Foundation

Article written by Joshua Ehiosun

C2 certified writer.

Each part of the novel gives a different story but progresses chronologically and tells the story of how the Foundation struggles to steer humanity through times of crisis.

Key Facts about Foundation

• Book Title: ‘Foundation.’
• Author: Isaac Asimov.
• Book Inspiration: ‘Foundation’ got inspired by the Roman Empire. Isaac Asimov worked as a professional writer in 1941, and while trying to get the idea for his next story to sell, he opened a book at random. With the book in his hand being the Gilbert and Sullivan plays, he opened a section that contained the picture of the Fairy Queen of Lolanthe throwing herself at the feet of Private Willis; this turned his mind to the idea of empires like the Roman Empire. He had already created a story that would center itself around the fall of an empire.
• Publication Date: 1951.
• Literary Period: Contemporary.
• Point of View: Third-person point of view.
• Setting: Trantor, Terminus, Askone, Korell, Siwenna.
• Protagonists: Hari Seldon, Gaal Dornic, Salvor Hardin, Limmar Ponyets, Hober Mallow.

Isaac Asimov and Foundation

Before it existed as a novel, ‘Foundation’ existed as a series of five stand-alone stories. In 1941, Isaac Asimov was a 21-year-old Chemistry graduate at Columbia University. With Europe in flames from the war, something else seemed to be on Isaac’s mind. He was on his way to meet John Campbell to pitch the idea for a new story he had. Before going to meet John, he had already sold five short stories. Before meeting Campbell, Isaac Asimov had to invent an idea for a new novel.

Opening a book at random, he began to think about Empires and their decline. His attention grew to the ‘Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire’ by Edward Gibbon; this sparked the idea of a Galactic Empire. On pitching his idea to John Campbell, the work for the creation of ‘Foundation’ began leading to the submission of the first story on September 8, 1941. Over the years, the stories that would make up the Foundation trilogy got written, and after eight years, he submitted the last section of the Foundation Trilogy.

Books Related to Foundation

Being one of the first novels to give an extensive story about the fall of a galactic civilization, ‘Foundation’ has become one of the best novels to be created in the science-fiction genre. After publication, the novel began inspiring writers; this formed a foundation for writers like Frank Herbert, who wrote ‘Dune.’

Here is a list of books similar to Isaac Asimov’s novel:

• ‘Ender’s Game’ by Orson Scott Card is a book that tells the story of Andrew Ender Wiggin. Thinking he was playing a computer game that simulated war, Ender was unaware that he was the result of a genetic experiment by humans to find the perfect military general who would protect the Earth from the invasion of Aliens. His siblings, Peter and Valentine, were also a part of the experimentation, and though they were unsuitable for the role, they began to plot a way to rule the world. Peter tries to get political control, while Valentine uses the idea of subtle control. Hiding their young age, the siblings start working together to shape the world and rule it.
• ‘The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy’ by Douglas Adams is a novel that tells the story of Arthur Dent, a man who gets plucked off of Earth seconds before it got demolished to create a galactic freeway. With Earth gone, Arthur and his friend, Ford Perfect, begin a journey through space with help from The Hitchhiker’s Guide.
• ‘The Moon is a Harsh Mistress’ by Robert A. Heinlein is a novel that tells the story of the revolt of a Moon colony against its masters on Earth. Split into three sections; the story follows the lives of the people who become the face of the revolution. From the computer technician, Manuel Garcia O’Kelly-Davis, to the female agitator, Wyoming Knott-Davis, the academic, Professor Bernardo de la Paz, and the supercomputer, Mike, the revolution becomes a rebellion against the absentee rule from the Earth.
• ‘Rendezvous with Rama’ by Arthur C. Clarke is a novel that tells the story of a celestial object called Rama, hurling towards the solar system. A space probe gets sent out to explore the object. On reaching Rama, the space probe confirms that the object was an interstellar spacecraft; this sparks fear and inquisition among scientists and space explorers as they wait for humanity’s first encounter with aliens.
• ‘Stranger in a Strange Land’ by Robert A. Heinlein tells the story of Valentine Michael Smith, a human raised on Mars. On returning to Earth, Michael faces the struggle of trying to fit in and understand the social nature of humans.

The Lasting Impact of Foundation