"They" and Other Short Stories Literary Elements

Science Fiction/Short Stories

Heinlein’s short stories are predominantly set sometime in the future and either on Earth or a nearby accessible location like the moon or Mars. The future of these stories does not in general seem to be a quite distant future as interplanetary travel is not a common element.

Heinlein’s stories feature both first-person and third-person narrators in abundance. “They” is a noteworthy example of the subtle manipulation of narrative point of view to introduce an ironic dimension to the story. (See Climax section below.)

Another means by which Heinlein deals with irony through juxtaposing tone and mood. For the most, the actual narrative tone is simply straightforward with the occasional introduction of lightheartedness on the part of the narrative. At odds with this tone is a pervasive mood of paranoia and pessimism.

In “They” the protagonist is an unnamed patient confined to a mental institution because of paranoid delusions about being “real” within a reality that is actually a constructed simulation. The antagonists are, of course, those comprising the “they” who are behind the construction of this simulated reality and working in tandem against the inmate.

The major conflict at the center of “They” is actually presented as the bulk of the narrative. Almost the entire story from beginning to end is comprised of an action-free debate between the inmate and Dr. Hayward and consists of what is basically the text of an analysis appointment between a patient and a psychologist with the added information of what is taking place inside the patient’s mind. The conflict at hand is whether the patient is truly suffering from paranoid delusions or whether reality might be merely a simulation.

The ironic climax of “They” is startling: the inmate really is being victimized by the creators of a simulated reality.

The twist ending of “They” is actually directly foreshadowed in the opening lines of the story: “They would never let him alone. He realized that was part of the plot against him”

The introduction of the twist element in “They” is initially conveyed through understatement: “The creature he knew as Alice went to the place of assembly without stopping to change form.”

The title of the story “Gentleman, Be Seated” is an allusion to the formality of military academies and how students would be ritually addressed. The allusion is ironic in juxtaposition to the absurdity of the story itself.

The imagery which is used to describe the specifics of the manner in which the inmate’s simulated reality has been constructed is notable for the economy with which Heinlein succeeds in manifesting the idea at the very end of the story: “The Glaroon continued with orders: `Leave structures standing until adjournment. New York City and Harvard University are now dismantled. Divert him from those sectors.’”

“ '—All You Zombies—' ” is often held up as the most iconic example of a story with a plot built on the concept of paradox. Although the details of the plot are far too complicated to even begin explaining, ultimately the central character paradoxically becomes—through time travel—simultaneously the mother, father and offspring of a sexual union.

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This literary device is on display in the title as well as the content of the story “Columbus was a Dope” in which Christopher Columbus is a metonymic reference point for the pros and cons of exploring unknown worlds.

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