Analysis Of The Veldt By Ray Bradbury
“The Veldt”, by Ray Bradbury, is a future fiction that describes the gradual disintegration of the family structure and its values, even reaching the physical elimination of the reference adults, due to the destructive power of technology. In this futuristic reality, the author presents the reliance on technology as one of the worst evils that affect the American society.
“The Veldt” tells about the everyday life of Lydia and George Hadley, who live with their children, Peter and Wendy, in a “Happy-life Home”. The automated home satisfies all their needs: it cooks for them, it dresses them, it turns on and off the lights, and it even brushes their teeth. The best part of the house is the nursery, a special room that takes care of the children, …show more content…
The “Postwar Period”, in fact, doesn’t indicate just the “end of the war”, but it also refers to a span of time during which a climate of deep changes spread the United States. The American society between the 1945 and 1960 presents a strong dichotomy between material well-being and social issues. The return of the economic prosperity, after the period of hardship caused by the war, takes place simultaneously with the spread of anxiety due to the beginning of the Cold War and to the sudden change of the middle-class society. Because the federal policy encourages suburban growth, the young couples start their family life in suburbs. The flow of migration does not represent just a geographic transition: the suburb becomes a sort of status symbol, the portrait of a safe and well-organized community. Within the family, they create well-defined and stereotyped roles: men become the only means of livelihood of the family, the only outside workers. They often do not have time to spend with the other family members because they are too busy and involved in their job. Women, conversely, are confined to the domestic sphere, and often they are not prevailing figures in the family management. This family framework is evident in “The Veldt”. George Hadley is a father who wants to ensure a satisfactory life for his family. He does not care about the disciplinary
“The Veldt” tells about the everyday life of Lydia and George Hadley, who live with their children, Peter and Wendy, in a “Happy-life Home”. The automated home satisfies all their needs: it cooks for them, it dresses them, it turns on and off the lights, and it even brushes their teeth. The best part of the house is the nursery, a special room that takes care of the children, …show more content…
The “Postwar Period”, in fact, doesn’t indicate just the “end of the war”, but it also refers to a span of time during which a climate of deep changes spread the United States. The American society between the 1945 and 1960 presents a strong dichotomy between material well-being and social issues. The return of the economic prosperity, after the period of hardship caused by the war, takes place simultaneously with the spread of anxiety due to the beginning of the Cold War and to the sudden change of the middle-class society. Because the federal policy encourages suburban growth, the young couples start their family life in suburbs. The flow of migration does not represent just a geographic transition: the suburb becomes a sort of status symbol, the portrait of a safe and well-organized community. Within the family, they create well-defined and stereotyped roles: men become the only means of livelihood of the family, the only outside workers. They often do not have time to spend with the other family members because they are too busy and involved in their job. Women, conversely, are confined to the domestic sphere, and often they are not prevailing figures in the family management. This family framework is evident in “The Veldt”. George Hadley is a father who wants to ensure a satisfactory life for his family. He does not care about the disciplinary