<P> "Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow" is a short story by Kurt Vonnegut originally written in 1953 . It was first published in Galaxy Science Fiction magazine in January 1954, where the story was titled "The Big Trip Up Yonder", which is the protagonist's euphemism for dying . A revised version bearing the title "Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow" appeared in Vonnegut's collection of short stories, Canary in a Cat House (1961), and was reprinted in Welcome to the Monkey House (1968). The new title comes from the famous line in Shakespeare's play Macbeth starting "Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow". </P> <P> The original story is set in 2185 A.D., 102 years after the invention of a medicine called anti-gerasone, which halts the aging process and prevents people from dying of old age as long as they keep taking it . As a result, the world now suffers from severe overpopulation and shortages of food and resources . With the exception of the wealthy, most of the population appears to survive on a diet of foods made from processed seaweed and sawdust . A cautionary tale, an outside authority figure within the story admonishes the population that "most of the world's ills can be traced to the fact that Man's knowledge of himself has not kept pace with his knowledge of the physical world". </P> <P> The Schwartz family, headed by 172 - year - old Harold ("Gramps"), lives in a three - room apartment on the 76th floor of "Building 257 of Alden Village, New York City, Connecticut". Gramps' grandson Louis, his wife Emerald, and 20 other descendants are crowded into the space, perpetually jockeying for Gramps' favor . Gramps gets the best food and the only private bedroom, and controls everyone's life by constantly revising his will to disinherit anyone who earns his displeasure . </P> <P> An offhand remark by Lou prompts Gramps to disinherit him and exile Lou and Em to the worst sleeping space in the apartment, near the bathroom . Lou then catches his great - grandnephew, newly wed Mortimer, diluting Gramps' anti-gerasone in the bathroom . Fearing Gramps' reaction to such a scheme, Lou tries to empty the bottle and refill it with the full - strength medicine, but accidentally breaks the bottle and is caught by Gramps, who only tells him to clean up the mess . The next morning, the family finds Gramps' bed empty and a note informing them that he is gone; the note also contains a revised will that bequeaths his entire estate to be held in common by his descendants, with no stipulations as to who receives what property . </P>

Kurt vonnegut tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow analysis