Technology Revealed In Ray Bradbury's The Illustrated Man

Technology has changed over the years, drastically, but it also has put a tremendous impact on humans. It is rare to see people with no type of device with them when going to places, such as malls or even sport games. The amount of devices and electronics that are on them have made it difficult for people to even interact with each other. One of the major changes that still no one observes, is the way people are parenting their children now a days. With so much technology, not much is needed from a parent, because most of it can simply be located in an app or on google. In The Illustrated Man, by Bradbury, The Veld demonstrates how too much technology can affect a child. This has a strong connection with the way parenting is done in our present
time; it reflects the major points which include the lack of attention and the amount of time spent on any form of device. Bradbury makes the point that excess technology can interfere with how parenting is being done. In the story, “The Veld”, George and Lydia are the parents whom own the smart house. At the beginning, George used to think that there was nothing better than having a home with so much technology, that it was not even necessary to get dressed by yourself. The house was the best of both worlds, it played the role of both parents and as well an escape for the kids. The point Bradbury is trying to make is that too much technology can take a parents place. He expresses this by giving examples of the nursery and the images that seem to appear every time the parents get close to it. “But now, this yellow hot Africa, this bake oven with murder in the heat” (Bradbury 16). The negative images showing when George or Lydia get near the nursery has them concerned on what’s going on. Bradbury is demonstrating the results of the smart house which has turned on to them along with the kids. In fact, the nursery is the symbol of the kid’s life. It was supposed to be a place where the kids could let out their emotions and by that George and Lydia wouldn’t have to sit and talk to them. After things begin getting out of hand and the images that are being shown in the nursery reflect death and anger George decides to seek for help. The psychologist tells George that the way they were parenting their children caused for them to be replaced in their child’s life. Parenting is something that has to be done face to face in a real conversation, not by a text or any other way. The amount of technology that the smart house came with led to George and Lydia to become outsiders. One of the topics that always seem to be popular are the surveys they make kids take across America to see what their opinion is.
The mentality of a child is always taken into consideration, because children seem to be the only ones that are always honest with their response. In this specific survey, kids in elementary school had the privilege to take it over the amount of attention parents pay to their children. The major question was to answer whether or not their parents paid attention to them and if not, what was the major obstacle that deprived them from receiving that attention. When seeing the results and making the conclusion of them, the instructors decided to separate them based on age. For the most part, the major problem was not knowing that it can interfere with the way a child reacts to it. Some children tend to keep their emotions to themselves instead of showing how they feel. When parents viewed the results, they were in disbelief, because in their mind the idea of not giving enough attention to their child never crossed through their
mind. Reality is that, if parents were to really analyze what goes on in their child’s life, they would be more aware of watching out for them. Looking at the generations of kids in present time, statistics show that kids are more of a mini version of a teenager. Why? Well, the amount of technology their hands get across is drastically increasing day by day. Everywhere kids go they interact with some sort of device. In the article, “Distracted Much?” it’s mentioned how parents seem to think that giving their child everything materialistic will keep them entertained from becoming something they have to deal with. “62 percent of respondents told us that yes, they feel their parents are sometimes distracted when they want to talk to them” (Joyce). The more technology is involved in a child’s or adult’s life, the more damage it creates to the mind. In addition, to the reactions the children are having, the story itself demonstrates what too much of something can lead too.
After George seeks for help, the story leads to a point in which hatred is being shown. The only thing Wendy and Peter had from the smart house is wanting to be taken away. The article “Technology and Society” mentions how people don’t notice the negative aspects of having technology surround them day by day until it leads into something that can’t be controlled. “Humans are social animals who need to have regular interaction with others to experience the full benefits of socialization and lead a balanced life” (Gale). This connects with the main idea that if people don’t interact with each other then it’s unhealthy, and as well it can lead to opposing reactions. The nursery in this particular story not only represents an escape, but a loathing that is between the parents and the children. The psychologist tells them, “You’ve let this room and this house replace you and your wife in your children’s affections. This room is their mother and father, far more important in their lives than their real parents. And now you come along and want to shut it off. No wonder there’s hatred here” (Bradbury). The psychologist is being real with them, to start George and Lydia should have put a stop to it the moment they realized a change in their kid’s life. With this being said, Peter and Wendy are angry at their real parents since the nursery has become a
parent for them, having it shut down is like killing it. Anger and rage is reflecting on the children and is going against their parents. The aspect of parenting when it revolves around technology has not only caused for the child not to understand, but the parents don’t know how to explain what is going on. Furthermore, we can relate what has happened in the smart house to what Bradbury thinks the meaning of it is. The article, “Future Generations”, talks about how technology’s change is good but not all the time. For this particular part it plays the negative side, “doing well by doing well lacks of motivation when technology is involved, especially among the practical impediments of it” (Partridge). Basically what the article is saying that although technology has made life easier it doesn’t always make a person better or improves their mentality. Overall parenting can’t be achieved if it’s not done the right way. Technology gets involved at all times except when the devices are charging. Change is always good as long as it involves an actual conversation, like in the Veld it was too late to approach the situation and it ended up becoming a danger.