A Pail of Air
E844774
A Pail of Air is a classic science fiction short story by Fritz Leiber that depicts a family’s struggle to survive on a frozen, airless Earth after it has been torn from its sun.
Statements (45)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf | science fiction short story ⓘ |
| author | Fritz Leiber NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| centralConflict | a family struggles to survive on an airless frozen Earth ⓘ |
| countryOfOrigin |
United States of America
ⓘ
surface form:
United States
|
| depicts |
improvised survival technology
ⓘ
psychological effects of extreme isolation ⓘ |
| firstPublicationYear | 1951 ⓘ |
| firstPublishedIn | Galaxy Science Fiction NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| genre |
post-apocalyptic fiction
ⓘ
science fiction ⓘ |
| hasFandom | science fiction fandom ⓘ |
| hasLaterPublicationType | anthology reprint ⓘ |
| hasPublicationType | periodical publication ⓘ |
| hasReception | regarded as a classic of mid-20th-century science fiction ⓘ |
| hasTitleWordCount | 4 ⓘ |
| includedInCollection |
The Best of Fritz Leiber
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
various Fritz Leiber short story collections ⓘ |
| language | English ⓘ |
| literaryForm | prose ⓘ |
| literaryMovement | Golden Age science fiction NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| mainCharacter |
the boy's brother
ⓘ
the boy's father ⓘ the boy's mother ⓘ unnamed boy ⓘ |
| narrativePointOfView | first-person ⓘ |
| narrator | unnamed boy ⓘ |
| notableElement | depiction of solidified atmosphere collected in pails ⓘ |
| originalMedium | magazine ⓘ |
| originalPublisher | Galaxy Science Fiction NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| premise |
Earth has been torn from its sun and wanders in deep space
ⓘ
the atmosphere has frozen and fallen to the ground ⓘ |
| scienceFictionConcept |
frozen oxygen and nitrogen used as breathable air
ⓘ
rogue Earth drifting through space ⓘ |
| setting |
Earth
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
frozen Earth ⓘ post-solar-system Earth ⓘ |
| targetAudience |
adult readers
ⓘ
science fiction readers ⓘ |
| theme |
family bonds
ⓘ
hope in the face of catastrophe ⓘ human survival in extreme conditions ⓘ isolation ⓘ |
| timePeriodOfStory | near future (relative to time of writing) ⓘ |
| tone | bleak but hopeful ⓘ |
| workOfAuthor | Fritz Leiber NERFINISHED ⓘ |
Referenced by (1)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.