User:DoctorWho42/The Ascension

"The Ascension" is a short story by American author Barry N. Malzberg as K. M. O'Donnell. It was first published in the April 1969 issue of Fantastic.

Background
"The Ascension" was written in November and sold in December 1967. Malzberg said "I would be remiss if I did not freely acknowledge a stylistic debt, in this case, to an excellent story by J. G. Ballard to be published in Judith Merrill's anthology of British new-wave science-fiction."

Publication history
"The Ascension" was first published in the April 1969 issue of Fantastic. In 1969, it appeared in the book Final War and Other Fantasies.

Plot
The President of the Republic faces backlash. He expects the dissolution of Language followed by riots and the Presentation of the Demands. After that, he must stand on the Balcony. He asks his adviser if they can hold out another six months. His adviser tells him he has only one month. The President has him shot then cremated. In the East Wing, the President meets with the Deputy of Public Information as the demands are presented. The Media documents the event. The Deputy asks the President to withdraw. The President asks if it is a formal request. The Deputy says it's informal so they may take a good picture for the Media. The President tries to pose for the cameras but none flicker. The Deputy goes down the list of grievances including the War, poverty, and injustice. The President accepts the charges. Standing on the Balcony, the President wishes he had worked more closely with the Opposition. He is shot. They inaugurate the 47th President of the Republic the next afternoon.

Reception
Upon its publication in 1969, Fantastic editor Barry N. Malzberg noted "a story which upon close rereading strikes me as so conservative—perhaps the word is reactionary—that I am surprised I could have written it. Or could take it so seriously." In its 1969 reprint for Ace Books's Barry N. Malzberg collection Final War and Other Fantasies, the author said "The Ascension" was "rendered worthless as prescience by the events of 6/68 which dated it far before it saw print."