Short story where a man is actually sane while everyone else is mad
I'm looking for a short story I read as a teen. In the near future, people have machines at home that evaluate their mental health. If it goes bad, they are known to be arrested and taken somewhere and never seen again. The story hero happens to get badly evaluated and is ultimately caught and taken to a facility, where he learns that actually the world has gone crazy and the facility is for sane people.
I read it translated in French but I'm pretty sure it was by an American author, and due to the (translated) writing style and the topic, I would think it could be authored by Van Vogt (or perhaps an early K. Dick?).
story-identification short-stories dystopia
edited yesterday
TheLethalCarrot
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I'm looking for a short story I read as a teen. In the near future, people have machines at home that evaluate their mental health. If it goes bad, they are known to be arrested and taken somewhere and never seen again. The story hero happens to get badly evaluated and is ultimately caught and taken to a facility, where he learns that actually the world has gone crazy and the facility is for sane people.
I read it translated in French but I'm pretty sure it was by an American author, and due to the (translated) writing style and the topic, I would think it could be authored by Van Vogt (or perhaps an early K. Dick?).
story-identification short-stories dystopia
edited yesterday
TheLethalCarrot
44.4k15235287
asked yesterday
GrayswandyrGrayswandyr
363
New contributor
Grayswandyr is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
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This is a nice description, do you know when you would have read this and if it was new at the time? If so you can edit that into the question.
– TheLethalCarrot
yesterday
Some old story titled 'Elephant with a wooden leg' comes to mind. I can't remember who wrote it but it had that premise of outside world being insane
– Danny3414
yesterday
1
@Danny3414 Written by John Sladek and is available online here (scroll down the text is underneath the pdf version).
– TheLethalCarrot
yesterday
Thanks for the suggestion but it's not that one I think. In the story I'm talking about, people had a machine at home checking their mental health everyday.
– Grayswandyr
yesterday
Do you remember any details about the nature of this daily check? Was it a kind of scan via detector? A series of question? Something else entirely? Do you happen to remember what, exactly, was the cause of the main character's bad evaluation? Little details like these can be very helpful in identifying a story.
– Otis
18 hours ago
|
show 2 more comments
I'm looking for a short story I read as a teen. In the near future, people have machines at home that evaluate their mental health. If it goes bad, they are known to be arrested and taken somewhere and never seen again. The story hero happens to get badly evaluated and is ultimately caught and taken to a facility, where he learns that actually the world has gone crazy and the facility is for sane people.
I read it translated in French but I'm pretty sure it was by an American author, and due to the (translated) writing style and the topic, I would think it could be authored by Van Vogt (or perhaps an early K. Dick?).
story-identification short-stories dystopia
edited yesterday
TheLethalCarrot
44.4k15235287
asked yesterday
GrayswandyrGrayswandyr
363
New contributor
Grayswandyr is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
I'm looking for a short story I read as a teen. In the near future, people have machines at home that evaluate their mental health. If it goes bad, they are known to be arrested and taken somewhere and never seen again. The story hero happens to get badly evaluated and is ultimately caught and taken to a facility, where he learns that actually the world has gone crazy and the facility is for sane people.
I read it translated in French but I'm pretty sure it was by an American author, and due to the (translated) writing style and the topic, I would think it could be authored by Van Vogt (or perhaps an early K. Dick?).
story-identification short-stories dystopia
story-identification short-stories dystopia
edited yesterday
TheLethalCarrot
44.4k15235287
asked yesterday
GrayswandyrGrayswandyr
363
New contributor
Grayswandyr is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
edited yesterday
TheLethalCarrot
44.4k15235287
asked yesterday
GrayswandyrGrayswandyr
363
New contributor
Grayswandyr is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
edited yesterday
TheLethalCarrot
44.4k15235287
edited yesterday
TheLethalCarrot
44.4k15235287
edited yesterday
TheLethalCarrot
44.4k15235287
44.4k15235287
asked yesterday
GrayswandyrGrayswandyr
363
New contributor
Grayswandyr is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
asked yesterday
GrayswandyrGrayswandyr
363
asked yesterday
GrayswandyrGrayswandyr
363
363
New contributor
Grayswandyr is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
New contributor
Grayswandyr is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
Grayswandyr is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
This is a nice description, do you know when you would have read this and if it was new at the time? If so you can edit that into the question.
– TheLethalCarrot
yesterday
Some old story titled 'Elephant with a wooden leg' comes to mind. I can't remember who wrote it but it had that premise of outside world being insane
– Danny3414
yesterday
1
@Danny3414 Written by John Sladek and is available online here (scroll down the text is underneath the pdf version).
– TheLethalCarrot
yesterday
Thanks for the suggestion but it's not that one I think. In the story I'm talking about, people had a machine at home checking their mental health everyday.
– Grayswandyr
yesterday
Do you remember any details about the nature of this daily check? Was it a kind of scan via detector? A series of question? Something else entirely? Do you happen to remember what, exactly, was the cause of the main character's bad evaluation? Little details like these can be very helpful in identifying a story.
– Otis
18 hours ago
|
show 2 more comments
This is a nice description, do you know when you would have read this and if it was new at the time? If so you can edit that into the question.
– TheLethalCarrot
yesterday
Some old story titled 'Elephant with a wooden leg' comes to mind. I can't remember who wrote it but it had that premise of outside world being insane
– Danny3414
yesterday
1
@Danny3414 Written by John Sladek and is available online here (scroll down the text is underneath the pdf version).
– TheLethalCarrot
yesterday
Thanks for the suggestion but it's not that one I think. In the story I'm talking about, people had a machine at home checking their mental health everyday.
– Grayswandyr
yesterday
Do you remember any details about the nature of this daily check? Was it a kind of scan via detector? A series of question? Something else entirely? Do you happen to remember what, exactly, was the cause of the main character's bad evaluation? Little details like these can be very helpful in identifying a story.
– Otis
18 hours ago
This is a nice description, do you know when you would have read this and if it was new at the time? If so you can edit that into the question.
– TheLethalCarrot
yesterday
This is a nice description, do you know when you would have read this and if it was new at the time? If so you can edit that into the question.
– TheLethalCarrot
yesterday
Some old story titled 'Elephant with a wooden leg' comes to mind. I can't remember who wrote it but it had that premise of outside world being insane
– Danny3414
yesterday
Some old story titled 'Elephant with a wooden leg' comes to mind. I can't remember who wrote it but it had that premise of outside world being insane
– Danny3414
yesterday
1
1
@Danny3414 Written by John Sladek and is available online here (scroll down the text is underneath the pdf version).
– TheLethalCarrot
yesterday
@Danny3414 Written by John Sladek and is available online here (scroll down the text is underneath the pdf version).
– TheLethalCarrot
yesterday
Thanks for the suggestion but it's not that one I think. In the story I'm talking about, people had a machine at home checking their mental health everyday.
– Grayswandyr
yesterday
Thanks for the suggestion but it's not that one I think. In the story I'm talking about, people had a machine at home checking their mental health everyday.
– Grayswandyr
yesterday
Do you remember any details about the nature of this daily check? Was it a kind of scan via detector? A series of question? Something else entirely? Do you happen to remember what, exactly, was the cause of the main character's bad evaluation? Little details like these can be very helpful in identifying a story.
– Otis
18 hours ago
Do you remember any details about the nature of this daily check? Was it a kind of scan via detector? A series of question? Something else entirely? Do you happen to remember what, exactly, was the cause of the main character's bad evaluation? Little details like these can be very helpful in identifying a story.
– Otis
18 hours ago
|
show 2 more comments
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This is a nice description, do you know when you would have read this and if it was new at the time? If so you can edit that into the question.
– TheLethalCarrot
yesterday
Some old story titled 'Elephant with a wooden leg' comes to mind. I can't remember who wrote it but it had that premise of outside world being insane
– Danny3414
yesterday
1
@Danny3414 Written by John Sladek and is available online here (scroll down the text is underneath the pdf version).
– TheLethalCarrot
yesterday
Thanks for the suggestion but it's not that one I think. In the story I'm talking about, people had a machine at home checking their mental health everyday.
– Grayswandyr
yesterday
Do you remember any details about the nature of this daily check? Was it a kind of scan via detector? A series of question? Something else entirely? Do you happen to remember what, exactly, was the cause of the main character's bad evaluation? Little details like these can be very helpful in identifying a story.
– Otis
18 hours ago