Nun bin ich auch endlich fertig mit dem Fragen beantworten meiner 2. Kurzgeschichte. Würde mich ebenfalls hier freuen wenn jemand mal Zeit hätte nach Fehlern zu schauen oder ein kurzes Statement dazu geben würdet.
The Veldt Ray Bradbury
Assignment 1
Summarize the plot of the story.
The Veldt is a science fiction short story by Ray Bradbury which was published in issue of The Saturday Evening Post 1950. The Hadley’s installs the latest technology in their house so that they wouldn’t have to do anything in household. Also they want the best upbringing for the kids by these new technology gadgets and amenities. They call their new domicile “Happy-life Home” which clothed, cooked and do the other entire things so that Mr. and Mrs Headley get the feeling of being useless after a while. Because once Mrs Hadley hears strange roars in the nursery of their children she wants her husband to check. This fully automatically room change its environment by catching the telepathic emanations of their children’s mind and turn it into reality. It modifies every time when someone enters the nursery. Two dimensional walls becomes a three dimensional African veldt with dangerous lions, vultures and antelope. Even the ceiling turns into a sky with a blazing sun. Hidden odorophonics provide the perfect sound and smell of blood for an authentic setting. Because Mr. and Mrs Headley are afraid of these cruel telepathic emanations of their children’s mind they want to lock up this room for a while. Both realize that they spoil their children too much and that the consequence of this new house is disobedience. According to their psychologist the Headley’s should start a new life because the house has taken complete control over their lives. He especially worries about the hidden danger in the nursery since it totally replaces the parents as educators. Determined to venture a new beginning the parents switch off the house and tell their children about their plan. The kids react angrily and protest this intention with all their might. Finally Mr. Headley gives his children the last chance to be in their nursery. But when the psychologist returns he discovers Mr. and Mrs Headley dead and battered by the lions in the nursery.
Assignment 2
a) List all the amenities the “Happy-life Home“seems to offer and describe the impact on the characters lives.
•Bed - rocks them to sleep and sings good songs •Stove - cooks every meal automatically •Shoe-binder - binds shoelace •Chair - rocks to comfort one •Nursery – accomplish desires and fantasies from the children •Automatic lights – goes on and off automatically •Scrub bath – scrubs efficiently and quickly •Massager • Table • Air flue • (…)
The amenities offer especially comfort for the family. But soon the adults got bored of all these things. They feel useless because there is absolutely nothing to do. They become depressive and begins to drink and smoke even more then before. In contrast to that the children cannot get enough of these amenities. They become addicted and it seems they cannot imagine a life without it anymore.
b) Compare the gadgets mentioned in the story mentioned in the story to the state of the art of modern home technology available in our lives.
Some of the gadgets in the short story are also available in our lives such as automatic lights, comfort chair and air flue. But I doubt if there is something like a stove who cooks everything automatically. 3D-walls can also be installed in rooms, but it cannot read one’s mind and will never turn into reality like the nursery does in the story.
Assignment 3
Examine the language used for and in relation with the technological equipment of the house.
The author sets great value upon to describe what these technological equipments were doing. For example he illustrates the nursery in the minutest details by using lots of adjectives and verbs so that people can relive an exact image.
Assignment 4
a) Focus on the “nursery”: Describe its function, the way it works, its effects, and its impact on the family.
Its original function is to help the children in a healthful way. Children’s mind leave patterns on the walls so that one could see if everything is all right with them or not. If necessary psychologists can prevent psychological problems early enough. The nursery creates a 3D-virtual world by reading children minds. It assembles sound, images and smells exactly how they imagine. The destructive impact of this room is, it replaces parents in children’s affection. In their eyes the room is now their family and more important then anything else. Therefore they protect it with all their might.
b) Discuss whether the “nursery” and its consequences can be applied to issues of young people’s media usage today.
I think it is applicable to show adults the consequence of a similar nursery like this. A lot of parents do not know these negative consequences when they provide nurseries with new technical novelties to early. But in my eyes this is one critical source of danger for young kids nowadays. Instead of playing outside and discover their environment they prefer to stay inside and play some stupid video games. Day by day they become more addicted and they easily get aggressive if parents threat them to take away their treasure if they do not obey them. Therefore I would recommend this short story by Ray Bradbury to be published in some kinds of family magazine so that adults know about the consequence and think about whether it is too early for their child or not.
Assignment 5
a) Analyze the point of view in the story.
The point of view is from an omniscient narrator. He guides us through the whole story and gives us the insights of the various situations.
b) Rewrite a selected passage of the story from one of the character’s point of view (1st person singular) or from alternating perspective.
Point of view: Mr. Headley; Passage: line 20-33
"Well," I said. We stood on the thatched floor of the nursery. It was forty feet across by forty feet long and thirty feet high; it had cost half again as much as the rest of the house. "But nothing's too good for our children”, I had said back then. The nursery was silent. It was empty as a jungle glade at hot high noon. The walls were blank and two dimensional. Now, as my wife and I stood in the center of the room, the walls began to purr and recede into crystalline distance, it seemed, and presently an African veldt appeared, in three dimensions, on all sides, in color reproduced to the final pebble and bit of straw. The ceiling above us became a deep sky with a hot yellow sun. I felt the unpleasant perspiration on my brow. (…)
Assignment 6
Describe the parent-child relationship as it is depicted by the author.
Because the Headley’s has given everything their children ever wanted they are spoiled and disobedient now. Therefore the relationship between them is horrific. It is sad to see that these 10-years-old children in the story are able to kill their own parents in order to keep their nursery. The house and nursery became a part of their family and replace their father and mother completely. Everyone who wants to “hurt” their nursery will be their enemy.
Assignment 7
Outline the psychologist’s advice and comment on it.
According to the psychologist the Headley’s should start their live anew without this “Happy-life Home” and recommend giving their children a therapy. I think this advice is great because the kids are still young and can improve with the right treatments. It may be hard at the beginning but I’m sure they will be sooner or later used to it. But unfortunately it’s to late now because the children choose their house and nursery over their own biological parents.
Assignment 8
Interpret the statistical material below on parental worries concerning their children’s use of the media and relate it to “The Veldt”.
Parents are most concerned about inappropriate content in television and internet over movies, video games and music. About one sixth the sample of this survey thinks all these new mediums have bad influence on their children. The parents in the story don’t consider about something like that at first. They think mediums only can help and educate their children the best way. If they had seen the consequences of these media earlier, they wouldn't have built such an incredible nursery. As they realized the consequences it was already too late.