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In Ray Bradbury’s short story, “The Veldt,” the writer explores the idea of technology being used to carry out all the tasks that are supposed to be done by individuals while they are in their homes. The story focuses on the Hadley family, who has decided to live in a home that is computer programmed to do every task for them. It is this environment that Wendy and Peter, George’s and Lydia’s children, have grown accustomed to. Wendy and Peter were never expected to learn how to do anything for themselves since they are used to the house doing it for them. There are instances in the story where the children appear to be spoiled and have a desire to have their demands instantly gratified. George and Lydia feel as though they are no longer necessary since the house does everything for not only their children, but themselves. Therefore, it can be argued that the short story, “The Veldt,” explores how the misuse of modern technology can make human beings irrelevant and disposable, and lead to the incorrect parenting of children.
In Bradbury’s story, “The Veldt,” George and Lydia feel as though they are no longer necessary in a home that does everything for them. This is especially true for Lydia, who complains that she might not “‘have enough to do’” (qtd. in Bradley 3). She laments that the house has become “‘wife and mother’” and “‘nursemaid,’” thereby acting as a replacement (qtd. in Bradley 3). George smokes and drinks more, needs a “‘little more sedative every night’” to cope with feeling “‘unnecessary’” (qtd. in Bradley 3). The theme of modern technology acting as replacements for human beings can be understood in the context of the present Information Age. Some scientific and technological breakthroughs have led to the development of robots that can replace a human being’s efforts. For instance, Roomba and the Moomba, are robot household appliances that can vacuum and mop any room with just the touch of a button and no other outside help. In addition, the electronics company, Samsung, has created the Smart Things Hub that allows a person’s smartphone to control any appliance that is plugged into an electrical outlet. Furthermore, there is also the Amazon Echo, which one can use voice commands to control it to do things such as order pizza from Domino’s, get a taxi cab from Uber, find a lost phone in the house and other tasks. Many persons welcome such innovations because they offer convenience and save time and energy. However, when more advanced robots are created, for instance, these could replace house cleaning and janitorial services, which would, in turn, ensure that persons working this industry become unemployed. Therefore, these technological advancements have the potential to replace human beings.
George and Lydia Hadley’s children, who were used to having the house do all of their tasks for them, ended up being spoiled and devoid of important values that would make them well-adjusted individuals in society. One of the parents admitted that the children not being able to lift a “‘hand’” while they are at home has caused them to become “‘spoiled’” (qtd. in Bradley 6). When the children’s demands of taking a “‘rocket to New York’” were not instantly gratified, they would use the house to punish the parents (qtd. in Bradbury 6). They did this by using their thoughts to change the scenery in the nursery to one in Africa that had ferocious lions devouring flesh. This was effective in scaring the parents, who later on had to close the nursery for a short time. When the parents closed the nursery and threatened to shut down the entire house so as to force the children to do household tasks on their own, Wendy and Peter “yelled,” “sobbed,” “swore” and “jumped at the furniture” (Bradbury 9). When the parents gave in to the children’s demands to open the nursery and not shut down the machines in the home, Wendy and Peter was happy for a short period before using the very house against their parents. The children used their thoughts to change the scenery of the nursery with ferocious lions and, it is assumed, that these lions killed their parents. It is easy to arrive at this assumption because when David McClean, the psychologist, arrived to see the parents, he only saw the children, even though the parents did not go outside of the house before Mr. McClean arrived. These events within the story highlight the point that when modern technology is misused then the children’s characters can be negatively impacted by it. Children will, most likely, not know the value of hard work and would expect to have their demands instantly gratified as children and adults. When children, who are grown in such privileged circumstances, are not immediately given what they want, they will attempt to punish others who they feel are preventing them from getting what they desire. These children can grow up to be citizens that are not well-adjusted and be psychologically unfit to be contributing members of a society.
In conclusion, Bradbury in his short story “The Veldt,” illustrates how modern technology can be misused. The writer uses his story to show how modern technology can be misused to replace human beings, and make them irrelevant. Furthermore, it highlights how modern technology can be misused to spoil children, and prevent them from seeing the value of hard work. When this happens, then it can potentially affect their psychological makeup so that it prevents them from being well-adjusted adults who become contributing members of the society.
Work Cited
Bradbury, Ray. "The Veldt." University of Minnesota. University of Minnesota. Web. 7 Mar. 2016. <https://www.d.umn.edu/~csigler/PDF files/bradbury_veldt.pdf>.
