After Dinner Conversation

If sleep, and the dreams that come with them, were no longer required, would you still do it? Would humanity be different if we didn’t have the time to imagine what might be? Would you break the law to support the dream habits of your partner? In this work of philosophical short story fiction, Peter finds out his partner Samir has been sneaking around behind his back to “try out dreaming.” According to Samir, he likes the way sleeping, and dreaming, makes him feel. And besides, he argues, it doesn’t do any harm; his work will never find out. Peter decides to break the law in support of their relationship and to stop taking the drug that makes sleep and dreams unnecessary, in order to better understand his partner. However, after a nightmare, Peter decides that sleep and dreaming isn’t for him and the government is right.

Should we be held accountable for what we imagine, but choose not to actually do? Does wrong thought always lead to wrong action? In this work of philosophical short story fiction, scientists have discovered a way to record dreams and make them available for playback. This quickly gives rise to the bootleg sale of horrible and wonderful dreams to a general public interested in ever-more spectacle. It also creates a market for buying and watching the dreams of celebrities. Finally, it brings about the government subpoenaing dreams to use as evidence in trials and, later, in helping it discover crimes that have not, but might, happen in the future.

Should the past be forgotten? Does it help society, and the community, to let the past go? How can we learn from the past while simultaneously letting go of it? In this work of philosophical short story fiction, a young boy has been put in charge of the machine that stores the exact collective memories of his grandmother (“Gromma”) and the community at large. His job is made more difficult because the machine is old, falling apartment, and a fire killed the previous caretaker long before his training was complete. As the story closes the boy finds out the previous fire was caused by a community member who believes the community can only move forward by destroying the machine and allowing the memories of the past to naturally fade into obscurity.

It is moral to take on debts for the benefit of your unborn child that will carry over to your unborn child after you are dead? What if taking on those debts are the best way to ensure your child has the best chance for a successful life? In this work of philosophical short story fiction, a couple looking to have their first child goes to the medical clinic to discuss the cost of DNA selection packages for their yet-to-be-conceived child. How much do they want to fix the genetic lottery to help their child be smart, athletic, or driven? They have the budget to make minor improvements, but if they are willing to take out a loan they can do more. The problem is the unpaid debt carries to their unborn child if they die before it is paid in full. In the end, through the high pressure used-car-salesmanship of the company, they decide to leverage their child’s future and order the “Platinum” package.

What if the Devil were real and you could, and did, kill him? What, does the Devil stand for in society, and what might change about society in the event of his death? In this work of philosophical short story fiction, Simon is put on trial for having, literally, killed the devil. He did it through trickery, of course. He told the Devil that he (the Devil) was a cheap peddler of a product, fear. But, because he was immortal, he would never truly understand the product he pushed on others. The Devil asserts he fears nothing and, to prove it, removes his immortality from his being. Simon kills him. And now Simon is on trial. It is unethical to kill a purely evil thing? And, if the Devil is dead, why are bad things still happening in the world?

Is religious-based fear an acceptable way to ensure right behavior? Can moral behavior be created through theatre? At what age should a child be made aware of the Christian ideas of hell? Does the motivation of religious leaders make their lies acceptable? In this work of philosophical short fiction, Tina and Dale live out of their RV, scraping by, and traveling around the United States. Tina was traumatized by being made to attend an evangelical tent revival meeting as child. Now, as adults, they follow these same tent revivals around the United States offering fake exorcisms to anyone willing to pay for their service. In their opinion it doesn’t do any good, or any harm, which is more than can be said for the tent sermons. One day a family pulls up with a child asking for an exorcism. Tina and Dale obligate, however, in the process fail to realize the boy is having a genuine medical emergency. The boy dies during the “exorcism.”

To what detail do you need to know how the justice system works to support it? Would you be willing to take part in the punishment of a foreign justice system? What morality do we carry with us between cultures, and what morality are we willing to adopt from our host culture? In this work of philosophical short fiction, the narrator wanders into a remote, but seemingly civilized, village about to carry out their most severe punishment, the stoning to death of a convicted criminal. As part of their culture, if there is a stranger among them, they should be the one to cast the first stone. Our narrator only knows that the trial was fair under the laws of the culture, and the criminal was found guilty. However, he is not permitted to know what crime the criminal committed. Regardless of the narrator’s choice, the criminal will die today. The narrator decides to throw the first stone, hits the criminal squarely in the head, killing him instantly. The remaining community members drop their stones and head home, justice served.