"The Undiscovered" is an alternate history short story by William Sanders that won the Sidewise Award for Alternate History. It was originally published in the March 1997 issue of Asimov's and, in addition to its Sidewise Award nomination, was nominated for the Hugo Award, the Nebula Award, and the Theodore Sturgeon Award. It was subsequently reprinted in The Year's Best Science Fiction: Fifteenth Annual Collection, The Best Alternate History Stories of the 20th Century, and Best of the Best: 20 Years of the Year's Best Science Fiction.
Plot
The story is narrated by a Cherokee man in the late 16th century. An English immigrant called Spear-Shaker has been captured by the narrator's tribe, and is essentially adopted by them. Spear-Shaker tries to introduce the concept of stage play to the tribe by producing a version of Hamlet for them, but mutual cultural misunderstandings make this very difficult.
References
- Schmunk, Robert B. (1998). "Winners and Finalists". Sidewise Award for Alternate History. Uchronia. Retrieved 2011-06-14.
- Sanders, William (March 1997). "The Undiscovered". Asimov's Science Fiction. New York: Dell Magazines. p. 86.
- "1998 Hugo Awards". The Hugo Awards. WSFS. 2011. Retrieved 2011-06-14.
- "1998 Nebula Awards". The Locus Guide to SF Awards. Locus. 2011. Archived from the original on 2011-06-05. Retrieved 2011-06-14.
- "1998 Theodore Sturgeon Memorial Award". The Locus Guide to SF Awards. Locus. 2011. Retrieved 2011-06-14.
- Dozois, Gardner (1998). The Year's Best Science Fiction: Fifteenth Annual Collection. Vol. 15. New York: St. Martin's Press. pp. 224. ISBN 0-312-19033-6.
- Turtledove, Harry (2001). The Best Alternate History Stories of the 20th Century. New York: Del Rey. pp. 270. ISBN 0-345-43990-2.
- Dozois, Gardner (2005). The Best of the Best : 20 Years of the Year's Best Science Fiction. New York: St Martin's Griffin. p. 380. ISBN 0-312-33656-X.
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- 1997 short stories
- Alternate history short stories
- Sidewise Award for Alternate History–winning works
- Works based on Hamlet
- Cultural depictions of William Shakespeare
- Cherokee in popular culture
- Short stories about Native Americans
- Short stories set in the 16th century
- 1990s science fiction short story stubs