The Happy Homicide by Frank Banta
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"The Happy Homicide" by Frank Banta is a satirical short story that falls into the crime fiction genre, penned in the early 1980s. The narrative takes place during a courtroom drama wherein the defendant, John Bork, is on trial for the murder of his wife, Fannie Bork. The overarching theme revolves around the absurdity of the judicial process and highlights the reliance on bizarre technological evidence, specifically a machine that allegedly enables
the deceased to "testify" about her own murder. The story unfolds in a courtroom setting where the prosecutor introduces the "Very Complicated Monstrous Proximilator," a machine designed to extract memories from Fannie Bork's brain. As the proceedings evolve, John Bork interjects with humorous and sardonic remarks, revealing his comedic resignation to the evidence against him. Ultimately, despite the peculiar theatrics of the trial and overwhelming circumstantial evidence, the jury delivers a surprising verdict of "not guilty." This outcome emphasizes the farcical elements of the narrative, showcasing a critique of the legal system where technical contraptions and procedural absurdities overshadow genuine justice. (This is an automatically generated summary.)
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About this eBook
| Author | Banta, Frank |
|---|---|
| Title | The Happy Homicide |
| Series Title | Produced from Worlds of If Science Fiction, March 1962 |
| Credits |
Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at www.pgdp.net |
| Reading Level | Reading ease score: 77.5 (7th grade). Fairly easy to read. |
| Language | English |
| LoC Class | PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature |
| Subject | Science fiction |
| Subject | Short stories |
| Subject | Trials (Murder) -- Fiction |
| Subject | Spouses -- Fiction |
| Category | Text |
| eBook-No. | 61133 |
| Release Date | Jan 8, 2020 |
| Last Update | Oct 17, 2024 |
| Copyright | Public domain in the USA. |
| Downloads | 250 downloads in the last 30 days. |
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