Ray Bradbury's short story, “The Veldt” takes place in the future, in a house that does everything for the house´s owners. Lydia and George are the parents of two children that have become addicted to the house´s technology and their nursery. The kid´s nursery is a place where, whatever the kids, Peter and Wendy, think about come to life in the walls of this mysterious room. It is all fun and laughter until George and Lydia think the nursery´s images are just too real to be made up by the house. Africa. Death. Lions. That is all the kids are thinking about, therefore, that is all the nursery is showing. Sounds come out of the room, terrifying sounds, screams. But, the worst part of all this is that the screams sound familiar to the worried parents.
The author
of this short story is famous for his strong imagery. In the case of the Veldt,
Bradbury is explaining how Africa looks in the Kids` nursery. And this specific
quote helped me visualize it better and also have an idea of how Africa smells
and sounds like.
“The hot
straw smell of lion grass, the cool green smell of the hidden water hole, the
great rusty smell of animals, the smell
of dust like a red paprika in the hot air. And now the sounds: the thump of
distant antelope feet on grassy sod, the papery rustling of vultures” (2).
Ray uses words
that make his point more clear. For example, “thump of distant antelope feet”
gives me the feeling of a whole pack of antelope running; similar to sound
horses would so while running. Also, I can easily catch the scent of “the great
rusty smell of animals” and “the smell of lion grass” just by the words and how
they are structured.
George
and Lydia are probably two of the most worried parents I have ever heard of.
Actually, they are the second ones, my parents are the first ones, they are so
over-protective, trust me! No one can beat them. Anyway, I can tell Peter and
Wendy`s parents are concerned by the way the author uses characterization to
describe them.
"George, I wish you'd
look at the nursery." "What's wrong with it?" "I don't
know." "Well, then." "I just want you to look at it, is
all, or call a psychologist in to look at it" (1).
After
reading this small portion of the story we, the readers, can tell how George
and Lydia will behave during the remainder of the story. Worried. Concerned. They
are going to do anything to make sure everything is alright. Call a
psychologist, if it’s necessary. They are nuts! But, they still don`t beat my
parents! HAHAHA, nice try, Bradbury!
 |
| At least you tried, bro. |
The Veldt
is one of those stories that everyone likes. Those stories you just wish there
was a movie about it! It kept me on the hook the whole time. I liked the story,
not just because of its wonderful plot, but by its message too. The story features
a place where technology is everything and it looks lonely. So, we don’t need
to let technology consume us, we need to use it as a privilege, not abuse all the
uses it has. Technology is dehumanizing us! And it needs to stop!
