The Hated

Frederik PohlProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.7

Word count: 22K 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 Hated by Frederik PohlAuthor: Pohl, Frederik, 1919-2013,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Jul 24, 2009

Editor's review

The Hated is a short work by the American science fiction writer Frederik Pohl, released as a public-domain ebook by Project Gutenberg. Pohl was an important writer who came up during the golden age of science fiction and was both an editor and a creator; his short fiction often uses a concise premise to cut into social psychology and human nature. This story is not long, its narrative pace is brisk, and it has the typical feel of early science fiction magazine work: a core premise quickly establishes the conflict, and characters' reactions then drive the plot. For readers who want to understand the shape of mid-twentieth-century American short science fiction, it is a light but typical sample. The public-domain ebook is plain text, with no introduction or notes; the barrier to reading is low, and it suits being finished in one sitting on a commute or in spare moments. It can also serve as reference material for science fiction writing enthusiasts studying short-story structure and suspense. Readers should note the language style and attitudes of its period and understand it in the context of science fiction history.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Short science fiction fans who want to know work from around the golden age
Intermediate and advanced English learners looking for short extensive reading material
Science fiction writing enthusiasts studying short-story structure and suspense
Light readers on commutes or in spare moments

Not a good fit for

Hard science fiction readers expecting long world-building and complex premises
Beginner English learners who need notes
Readers sensitive to the language style and attitudes of early science fiction

Reading tips

Read it in one sitting, first grasping the core premise and conflict, then look back at how the characters' motives are set up.
After reading, look up Pohl's life and the background of the science fiction magazine era to understand the work's context.
English learners can copy out lines of dialogue and psychological description for short imitation writing exercises.
Read it alongside short science fiction from the same period and observe similarities and differences in theme and narrative technique.

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

About how long is this story?

It is a short story, relatively brief, usually finishable in one or two readings, and suitable for reading in spare moments.

Do I need to know the author's other works first?

No. This work can be read independently; knowing about Pohl's background as a science fiction editor and writer helps in understanding his style, but it does not affect understanding the story itself.

Does the electronic edition have notes or an introduction?

Public-domain ebooks from Project Gutenberg are generally plain main text and usually contain no scholarly notes or introduction; readers need to look up background information themselves.

Comments

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About the author

Frederik Pohl Author · American · 1919–2013

Frederik Pohl (1919–2013) was an American science fiction writer and editor, born in New York on November 26, 1919, and died on September 2, 2013. He began editing science fiction magazines at the age of nineteen and co-wrote The Space Merchants with Kornbluth. His representative works include Gateway, Man Plus, and Jem, and he won the Hugo, Nebula, and National Book Awards multiple times, making him one of the most important figures in the history of science fiction. The library also holds The Tunnel Under the World, Wolfbane, Search the Sky, The Hated, and Survival Kit, among others, spanning short stories and novels. His work often explores social criticism, commercial alienation, and the human condition with fertile imagination and a cold, sharp tone; some titles are classified here under motivational growth.