised that the book
describes a school of the yesteryears which had real men as teachers and classes were
conducted in a special building. She is fascinated to learn that in those times the students
of the same level studied together.

Margie seems to be a friendly and social girl. 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, rather than studying in isolation.

Tommy

Tommy, a thirteen-year-old, plays an important role in the story as he is the one who nds
a book about the schools of the yesteryears. The entire action of the story begins after
that. He, too, like Margie represents the students of the future era when education will be
mechanised and automated.

Tommy is very curious. He has gone looking in the attic and found the old book. As soon
as he discovers it, 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.

However, Tommy is warm and friendly and he does believe in sharing. When Margie’s
mother calls her to attend school he assures her that they can nish the book later.

Textbook Questions:

Thinking about the text

1. How old are Margie and Tommy?

2. What did Margie write in her diary?

3. Had Margie ever seen a book before?

4. What things about the book did she nd strange?

5. What do you think a telebook is?

6. Where was Margie’s school? Did she have any classmates?

7. What subjects did Margie and Tommy learn?

Answers:

1. Margie is eleven year old and Tommy is thirteen year old.

2. Margie wrote, “Today Tommy found a real book!”.

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 3. No, Margie had never seen a book before.

4. Margie found it strange that the book had yellow and crinkly pages. Words in the
book were still and did not move the way they were supposed to on a screen.

5. A book that can be displayed on a screen is called a telebook.

6. Margie’s school was in her home itself, right next to her bedroom. No, she did not
have any classmates.

7. Margie and Tommy learned geography, history and arithmetic.

Answer the following with reference to the story.

1. “I wouldn’t throw it away.”

(i) Who says these words?(ii) What does ‘it’ refer to?(iii) What is it being compared with by
the speaker?

Answer:

(i) Tommy says these words.(ii) 'It' refers to the television screen.(iii) Tommy is comparing
the television screen with the printed books of earlier times. He thought that after
reading such books, one would have to throw them away. However, he would never
throw away his telebook.

(ii) 2. “Sure they had a teacher, but it wasn’t a regular teacher. It was a man.”

(i) Who does ‘they’ refer to?(ii) What does ‘regular’ mean here?(iii) What is it contrasted
with?

Answer:

(i) They refers to the students who studied in the old kind of schools, centuries before the
time the story is set in.(ii) Here, 'regular' refers to the mechanical teachers that Tommy
and Margie had.(iii) The mechanical teacher is contrasted with the teacher of the earlier
times, in the earlier times the teacher was a human being.

III. Answer each of these questions in a short paragraph (about 30 words).

1. What kind of teachers did Margie and Tommy have?

Answer: Margie and Tommy had mechanical teachers with large black screens on which
all the lessons were shown and questions were asked. These mechanical teachers had a
slot in which the students had to put their homework and test papers. They didn’t have a
living human being as a teacher who would teach the students in a classroom.

2. Why did Margie’s mother send for the County Inspector?

 Answer: Margie’s mother sent for the County Inspector because the mechanical teacher
was not functioning e ciently. Margie had been given many tests in geography by the
teacher, but there was no improvement in her performance. So, Margie’s mother wanted
to nd out the reason behind it.

3. What did he do?

Answer: Margie was doing badly in geography because the geography sector of the
mechanical teacher had been adjusted at a higher level. In order to help her, the County
Inspector slowed down the geography sector to an average ten-year level.

4. Why was Margie doing badly in geography? What did the County Inspector do to
help her?

Answer: Margie was doing badly in geography because the geography sector of the
mechanical teacher had been adjusted at a higher level. In order to help her, the County
Inspector slowed down the geography sector of the mechanical teacher to an average
ten-year level.

5. What had once happened to Tommy’s teacher?

Answer: Once, Tommy’s teacher was taken away for nearly a month because its history
sector had blanked out completely.

6. Did Margie have regular days and hours for school? If so, why?

Answer:  Yes, Margie had regular days and hours for school because her mother believed
that learning at regular hours helped little girls learn better. So, her mechanical teacher
always turned on at the same time every day except on Saturdays and Sundays.

7. How does Tommy describe the old kind of school?

Answer: Tommy says that the old kind of school had a special building and all the kids
went there. They had a teacher, who was a man. They all studied together and learned the
same thing.

8. How does he describe the old kind of teachers?

Answer: Tommy describes the old kind of teachers as living human beings who did not
live in the house. Instead, they taught the students in a special building. They taught the
children in groups and gave them homework.

IV. Answer each of these questions in two or three paragraphs (100 –150 words).

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1. What are the main features of the mechanical teachers and the schoolrooms that
Margie and Tommy have in the story?

Answer: Margie and Tommy had mechanical teachers. They had large black screens on
which all the lessons were shown and questions were asked. These teachers were
adjusted according to the age and potential of the student concerned. They had a slot in
which students had to put their homework and test papers. They had to write their
answers in a punch code and the mechanical teacher calculated the marks immediately.
Their schools were in their homes itself. They did not have any classmates. They had
regular days and hours for school. The mechanical teacher always turned on at the same
time every day except Saturdays and Sundays. They learned geography, history and
arithmetic.

2. Why did Margie hate school? Why did she think the old kind of school must have
been fun?

Answer: Margie hated school because it was not fun. She had a mechanical teacher who
used to teach her every day at a xed time in her house. She hated the part when she had
to insert the homework and test papers in the slot on the mechanical teacher. She did not
like the fact that she had to write her answers in a punch code. Her disliking for the
mechanical teacher was increased even more when she was failing to perform well in the
geography tests.

She thought that the old kind of school must have been fun as she imagined all the kids
from the entire neighbourhood coming together, laughing and shouting in the schoolyard.
She imagined that they would sit together in the classroom and go home together at the
end of the day. They would learn the same things and could help one another with the
homework. Also, the teachers were human beings that would make the learning process
more interactive. All these aspects made her believe that the old kind of school must have
been fun.

Do you agree with Margie that schools today are more fun than the school in the
story? Give reasons for your answer.

Answer: Yes, I strongly agree with Margie that schools today are more fun than the
school in the story. In the story, teaching is done mechanically inside a learner's house
itself. Studying and answering questions in the absence of classmates seems to be a
boring idea. Writing homework in punch codes and that too without anybody’s help would
be really exhausting.  

A mechanical teacher has no emotions and sentiments. It does not have the ability to
understand the psychology of a student rather it teaches him/her according to its
adjusted modes. But in today’s schools, there are teachers who are the real human
beings. They are more understanding and accommodating than mechanical ones. They
work for the overall development of a child. Moreover, children develop a better
understanding about each other and of their surroundings when accompanied by the
students of their age. Another major advantage of today’s schools is that if any student
faces any problem with the subject or in homework then he/she can discuss it with the
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teacher and other kids in the class. It is impossible to do such discussions with a
mechanical teacher. In today’s schools, kids learn various qualities like sharing, respect,
obedience, kindness, etc. They are encouraged to take part in games, sports, and other
activities which are necessary for the overall development of a student. Thus, all these
factors prove that schools today are more fun than the school in the story.