The Mind and the Matter
Encyclopedia
"The Mind and the Matter" is an episode of the American television anthology series The Twilight Zone
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Later, in the cafeteria, Henry saves Beechcroft a seat, because he's still feeling guilty about spilling the coffee. He also presents Beechcroft a book titled "The Mind and the Matter", which deals with the ultimate in concentration. The book intrigues Beechcroft as he starts to leaf through it in the cafeteria, and he continues to read it on the subway ride home. In his apartment, he reads the last page, and then concludes that the authors are indeed correct that concentration is the most underrated power in the universe. It then occurs to him that he can use concentration to realize his dream of eliminating people. He tests his theory out on his landlady, whom he successfully makes disappear. "Today, the landlady", Beechcroft smiles triumphantly, "tomorrow...the world!".
The next day, now that Beechcroft knows he can do it, he concentrates while in the subway and suddenly all the other commuters disappear. Beechcroft walks into usually overcrowded office to find it totally empty. Despite the paradise, he soon grows extremely bored; "bored to tears", with being the last person on Earth
. After trying to create diversions such as an earthquake or electrical storm, Beechcroft goes home for the night, where he gets a visit from his conscience. Instead of learning from his mistake, Beechcroft comes away with the idea of repopulating the world in his image. This proves to be an even bigger mistake, since everybody else ends up being as anti-social, rude and cranky as Beechcroft. The people even look and sound like him.
His conscience convinces Beechcroft to return the world to the way it used to be, before his meddling. Things are definitely back to "normal" as Henry bumps into Beechcroft again, then asks him if he enjoyed reading "The Mind and the Matter". Beechcroft pretends to dismiss the book as "totally unbelievable", yet he knows he's learned his lesson.
The Twilight Zone (1959 TV series)
The Twilight Zone is an American anthology television series created by Rod Serling, which ran for five seasons on CBS from 1959 to 1964. The series consisted of unrelated episodes depicting paranormal, futuristic, dystopian, or simply disturbing events; each show typically featured a surprising...
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Synopsis
Mr. Archibald Beechcroft, who has had an insufferable time just trying to get to work, becomes annoyed when an errand boy named Henry spills coffee all over his suit. Taking some aspirin in the bathroom, he encounters a co-worker, Mr. Rogers, who advises him that he needs to keep fit to avoid headaches. Beechcroft explains that he doesn't drink, stay out late, or eat poorly. He's simply tired of being pushed around and wants to eliminate all the people of the world.Later, in the cafeteria, Henry saves Beechcroft a seat, because he's still feeling guilty about spilling the coffee. He also presents Beechcroft a book titled "The Mind and the Matter", which deals with the ultimate in concentration. The book intrigues Beechcroft as he starts to leaf through it in the cafeteria, and he continues to read it on the subway ride home. In his apartment, he reads the last page, and then concludes that the authors are indeed correct that concentration is the most underrated power in the universe. It then occurs to him that he can use concentration to realize his dream of eliminating people. He tests his theory out on his landlady, whom he successfully makes disappear. "Today, the landlady", Beechcroft smiles triumphantly, "tomorrow...the world!".
The next day, now that Beechcroft knows he can do it, he concentrates while in the subway and suddenly all the other commuters disappear. Beechcroft walks into usually overcrowded office to find it totally empty. Despite the paradise, he soon grows extremely bored; "bored to tears", with being the last person on Earth
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
. After trying to create diversions such as an earthquake or electrical storm, Beechcroft goes home for the night, where he gets a visit from his conscience. Instead of learning from his mistake, Beechcroft comes away with the idea of repopulating the world in his image. This proves to be an even bigger mistake, since everybody else ends up being as anti-social, rude and cranky as Beechcroft. The people even look and sound like him.
His conscience convinces Beechcroft to return the world to the way it used to be, before his meddling. Things are definitely back to "normal" as Henry bumps into Beechcroft again, then asks him if he enjoyed reading "The Mind and the Matter". Beechcroft pretends to dismiss the book as "totally unbelievable", yet he knows he's learned his lesson.