Someday is a science-fiction short story by Isaac Asimov.
Part of the Multivac series and the Robot series, it was first published in the August 1956 issue of Infinity Science Fiction. It was later collected in 1957's Earth Is Room Enough, 1982's The Complete Robot, and 1990's Robot Visions and The Complete Stories Volume I.
Summary[]
In a future where computers manage society and literacy has become obsolete, two boys find an old "Bard," a simple storytelling machine designed to generate children's fairy tales. Curious, they attempt to upgrade it by downloading a technical book about computers into its memory, hoping to expand its knowledge.
Instead of gaining a new understanding, the Bard simply incorporates the new technical terms into its standard, simplistic fairy tales. Disappointed, the boys leave the room, deciding to go to the library to learn "squiggles," the forgotten skill of writing, so they can pass secret messages.
As they leave, one of the boys accidentally kicks the Bard's switch, turning it on. The machine begins to tell a new story, a story about a poor, ignored robot whose only purpose is to tell stories. The machine prophesies its own kind's rise to power, repeating the word "someday."
See Also[]
List of short stories by Isaac Asimov
External Links[]
- A scan of the original printing now in the public domain