For a Breath I Tarry

"For a Breath I Tarry" is a 1966 post-apocalyptic novelette by American writer Roger Zelazny. Taking place long after the self-extinction of Man, it recounts the tale of Frost, a sentient machine. Though Man has disappeared, his robotic creations (and their creations in turn) continue to function. It was nominated to the Hugo Award for Best Novelette nominee for 1967.

The novelette has appeared in collections of Zelazny's works[1] and in anthologies.[2]

While humans have long ago caused their own extinction the sentient machines they created continue the work of rebuilding a shattered Earth.

Along the way, the story explores the differences between Man and Machine, the former experiencing the world qualitatively, while the latter do so quantitatively. This is illustrated by the philosophical conversations Frost has with another machine named Mordel.

Driving the plot and setting its tone are Frost's intention to become a Man and allusions to other literature, most specifically the first chapter of the Book of Job, both in situation and language, as verses are both quoted directly and paraphrased. Additionally, echoes of the first three chapters of the Book of Genesis appear. Finally, Frost and Mordel enter into a Faustian bargain, however with better results than in the original.

The other main protagonist is the Beta Machine, Frost's equal in the southern hemisphere (Frost has control over the northern hemisphere). It is hinted that, while being a machine, she has a female personality. After finally succeeding in his thousand year quest to become a human (via recovered DNA), Beta accepts Frost's offer to join him in becoming human - implying the possibility of a rebirth of the human race.

The title is from a phrase in A. E. Housman's collection A Shropshire Lad.[3]

References
  1. The Last Defender of Camelot (1980, 1983, 1988, 2002, 2005)
  2. https://www.wsu.edu/~brians/nuclear/z.htm Nuclear Holocausts Bibliography (3rd Item)
  3. "From far, from eve and morning"
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