"All Summer in a Day" is a

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel uni ...

short story A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest ...

by American writer

Ray Bradbury Ray Douglas Bradbury (; August 22, 1920June 5, 2012) was an American author and screenwriter. One of the most celebrated 20th-century American writers, he worked in a variety of modes, including fantasy, science fiction, horror, mystery, and ...

, first published in the March 1954 issue of ''

The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction ''The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction'' (usually referred to as ''F&SF'') is a U.S. fantasy and science fiction magazine first published in 1949 by Mystery House, a subsidiary of Lawrence Spivak's Mercury Press. Editors Anthony Boucher ...

''.

Plot synopsis

The story is about a class of students on

Venus Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is sometimes called Earth's "sister" or "twin" planet as it is almost as large and has a similar composition. As an interior planet to Earth, Venus (like Mercury) appears in Earth's sky never f ...

, which, in this story, is a world of constant rainstorms, where the

Sun The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is a nearly perfect ball of hot plasma, heated to incandescence by nuclear fusion reactions in its core. The Sun radiates this energy mainly as light, ultraviolet, and infrared radi ...

is only visible for one hour every seven years. One of the children, Margot, moved to Venus from

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's sur ...

five years earlier, and she is the only one who remembers sunshine, since the sun shines regularly on Earth. When the teacher asks them to write a poem about the sun, hers is: : "I think the sun is a flower, : That blooms for just one hour". She describes the Sun as "penny", or "like fire in the stove". The other children, being too young ever to have seen it themselves, do not believe her. Led by a boy named William, they bully and antagonize her, and just before the sun comes out, William rallies the other children, and they lock her in a closet down a tunnel. As the sun is about to appear, their teacher arrives to take the class outside to enjoy their hour of sunshine and, in their astonishment and joy, they all forget about Margot. They run, play, skip, jump, and prance about, savoring every second of their newfound freedom. "Oh, it's better than the sunlamps, isn't it?" Suddenly, a girl catches a raindrop in her hands. A kid starts crying because of it, realizing that they won't get to see the sun again for another seven years. Thunder sounds, then the lightning comes, and the children run back inside as the sun disappears and it starts to pour again. At this point, one of them remembers Margot, who is still locked in the closet. Ashamed, they let her out of the closet, standing frozen, embarrassed over what they have done and unable to "meet each other's glances". The precious sun has come and gone, and because of their jealousy, Margot, who loved the sun the most, has missed out.

Adaptations

A 30-minute television adaptation was created, originally broadcast on the PBS' children's series ''

WonderWorks ''WonderWorks'' is an anthology series which ran from 1984 to 1992. Produced by the Public Broadcasting Service, the Walt Disney Company purchased the home video rights to the series in 1987 and was responsible for making the series available t ...

'' in 1982. 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. The

director of photography The cinematographer or director of photography (sometimes shortened to DP or DOP) is the person responsible for the photographing or recording of a film, television production, music video or other live action piece. The cinematographer is the ch ...

was Robert Elswit, who went on to become an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

winning cinematographer. A very notable difference is that in this version, the sun only appears every nine years.

Short film cast

* Reesa Mallen as Margot * Keith Coogan as William * Tammy Simpson * Bridget Meade as Lisa * Edith Fields as Mrs. Callaghan

Analysis

The story has been discussed in the context of magic realism, as a metaphor for the importance of Earth and difficulty in surviving outside of the human natural environment.

References

External links