"The Prize of Peril" is a

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

short story by

Robert Sheckley Robert Sheckley (July 16, 1928 – December 9, 2005) was an American writer. First published in the science-fiction magazines of the 1950s, his many quick-witted stories and novels were famously unpredictable, absurdist, and broadly comical. ...

. It was first published in ''

The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction ''The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction'' (usually referred to as ''F&SF'') is a U.S. fantasy and science fiction magazine first published in 1949 by Mystery House, a subsidiary of Lawrence Spivak's Mercury Press. Editors Anthony Boucher a ...

'' in May 1958 and first collected in ''

Store of Infinity ''Store of Infinity'' is a collection of science fiction short stories by Robert Sheckley. It was first published in 1960 by Bantam Books. It includes the following stories: # "The Prize of Peril "The Prize of Peril" is a science fiction short s ...

'' in 1960 by

Bantam Books Bantam Books is an American publishing house owned entirely by parent company Random House, a subsidiary of Penguin Random House; it is an imprint of the Random House Publishing Group. It was formed in 1945 by Walter B. Pitkin, Jr., Sidney B. ...

. The short story is noted for its plot's anticipation of

reality television Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...

shows such as '' Survivor'' and ''

Fear Factor ''Fear Factor'' is an American stunt/ dare game show that first aired on NBC from 2001 to 2006 and was initially hosted by comedian and UFC commentator Joe Rogan. The show was adapted by Endemol USA from the original Dutch series titled ''Now or ...

'' by several decades.

Synopsis

The

protagonist A protagonist () is the main character of a story. The protagonist makes key decisions that affect the plot, primarily influencing the story and propelling it forward, and is often the character who faces the most significant obstacles. If a st ...

of the story is Jim Raeder, a man notable only for his normality, who has been a participant in many reality television shows (given the name "thrill shows") and thus become a celebrity. In all the shows the risk of dying has been a part of the concept; he has fought a real bull in Spain, he has driven a

Formula 1 Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...

racecar and fought with other divers while trying to escape sharks and other sea predators. In the story he takes part in the greatest of all reality shows: he is to be hunted by professional gangland murderers. As he is hunted, his journey is shown all over the US on TV and he receives help from viewers, the so-called

Good Samaritan In most contexts, the concept of good denotes the conduct that should be preferred when posed with a choice between possible actions. Good is generally considered to be the opposite of evil and is of interest in the study of ethics, morality, ph ...

s. The commentator, Mike Terry, makes a point of this during the show: "All of America is ready to help Jim!", but Raeder soon finds out that things are not what he expected them to be and that maybe his survival is not a main priority among the public. The story ends with Raeder winning "The Prize of Peril", but being dragged away after presumably having a

mental breakdown A mental disorder, also referred to as a mental illness or psychiatric disorder, is a behavioral or mental pattern that causes significant distress or impairment of personal functioning. Such features may be persistent, relapsing and remitti ...

, or merely "not being 'himself' at the moment," according to Terry.

Adaptations

The story was adapted as a 1970 German television film ''

Das Millionenspiel ' ("The Game of Millions" or "Chance for a Million") is a 1970 German action/sci-fi television film, directed by Tom Toelle and starring Jörg Pleva, Suzanne Roquette and Dieter Thomas Heck. It was aired by ARD (broadcaster) on 18 October 1970. ...

'' and a 1983 French film, '' Le Prix du Danger''.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Prize of Peril 1960 short stories Science fiction short stories Short stories adapted into films Fiction about snuff films Short stories by Robert Sheckley Fiction about death games