The Pedestrian By Ray Bradbury Summary

Ray Bradbury’s “The Pedestrian,” a science fiction short story that was written in 1951 A.D. but takes place in 2053 A.D., criticizes both how society views individualism as a threat and how humanity’s reliance on technology is creating a disconnect from one another. The main conflict presented in “The Pedestrian” is quite dystopian, with the main character, Leonard Mead, being arrested and sent to a psychiatric facility for simply going for a walk outside; except, Leonard Mead wasn’t arrested for simply going out for a walk; it was deeper than that. Simply being outside served as a flashing red sign, letting everyone know that Mead was different from everyone else, that he wasn’t part of the majority. When approaching Mead to arrest him, the police officer treats him as if he has just found him dragging a bludgeoned corpse across someone’s lawn and not just walking along a sidewalk, ordering him to “put [his] hands up [.

. or we’ll shoot” (1). Mead is presumed inherently guilty of wrongdoing simply because he is doing something others are not. If other people in the city went out for walks as Mead did, the act would most likely not be seen as “regressive” and in need of psychiatric research and treatment; it would just be seen as a neutral act; except, there are no others out walking in the city. Mead even states that “[in] ten years of walking by night or day, for thousands of miles, he had never met another person walking, not once in all that time” (1). Mead is entirely alone in the act, and to others that alone is proof of his guilt. The reason that Mead is all alone in his walk is because everyone is inside their houses watching television. Mead states, “Everything went on in the tomblike houses at night now. .