“There Will Come Soft Rains” By Ray Bradbury: The Interlinked Concepts Of Time, Memory And History

This is essay will explore how the interlinked concepts of time, memory and history feature in the text “There will come soft rains”, written by Ray Bradbury. The historical aspect in terms of the context and the time period of when the story was written is briefly discussed, followed by the summary of what takes place in the story. Appropriate working definitions of the key concepts are then discussed. Some of the actual text from the story will be quoted to support the arguments demonstrating how these concepts feature in the story will be made. As arguments are brought forward, concept will be discussed separately using appropriate quotes from the texts. In some cases it is difficult to separates certain key concepts however efforts are made to distinguish them. Finally the conclusions will be made based on the arguments that support how the concepts are made.

According to Merriam Webster online dictionary; History is defined as a “chronological record of significant events (such as those affecting a nation or institution) often including an explanation of their causes”. The Second World War was mankind’s most fatal conflict. It ended after a nuclear warhead was launched into two Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. This lead to tens of thousands of innocent civilians losing their lives. By the end of this gloomy period, millions of lives were lost, majority of which were innocent civilians. The Second World War also marked an era of the most technological advancement and innovation in human history. During that period most developed countries had invested in development of mechanical technology and innovation. This advancement in technology included aircraft, communication systems, development of robots and the development of nuclear weapons which were initially meant for military applications. This however resulted in a common concern that technology would eventually outsmart mankind and may lead to their demise. Against this background, “There will come soft rains” was written and published. In this story the author, Ray Bradbury projects his mind into the future, attempting to predict it within the confines of the technology that was familiar to him and the concerns that bothered the society at the time. The events take place from seven o clock in the morning of the 4th August, the year 2026, in the city of Allandale, California. This is a precise date and time on which events begin to happen. Every event in the story is told, following a certain chronological order. Almost on hourly basis, the voice clock sings, in order to alert and remind the house occupants about the task or activity that should be done. The narratare Therefore the concept of time is very important for the reader to be able to comprehend the story. The story does not have human characters which is very uncommon in many present day stories. The whole story is based on the events taking place in the house and to the house, which may be considered the main character. The house is a modern smart house equipped with what could be artificial intelligence technology equipment and appliances which are able to perform tasks and typical house chores on behalf of its occupants. The house is the only standing house in the city, while all the rest of the city is “rubble and ashes. ” The house eventually burns down after the tree branch falls on the kitchen and spilling the inflammable solvent over the kitchen stove. The fire burned down the house leaving only one wall remaining.

The story begins by the voice clock that is singing in the living room. Meanwhile “In the kitchen the breakfast stove gave a hissing sigh and ejected from its warm interior eight pieces of perfectly browned toast, eight eggs sunny side up, sixteen slices of bacon, two coffees, and two cool glasses of milk. ” The author is somehow alluding to the historical idea that machinery may take the place of humans and perform their work. It seems everything in the house is operating on a programmed schedule serves breakfast for the peo. The nuclear weapon that detonated in Japan, is one of the technology that was familiar to the author, not surprising that he imagines the future more or less as he had witnessed the past. In the story he narrates that: “The house stood alone in a city of rubble and ashes. This was the one house left standing. At night the ruined city gave off a radioactive glow which could be seen for miles. ” It is clear here that the explosion has taken place, resulting the city left in ruins.