Showing results for "The Remarkable Rocket" in Science Fiction & Fantasy

Rocket! is the fourth in a series of near-future sci-fi/thrillers whose young heroine Ell Donsaii has a nerve mutation. This mutation’s rendered her a genius and an athletic phenomenon. In Rocket! she works out the enormous potential of the wormholes she discovered in Lieutenant. Though they only provide small openings through the fifth dimension, these wormholes will prove a tremendous boon to humankind. Feeding fuel to little rockets will let them fly all the way up into space.

At a royal wedding celebration, a group of fireworks discuss life, philosophy and politics. One supercilious rocket considers himself to be particularly “remarkable”. A witty fable on the subject of vanity, The Remarkable Rocket was first published in The Happy Prince and Other Tales in 1888.

"The Remarkable Rocket" This story concerns a firework, who is one of many to be let off at the wedding of a prince and princess. The rocket is extremely pompous and self-important, and denigrates all the other fireworks, eventually bursting into tears to demonstrate his "sensitivity". As this makes him wet, he fails to ignite, and, the next day, is thrown away into a ditch. He still believes that he is destined for great public importance, and treats a frog, dragonfly, and duck that meet him with appropriate disdain. Two boys find him, and use him for fuel on their camp-fire.