The Veldt Ray Bradbury Summary

“It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has exceeded our humanity” ~Albert Einstein. Ray Bradbury, the author of the short story “The Veldt”, mostly wrote science fiction, and launched his career with major works, such as Fahrenheit 451, The Martian Chronicles, and The Illustrated Man. In a biography of Bradbury, Milne mentions, “In his creative works well as in his interviews, he makes no bones about the fact that, despite his fascination neither other worlds and other times, he is at heart a technophobe, loving intensely this Earth in all its magnificence and worried—already in the early fifties—by the effects of increasing mechanization on the planet.” Bradbury was not a fan of technology and was more captivated by the world

“That's just it. I feel like I don't belong here. The house is wife and mother now, and nursemaid. Can I compete with an African Veldt?.....And it isn't just me. It's you. You've been awfully nervous lately”(Bradbury). She explains that she feels as if the house is taking over her motherly duties and is making her feel unnecessary. All the technology is replacing their parental responsibilities and overwhelming them. George is also becoming more nervous and anxious and is subconsciously also realizing he's being replaced as well. Milne writes, “She (Lynda) is concerned that the high-tech home they are living in is having a negative effect upon the family relationships, and she longs for a return to a more traditional setting.” The negative effect of the electronics in the home is becoming clear to Lynda and she wants to prevent it before it mentally affects them. She notices that the machinery is starting to replace her parental role and realizes a technological alternative cannot be good for the children

“The house was full of dead bodies, it seemed. It felt like a mechanical cemetery. So silent. None of the humming hidden energy of machines waiting to function at the tap of a button.” (Bradbury). This section explains how they're so used to the hum of machines waiting to do their every want or need. The visual description explains how odd it is to them to not be surrounded by the sounds of technological servant and also foreshadows or makes the theme clear about death and technology and the side effects. “For example, after George Hadley turns off the house, he writes, "It felt like a mechanical cemetery." This description provides a clear mental image for the reader and also under-scores the themes of technology and death.”(Milne). It clearly describes the theme of too much technology and the mental consequences, which in this story seem to be murderous