Synopsis: Trends, a short story by Isaac Asimov published in Astounding Science-Fiction in July 1939, presents a future where humanity, after a period of scientific progress, has fallen into conservatism and opposition to space exploration. John Harman, a visionary scientist, struggles to launch the first spacecraft into space while facing hostility from a world that considers his project a threat. With the support of a few allies, he challenges censorship and religious fanaticism, determined to prove that progress cannot be stopped.
Warning
The following summary and analysis is only a semblance and one of the many possible readings of the text. It is not intended to replace the experience of reading the story.
Summary of Trends, by Isaac Asimov
The story Trends, by Isaac Asimov, presents an alternative future in which society, after accelerated scientific progress, has suffered a setback towards conservatism and intolerance, particularly about space exploration. The story follows John Harman, a pioneer of science and astronautics, who fights against public and religious opposition to achieve the first trip to space.
On the verge of launching his ship, the Prometheus, Harman faces fierce resistance. Society in 1973 succumbed to a strong religious revival led by Otis Eldredge, a charismatic preacher who condemned the attempt to explore space as blasphemy against God. The media, public opinion, and even the government oppose Harman. The assistant and narrator of the story, Clifford McKenny, describes how the scientist receives death threats and how protests and campaigns are organized to stop him, and even his own team is infiltrated by a traitor, Shelton, who shares Eldredge’s beliefs.
Despite warnings from friends and influential figures such as Howard Winstead, director of the Research Institute that partially funds the project, Harman refuses to stop his work, arguing that space exploration is an inalienable right of humanity and that science should not be subject to the pressures of superstition. However, on the day of the launch, Shelton sabotages the ship, causing an explosion that results in the death of several people and leaves Harman injured. After the disaster, society reacted with indignation and demanded Harman’s head, which led to a series of riots led by Eldredge. However, the authorities managed to control the situation, and although Harman was eventually held in hospital where he recovered, no formal charges were brought against him.
As time passes, the public fervor dissipates. Still, the repression against science intensifies, resulting in the passing of laws that prohibit research into rocketry and plunge society into a new period of obscurantism. Meanwhile, Harman manages to escape from the hospital with McKenny’s help and hides on a Minnesota farm. For five years, he worked secretly on constructing a new ship, the New Prometheus, with a small group of loyal collaborators. Meanwhile, the world continues on its path toward intellectual regression: science is controlled by the government, humanistic studies replace scientific research, and censorship becomes total.
Finally, in 1978, Harman was ready for his second attempt. Without making a public announcement, he takes off in the New Prometheus to orbit the Moon and return. His team, aware of the risks, fears that he will not return or that, if he does, he will be executed for defying the law. However, against all odds, Harman succeeds and returns to Earth, landing near Washington D.C. His arrival causes a significant commotion because, despite expectations of a hostile reception, the achievement of reaching the Moon unexpectedly transforms public opinion. Instead of facing legal repercussions, Harman is hailed as a hero, and his feat stands as a symbol of a new scientific awakening. Religious control over society begins to crumble, allowing science to reclaim its place. Harman, with an expression of triumph, confesses to McKenny from his hospital bed: “The pendulum swung back again.”
The story concludes with a reflection on historical cycles, demonstrating how humanity oscillates between progress and reaction but always finds its way back to knowledge.
Characters from Isaac Asimov’s “Trends”
John Harman is the story’s protagonist and the symbol of the struggle for scientific progress in a world that has taken a step backward toward superstition and religious fanaticism. He is a short man but with an unbreakable will. His determination to reach space leads him to challenge the whole of society, regardless of the consequences. Throughout the story, he is shown as a stubborn, passionate character with absolute faith in science, making him both heroic and tragic. Despite opposition from almost everyone, Harman does not give up and continues pursuing his dream, even after the explosion of Prometheus and his persecution. His tenacity makes him a true pioneer who understands that knowledge does not advance without sacrifice. However, his rigidity and contempt for society’s mentality also make him vulnerable, as he underestimates the magnitude of the rejection he will face. In the second part of the story, his cunning and patience allow him to return with a more cautious plan, and his final victory shows that, in the end, those ahead of their time end up having the last word.
Clifford McKenny is the narrator of the story and Harman’s loyal assistant. He is a pragmatic character, less passionate than his boss, but brave and loyal enough to support him to the end. Through his eyes, the reader observes the evolution of events and the transformation of the world. Although he doubts Harman’s success at various moments and even fears for his life, he never abandons him. His role as a witness to history and his constant reflection on the cyclical nature of progress makes him a key player in the central reflection of the story. McKenny is a character with a balanced point of view: he understands both the greatness of science and the power of the collective mentality and its unpredictable changes.
Otis Eldredge represents religious fanaticism and the power of mass manipulation. He is a charismatic preacher, capable of hypnotizing crowds with his oratory and awakening in them a fervor that borders on the irrational. His apocalyptic rhetoric turns Harman into a public enemy and a symbol of sin and rebellion against God. Eldredge embodies extreme conservatism, the fear of change, and the need to control knowledge in the name of imposed morality. His death does not mark the end of the repression of science, but it does leave a leadership vacuum that allows the anti-science movement to fall. He is reminiscent of history’s great religious agitators, those who, in times of uncertainty, manage to impose their vision at the expense of progress.
Howard Winstead, director of the Research Institute that partially funds the space exploration project, is an ambiguous character. He is not an enemy of science but a cautious man who understands politics and public opinion better than Harman. In his conversation with the protagonist, he tries to persuade him to abandon his work, arguing that the world is not yet ready for space travel and that his attempt could have devastating consequences for the scientific community. Winstead represents the voice of pragmatic reason, the man who sees social trends clearly and knows that science if it does not have the backing of society, can suffer terrible consequences. Although he opposes Harman, he warns about the dangers of challenging society without considering the right moment.
Shelton is the traitor in Harman’s team, a character who symbolizes the influence of fanaticism on individuals. Although he has been working on the project for two years, he has been secretly seduced by Eldredge’s ideas, and, in an act of “redemption,” he sabotages the Prometheus spacecraft, causing it to explode. His act not only destroys the first attempt to reach space but also causes the deaths of dozens of people, which further fuels the hatred against Harman. On his deathbed, he appears as a fanatic convinced that he has done the right thing, reinforcing the idea that the real threat to science is not only ignorance but the absolute belief in an immovable truth.
Harman’s collaborators in constructing the New Prometheus —Harry Jenkins, Joe O’Brien, Neil Stanton, and Saul Simonoff— are secondary characters who symbolize the clandestine resistance of science against censorship and persecution. Although they do not have as developed a role as McKenny, their presence is fundamental to the story, as they demonstrate that knowledge cannot be completely suppressed and that there will always be those who confront repression and the impositions of power.
Analysis of Trends, by Isaac Asimov
Trends is a story that explores the struggle between scientific progress and the fear of change. Through a story set in a future where society has regressed toward extreme conservatism, the story poses an essential question: what happens when humanity decides to look back and reject knowledge instead of moving forward? The story of John Harman is that of a man who confronts a society that considers his dream a threat, not for technical or scientific reasons, but out of fear and fanaticism.
One of the story’s most interesting aspects is how it reflects the cycles of history. Humanity has had moments of significant scientific progress and periods of reaction and censorship. In Trends, Asimov imagines a future where, after the advances of the early 20th century, society has decided that science has gone too far and must be contained. This has happened before: during the Middle Ages, for example, scientific knowledge was repressed in favor of religious beliefs. Later, during the Enlightenment and the Industrial Revolution, science flourished once again. Asimov shows us that these forward and backward movements are not linear but that history oscillates like a pendulum between progress and reaction.
The relationship between science and religion is fundamental in history. Otis Eldredge, the preacher who leads the opposition against Harman, is not opposed to science because he does not understand it but because it represents a challenge to his worldview. His success in mobilizing millions shows that emotions can influence society more than reason. His discourse is not based on facts but on fear: the idea that space exploration is a sin, a blasphemy against God, and that humanity must accept its limits. This is reminiscent of many historical moments in which religion or ideologies have tried to stop scientific discoveries, from the persecution of Galileo to the censorship of theories such as Darwin’s evolution.
Another key point is how charismatic leaders and the media can shape public opinion. At first, the scientific community supports Harman, but when the press begins to spread Eldredge’s speeches and foment fear, society turns against him. Here, Asimov warns of the danger of mass manipulation and the ease with which an idea, even if it has no scientific basis, can become accepted truth if repeated often enough. This aspect is still relevant in a world where misinformation can spread rapidly and generate extreme reactions.
Despite his opposition, Harman never gives up on his goal. His first attempt ends in tragedy due to the sabotage of Shelton, a member of his team who shares Eldredge’s ideology. This betrayal reinforces the idea that the enemy of science is not always ignorance but fanaticism and the absolute certainty of being right. Shelton does not doubt for a moment that he is doing the right thing by destroying Prometheus, even when this means the death of innocent people. Asimov shows us that fanaticism is dangerous because of its leaders and because it can turn ordinary people into agents of repression.
The end of the story shows how history can change unexpectedly. Harman manages to build a new ship, and, on this occasion, his flight is a success. But most importantly, he reaches the Moon, and society reacts. Instead of condemning him, the world is amazed by his feat. The same public that called for his death now considers him a hero. This shows that, although societies can resist change, when someone demonstrates with facts what is possible, perception can be transformed quickly. What was previously considered a threat becomes a symbol of hope.
Trends are not just a story about space travel but also a reflection on the power of fear and resistance to change and a voice of hope about the inevitable victory of knowledge over ignorance. Asimov does not tell us that progress is straightforward or linear, but he clarifies that human curiosity and ambition will always find a way forward despite obstacles.
