Project Gutenberg 2008-03-18 Public domain in the USA. 76 Lang, Allen Kim 1928 Lang, Allen K. The Great Potlatch Riots Reading ease score: 74.2 (7th grade). Fairly easy to read. Produced by Greg Weeks, Stephen Blundell and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net "The Great Potlatch Riots" by Allen Kim Lang is a satirical science fiction novella written during the late 1950s. The book humorously critiques consumer culture and the bureaucratic regulation of personal celebrations, particularly revolving around the commercialization of holidays and birthdays. Set in a future where the Bureau of Seasonal Gratuities oversees gift-giving quotas to stimulate the economy, the narrative explores the absurdity of enforced gratitude and the societal pressures placed on individuals to comply. The story follows Captain Wesley Winfree, a fervent officer within the Bureau, as he prepares for the largest Potlatch Day in two decades while also planning his wedding to Corporal Peggy MacHenery. Winfree's ambitious new initiative—requiring citizens to celebrate every birthday with gifts—sparks outrage among consumers who are already burdened by existing holiday quotas. As tensions escalate, a rebellion against the Bureau's enforcement leads to chaotic riots on the day of Winfree's wedding, highlighting the conflicts between individual desires and imposed societal norms. The narrative concludes with a humorous twist, as the Captain's encounter with the consumers forces both him and the readers to reflect on the true meaning of celebration and autonomy. (This is an automatically generated summary.) en Science fiction Short stories Consumption (Economics) -- Fiction PS Text Science Fiction Browsing: Economics Browsing: Literature Browsing: Science-Fiction & Fantasy Browsing: Fiction 71027 71028 2024-10-10T14:51:07.241788 2023-09-11T06:36:09.850441 text/html text/html 67325 2021-01-03T09:53:44 text/html; charset=iso-8859-1 27280 2021-01-03T09:53:44 text/html; charset=iso-8859-1 application/zip 94615 2024-10-10T14:51:11.335805 application/epub+zip 94018 2024-10-10T14:51:08.940763 application/epub+zip 94018 2024-10-10T14:51:07.827764 application/epub+zip 188178 2024-10-10T14:51:13.120761 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 180353 2024-10-10T14:51:10.697775 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 138862 2022-09-11T12:22:39.355785 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 64778 64677 2024-10-10T14:51:06.960771 2023-09-11T06:36:09.662444 text/plain; charset=us-ascii text/plain 64583 2021-01-03T09:53:44 text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 25847 2021-01-03T09:53:44 text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 application/zip 64574 2021-01-03T09:53:44 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 25827 2021-01-03T09:53:44 text/plain; charset=us-ascii application/zip 22217 2024-10-10T14:51:13.251758 application/rdf+xml 12649 2024-10-10T14:51:08.384759 image/jpeg 3641 2024-10-10T14:51:08.106754 image/jpeg 92268 2024-10-10T14:51:07.250768 application/octet-stream application/zip Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at https://www.gutenberg.org/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog