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To See the Invisible Man
Man condemned to a year of invisibility for social indifference.
17 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 19, 2021
20 people are currently reading
17 people want to read
About the author
Robert Silverberg
2,215 books1,587 followersThere are many authors in the database with this name.
Robert Silverberg is a highly celebrated American science fiction author and editor known for his prolific output and literary range. Over a career spanning decades, he has won multiple Hugo and Nebula Awards and was named a Grand Master by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America in 2004. Inducted into the Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame in 1999, Silverberg is recognized for both his immense productivity and his contributions to the genre's evolution.
Born in Brooklyn, he began writing in his teens and won his first Hugo Award in 1956 as the best new writer. Throughout the 1950s, he produced vast amounts of fiction, often under pseudonyms, and was known for writing up to a million words a year. When the market declined, he diversified into other genres, including historical nonfiction and erotica.
Silverberg’s return to science fiction in the 1960s marked a shift toward deeper psychological and literary themes, contributing significantly to the New Wave movement. Acclaimed works from this period include Downward to the Earth, Dying Inside, Nightwings, and The World Inside. In the 1980s, he launched the Majipoor series with Lord Valentine’s Castle, creating one of the most imaginative planetary settings in science fiction.
Though he announced his retirement from writing in the mid-1970s, Silverberg returned with renewed vigor and continued to publish acclaimed fiction into the 1990s. He received further recognition with the Nebula-winning Sailing to Byzantium and the Hugo-winning Gilgamesh in the Outback.
Silverberg has also played a significant role as an editor and anthologist, shaping science fiction literature through both his own work and his influence on others. He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with his wife, author Karen Haber.
Robert Silverberg is a highly celebrated American science fiction author and editor known for his prolific output and literary range. Over a career spanning decades, he has won multiple Hugo and Nebula Awards and was named a Grand Master by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America in 2004. Inducted into the Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame in 1999, Silverberg is recognized for both his immense productivity and his contributions to the genre's evolution.
Born in Brooklyn, he began writing in his teens and won his first Hugo Award in 1956 as the best new writer. Throughout the 1950s, he produced vast amounts of fiction, often under pseudonyms, and was known for writing up to a million words a year. When the market declined, he diversified into other genres, including historical nonfiction and erotica.
Silverberg’s return to science fiction in the 1960s marked a shift toward deeper psychological and literary themes, contributing significantly to the New Wave movement. Acclaimed works from this period include Downward to the Earth, Dying Inside, Nightwings, and The World Inside. In the 1980s, he launched the Majipoor series with Lord Valentine’s Castle, creating one of the most imaginative planetary settings in science fiction.
Though he announced his retirement from writing in the mid-1970s, Silverberg returned with renewed vigor and continued to publish acclaimed fiction into the 1990s. He received further recognition with the Nebula-winning Sailing to Byzantium and the Hugo-winning Gilgamesh in the Outback.
Silverberg has also played a significant role as an editor and anthologist, shaping science fiction literature through both his own work and his influence on others. He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with his wife, author Karen Haber.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
April 8, 2025
This is an amazing short story about a time in the future when committing a crime (whatever may be considered a crime in the future!) is punished by making the person become "invisible." Not literally invisible, but to the community around them (the criminal is made to wear marker on their forehead). No one is allowed to acknowledge them in any way (under penalty of law) until they have completed their term of punishment and the marker is removed.
It is very interesting to go through this year of invisibility with the main character. And it really makes you think about how you would feel in the same situation, and what mental and psychological affect a year (or more) of being a complete social outcast would have on a person.
This one will make you think!
It is very interesting to go through this year of invisibility with the main character. And it really makes you think about how you would feel in the same situation, and what mental and psychological affect a year (or more) of being a complete social outcast would have on a person.
This one will make you think!
April 2, 2022
A compassionate short story.
An interesting, psychological view of how a simple punishment can have a profound effect on changing the basic personality of an individual.
An interesting, psychological view of how a simple punishment can have a profound effect on changing the basic personality of an individual.
August 7, 2022
A well explored and believable plot, good story telling, and insightful human psychology make this a very enjoyable quick read.
May 30, 2023
A thought provoking and intriguing story about societal ostracization.
December 9, 2023
Thought provoking. An examination of loneliness and how far people will go to conform. When societal norms and laws are deeply manipulative one must liberate the mind and attitude. I find myself thinking about empathy and so much else… Maybe even more on a reread.
October 28, 2025
I was 15 when I first read this story, and it began my admiration for short stories.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews