The Blessington Method story
In the advanced future of 1980, life expectancy has improved dramatically. J.J. Bunce works for the Society of Gerology, which provides the discreet service of killing the healthy elderly. John Treadwell agrees to have his tiresome mother-in-law "dealt with", but once it is done, Treadwell then realizes that it is only a matter of time before his own children have him "dealt with" as well. Directed by: Herschel Daugherty. Story by: Stanley Ellin, Halsted Welles.
17 total · 5 major · 12 minor
| Theme | Level | Motivation |
|---|---|---|
| euthanasia | major | J.J. Bunce of the Society of Gerology was going around killing old people for the greater good. |
| human overpopulation | major | Bunce explained through fish-analogy the detrimental social aspects of extended longevity in a population. Also featured was the unconventional idea that life extension would lead to a lopsided demographic heavy on grumpy old coots with too much voting power. |
| life extension technology | major | Unspecified advances in science had led to a society were people lived 30 years longer, in the 1980s. |
| mother-in-law and son-in-law | major | John became fed up with his demanding mother-in-law and arranged to have her killed. |
| murder | major | Judging by the outrage with which Bunce was met, his service of killing geriatrics was not socially accepted and likely remained illegal, though the details were not made clear. His organization would certainly be censured if the truth came out. |
| brother and sister | minor | The Treadwell children, Jack and Jill, quarreled at in the living room. |
| Christianity | minor | It appears that church was mandatory in the 1980s, unless one had a health certificate for advanced age. |
| contagious disease in society | minor | People in the distant 1980s were extremely conscious of contamination from, for example, handshakes. |
| coping with being ill and indisposed | minor | In his monologue, an apparently convalescing Alfred Hitchcock professed to be wheelchair-bound and attended by nurses. |
| family affairs | minor | The story featured the Treadwell family: the father was fed up with his elderly live-in mother-in-law, a brother and sister quarreled at the dinner table, the kids didn't want to go to church, etc. |