The Veldt By Ray Bradbury

427 Words2 Pages

Technology is revered as mankind's greatest invention for its excelling ability to make our lives easier, but there are often times that it does more harm than good. In Ray Bradbury’s “The Veldt”, the overuse of technology causes inhumane behaviours, which results in falling out of touch with one’s humanity. The Hadley family succumbs to the technologically advanced ‘Happylife’ home’s extensive performance, and becomes accustomed to the many conveniences the house offers, despite its negative effects. The young children of George Hadley and Lydia Hadley, Peter and Wendy demonstrate a lack of empathy as a result of their constant exposure to the thought-manifesting nursery. After purposely leading her parents to their demise at the hands of …show more content…

Lydia expresses her concerns about feeling unwanted in her own house to her husband, “‘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? Can I give a bath and scrub the children as efficiently or quickly as the automatic scrub bath can? I cannot’” (Bradbury 3). Though she and George purchased the house so it could perform all their daily tasks for them, the couple ends up feeling unwanted and expendable, even to their own children. Due to the constant overuse of the cutting edge technology in their house, the couple begins to lose their sense of duty. Moreover, Peter and Wendy are incredibly disconnected from reality. Peter expresses his strong hatred towards the idea of shutting down the Happylife home, “‘That sounds dreadful! Would I have to tie my own shoes instead of letting the shoe tier do it? And brush my own teeth and comb my hair and give myself a bath?’” (Bradbury 6). Additionally, he demonstrates his stark disconnection from the real world, “‘I don’t want to do anything but look and listen and smell; what else is there to do?’” (Bradbury