The Flying Machine
by Ray Bradburyliterary work· published 1953
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"The Flying Machine" is a short story written by Ray Bradbury in 1953. Bradbury also adapted the tale into a short play that same year. China, 400 AD. The Emperor Yuan notices a man who has created a contraption for flying. Emperor Yuan is not at all happy when he asks the inventor his purpose in creating such a device and the inventor replies that his motivation was merely the desire for innovation. Thus Yuan orders that the inventor shall be executed because, while his flying machine may be a beautiful creation, the emperor sees the devastating potential for those who "have an evil face and an evil heart" and will seek to use it for purposes other than the enjoyment of flight, namely flying over the Great Wall of China and destroying it.
Adaptations (1)
The Flying Machine was adapted into a 1993 film.
The Man in the Air1993 · film · 10 min · dir. Boris Akulinichev · IMDb ↗The eternal tragic conflict of a genius and a tyrant in power. The heroes of the film are the inventor of the aircraft and the Chinese emperor, who ordered his execution. The emperor was afraid of the possibility of using the aircraft for military purposes and ordered the courtiers to keep this secret.
