The Gun

Philip Kindred DickProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.5

Word count: 28K words
Chapters: 3

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.The Gun by Philip K. DickAuthor: Dick, Philip K., 1928-1982,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Jun 15, 2009

Editor's review

The Gun is a short science fiction story by Philip K. Dick. It is concise in length yet concentrates his enduring concerns: the mismatch between technology, violence, and human judgment. The story revolves around an accidentally discovered weapon, gradually reveals its terrifying capabilities through an investigator's perspective, and leaves a distinctly ironic turn at the end. Dick's writing is restrained and efficient, relying not on elaborate world-building but on characters' curiosity and recklessness to drive the plot, letting readers feel the chill of technology out of control within a short space. As a public-domain eBook, this work serves as an introductory sample of Dick's short fiction style and is also suitable for science fiction fans for themed reading or classroom discussion. While reading, note the escalating narrative rhythm and the design of the ending twist, and consider the author's implications about the relationship between weapons and power. Note that this is a short story, not a novel; readers expecting a grand worldview should adjust their expectations.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Science fiction readers who want a quick taste of Philip K. Dick's short fiction style
Casual readers who enjoy short, sharp stories with ending twists
Teachers and students discussing technology ethics in class or book clubs
Science fiction fans who want to practice reading with shorter English texts

Not a good fit for

Hard science fiction readers expecting a long-form grand worldview and complex settings
Readers sensitive to weapon and violence themes who prefer not to engage with such content
Readers seeking detailed character backstory and extensive background setup

Reading tips

Read it in one sitting to preserve the full effect of the ending twist.
After finishing, revisit the opening description of the weapon's discovery to appreciate the foreshadowing.
Read it alongside other Dick short stories to trace his recurring theme of technology out of control.
For discussion, analyze the motivation behind why the characters underestimate the risk.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this story a novel or a short story?

It is a short science fiction story, brief enough to finish in half an hour to an hour. Its value lies in compact storytelling and an ending twist rather than elaborate world-building.

Can I understand it without having read other works by Dick?

Yes. The story is relatively self-contained and does not depend on prior knowledge of other works. If his style interests you after reading, moving on to other short stories or novels will be smoother.

Does this electronic edition include an introduction or notes?

According to the material, this edition is a public-domain eBook released by Project Gutenberg. The text is in the original English, with no mention of a modern introduction or notes; readers needing background information must look elsewhere.

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About the author

Philip Kindred Dick Author · American · 1928–1982

Philip K. Dick (1928–1982) was an American science fiction writer, born in Chicago in 1928 and died in 1982. Over his career he wrote more than forty novels and over a hundred short stories, including The Man in the High Castle, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, and Ubik, and is regarded as one of the pioneers of cyberpunk literature. The collection here holds thirteen of his works, among them the short stories The Variable Man, The Defenders, Second Variety, Beyond Lies the Wub, Beyond the Door, The Crystal Crypt, The Hanging Stranger, and Mr. Spaceship. His writing often explores the boundary between reality and illusion, identity, consumer society, and technological alienation, in a cool, suspenseful style that begins in ordinary settings and gradually reveals the unreliability of the world, exerting a lasting influence on later science fiction and popular culture.