Button, Button (Asimov short story)
Encyclopedia
Button, Button is a science fiction
short story
by Isaac Asimov
. The story first appeared in a January 1953 issue of Startling Stories
, and reprinted in the 1975 collection Buy Jupiter and Other Stories
. It is one of several stories by Asimov in which he deliberately set out to be funny.
develops a method of linking brain power to creating physical effects. When his effect is modified to create weapons of war, he turns in disgust to the real love of his life - creating a flute
that can be played by mental power alone.
To raise the capital required for this project, he colludes with his nephew — a less-than-ethical lawyer
and the story's narrator — to use a new invention of his that can reach back into time and retrieve objects (a theme also appearing in The Ugly Little Boy
and A Statue for Father
).
They plan to retrieve a signature of one of the signatories of the United States Declaration of Independence
, Button Gwinnett
, which is rare and therefore potentially valuable. The signature is successfully recovered. The experiment works and they present a piece of genuine parchment with a genuine signature to the government for authentication. The scheme fails when the government investigators decide that the parchment is too new to be genuine; because it skipped forward hundreds of years in time, the parchment scrap appears only a year or two old.
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
short story
Short story
A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
by Isaac Asimov
Isaac Asimov
Isaac Asimov was an American author and professor of biochemistry at Boston University, best known for his works of science fiction and for his popular science books. Asimov was one of the most prolific writers of all time, having written or edited more than 500 books and an estimated 90,000...
. The story first appeared in a January 1953 issue of Startling Stories
Startling Stories
Startling Stories was an American pulp science fiction magazine, published from 1939 to 1955 by Standard Magazines. It was initially edited by Mort Weisinger, who was also the editor of Thrilling Wonder Stories, Standard's other science fiction title. Startling ran a lead novel in every issue;...
, and reprinted in the 1975 collection Buy Jupiter and Other Stories
Buy Jupiter and Other Stories
Buy Jupiter and Other Stories is a 1975 collection of short stories by American writer Isaac Asimov.It includes the following stories:*"Darwinian Pool Room"* "Day of the Hunters" * "Shah Guido G." * "Button, Button"...
. It is one of several stories by Asimov in which he deliberately set out to be funny.
Plot summary
An eccentric professorProfessor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
develops a method of linking brain power to creating physical effects. When his effect is modified to create weapons of war, he turns in disgust to the real love of his life - creating a flute
Flute
The flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
that can be played by mental power alone.
To raise the capital required for this project, he colludes with his nephew — a less-than-ethical lawyer
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
and the story's narrator — to use a new invention of his that can reach back into time and retrieve objects (a theme also appearing in The Ugly Little Boy
The Ugly Little Boy
"The Ugly Little Boy" is a science fiction short story by Isaac Asimov. The story first appeared in the September 1958 issue of Galaxy Science Fiction under the title "Lastborn", and was reprinted under its current title in the 1959 collection Nine Tomorrows. The story deals with a Homo...
and A Statue for Father
A Statue for Father
"A Statue for Father" is a humorous science fiction short story by Isaac Asimov. The story first appeared in the February 1959 issue of Satellite Science Fiction and was reprinted in the 1975 collection Buy Jupiter and Other Stories.-Plot summary:...
).
They plan to retrieve a signature of one of the signatories of the United States Declaration of Independence
United States Declaration of Independence
The Declaration of Independence was a statement adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, which announced that the thirteen American colonies then at war with Great Britain regarded themselves as independent states, and no longer a part of the British Empire. John Adams put forth a...
, Button Gwinnett
Button Gwinnett
Button Gwinnett was an English-born American political leader who, as a representative of Georgia to the Continental Congress, was the second of the signatories on the United States Declaration of Independence...
, which is rare and therefore potentially valuable. The signature is successfully recovered. The experiment works and they present a piece of genuine parchment with a genuine signature to the government for authentication. The scheme fails when the government investigators decide that the parchment is too new to be genuine; because it skipped forward hundreds of years in time, the parchment scrap appears only a year or two old.