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Are You Listening?

Harlan Ellison

First published December 1958
Type Short Fiction
Length Short Story

Synopsis

An average man realizes that he has faded out of people's awareness.

Notes

Originally published in Amazing Science Fiction Stories, December 1958 and reprinted under the title "The Forces that Crush" in the first edition of "Ellison Wonderland" and at least two printings of "Earthman Go Home".
The story was (lightly) rewritten for publication in "The Beast That Shouted Love at the Heart of the World", where it appeared under the original title.
Ellison explains this in a note with the story "Back to the Drawing Boards" in "Ellison Wonderland" (the August, 1974 Signet printing Most of the later printings and editions have the rewritten version.

Publications (27)

Date Publication Publisher Type Page
December 1958 Amazing Science Fiction Stories, December 1958 Ziff-Davis Publishing Company MAGAZINE 32
July 1969 The Beast That Shouted Love at the Heart of the World Avon Collection 157
July 1969 The Beast That Shouted Love at the Heart of the World Avon Collection 157
September 1969 Adam, September 1969 Knight Publishing Corp. MAGAZINE 54
March 1970 The Beast That Shouted Love at the Heart of the World Avon / SFBC Collection 152
March 1971 Alone Against Tomorrow Macmillan Collection 161
June 1971 Alone Against Tomorrow: Stories of Alienation in Speculative Fiction Macmillan / SFBC Collection 137
1972 Alone Against Tomorrow Collier Books Collection 161
1973 Into the Unknown: Eleven Tales of Imagination Thomas Nelson Anthology 94
1974 Alone Against Tomorrow Collier Books Collection 161
April 1974 The Beast That Shouted Love at the Heart of the World Signet / New American Library Collection 161
April 1974 The Beast That Shouted Love at the Heart of the World Signet / New American Library of Canada Collection 161
May 1974 The Time of the Eye Panther Collection 9
1976 Alone Against Tomorrow: Stories of Alienation in Speculative Fiction Collier Books Collection 161
July 1976 The Beast That Shouted Love at the Heart of the World Millington Collection 130
July 1976 The Beast That Shouted Love at the Heart of the World Signet Collection 161
1979 The Beast That Shouted Love at the Heart of the World Signet / New American Library Collection 161
September 1979 The Beast That Shouted Love at the Heart of the World Pan Books Collection 130
1981 The Time of the Eye Panther / Granada Collection 9
November 1984 The Beast That Shouted Love at the Heart of the World Bluejay Books Collection 160
November 1997 Edgeworks 4: Love Ain't Nothing But Sex Misspelled / The Beast That Shouted Love at the Heart of the World White Wolf Publishing Omnibus 2168
March 2012 The Beast That Shouted Love at the Heart of the World Gateway / Orion Collection
April 2014 The Beast That Shouted Love at the Heart of the World Open Road Integrated Media Collection
June 2014 The Beast That Shouted Love at the Heart of the World Open Road Integrated Media Collection 171
May 2015 Ellison Wonderland Skyboat Media Collection |15
September 2015 Ellison Wonderland PS Publishing Collection |15
January 2020 The Beast that Shouted Love at the Heart of the World and Other Works Recorded Books Omnibus |1157