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The Minority Report

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Overview

In the world of The Minority Report, Commissioner John Anderton is the one to thank for the lack of crime. He is the originator of the Precrime System, which uses "precogs"--people with the power to see into the future--to identify criminals before they can do any harm. Unfortunately for Anderton, his precogs perceive him as the next criminal. But Anderton knows he has never contemplated such a thing, and this knowledge proves the precogs are fallible. Now, whichever way he turns, Anderton is doomed--unless he can find the precogs's "minority report"--the dissenting voice that represents his one hope of getting at the truth in time to save himself from his own system.

A film version of The Minority Report, directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Tom Cruise, will be released this summer-further proof of the enduring appeal of Philip K. Dick's visionary fiction.

Editorial Reviews

Police Commissioner John Anderton finds himself at the mercy of his own crime-prevention system when the prescient precogs he's hired to stop crime before it starts peg him as a soon-to-be murderer in Philip K. Dick's masterful short story The Minority Report. This slim volume is top-bound like an office account and perfectly timedthe movie version, directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Tom Cruise, is due out this summerbut whether fans will shell out the dough for a single short story that's available in various collections remains to be seen.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Author Information

Bio of Philip K. Dick

Philip K. Dick's (1928-1982) writing career spanned three decades, during which he wrote and published thirty-six science fiction novels and one hundred twenty-one short stories. The main themes of his work, which still resonate today, explore the essence of what makes man human in contrast to androids and aliens; at what point do centralized powers such as government and business become a threat rather than benign and beneficial; and toward the end of his life, he explored deeply personal metaphysical questions about the essence of God and the nature of reality itself. Some of his most well known, critically acclaimed and award winning titles include: The Man in the High Castle (1963 Hugo Award) A Scanner Darkly (Grand Prix du Festival at Metz, France 1979), Ubik (Time Magazine selection of 100 best English-language novels 1923 - 2006), Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said (John W. Campbell Award), The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch and VALIS. His work has been published in 27 counties and translated into 25 languages. In addition to his individual works receiving honors, Dick was inducted into the Science Fiction Hall of Fame in 2005, and in 2007 four of his novels from the 1960s (The Man in the High Castle, The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? and Ubik) were published by the Library of America, achieving literary canonization with the likes of William Faulkner and Ernest Hemingway. The majority of his short fiction was collected in a five-volume set published by Underwood Miller in 1987. Nine of his novels and short stories have been adapted to film, most notably: Blade Runner (1982) based on the novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Total Recall (1990), based on the short story, "We Can Remember It for You Wholesale," Minority Report (2002) and A Scanner Darkly (2006), both based on works of the same name.

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Additional Info

Imprint

Pantheon

Filesize

2.21 MB

Number of Pages

112

eBook ISBN

9780307496829

Excerpt from: The Minority Report by Philip K. Dick

The first thought Anderton had when he saw the young man was:I'm getting bald. Bald and fat and old. But he didn't say it aloud. Instead, he pushed back his chair, got to his feet, and came resolutely around the side of his desk, his right hand rigidly extended. Smiling with forced amiability, he shook hands with the young man. "Witwer?" he asked, managing to make this query sound gracious. "That's right," the young man said. "But the name's Ed to you, of course. That is, if you share my dislike for needless formality." The look on his blond, overly-confident face showed that he considered the matter settled. It would be Ed and John: Everything would be agreeably cooperative right from the start. "Did you have much trouble finding the building?" Anderton asked guardedly, ignoring the too-friendly overture.Good God, he had to hold on to something. Fear touched him and he began to sweat. Witwer was moving around the office as if he already owned it--as if he were measuring it for size. Couldn't he wait a couple of days--a decent interval? "No trouble," Witwer answered blithely, his hands in his pockets. Eagerly, he examined the voluminous files that lined the wall. "I'm not coming into your agency blind, you understand. I have quite a few ideas of my own about the way Precrime is run." Shakily, Anderton lit his pipe. "How is it run? I should like to know." "Not badly," Witwer said. "In fact, quite well." Anderton regarded him steadily. "Is that your private opinion? Or is it just cant?" Witwer met his gaze guilelessly. "Private and public. The Senate's pleased with your work. In fact, they're enthusiastic." He added, "As enthusiastic as very old men can be." Anderton winced, but outwardly he remained impassive. It cost him an effort, though. He wondered what Witwerreallythought. What was actually going on in that closecropped skull? The young man's eyes were blue, bright-and disturbingly clever. Witwer was nobody's fool. And obviously he had a great deal of ambition. "As I understand it," Anderton said cautiously, "you're going to be my assistant until I retire." "That's my understanding, too," the other replied, without an instant's hesitation. "Which may be this year, or next year--or ten years from now." The pipe in Anderton's hand trembled. "I'm under no compulsion to retire. I founded Precrime and I can stay on here as long as I want. It's purelymydecision." Witwer nodded, his expression still guileless. "Of course." With an effort, Anderton cooled down a trifle. "I merely wanted to get things straight." "From the start," Witwer agreed. "You're the boss. What you say goes." With every evidence of sincerity, he asked: "Would you care to show me the organization? I'd like to familiarize myself with the general routine as soon as possible." As they walked along the busy, yellow-lit tiers of offices, Anderton said: "You're acquainted with the theory of precrime, of course. I presume we can take that for granted." "I have the information publicly available," Witwer replied. "With the aid of your precog mutants, you've boldly and successfully abolished the postcrime punitive system of jails and fines. As we all realize, punishment was never much of a deterrent, and could scarcely have afforded comfort to a victim already dead." They had come to the descent lift. As it carried them swiftly downward, Anderton said: "You've probably grasped the basic legalistic drawback to precrime methodology. We're taking in individuals who have broken no law." "But they surely will,&quo