Response to Ray Bradbury’s “The Veldt”

This story by Ray Bradbury poses many questions about technological advancements. One in particular that stands out is whether technology can go too far or not. As it is seen in “The Veldt,” the children feel essentially “parented” by the technology of the house as it basically does everything for them. The further we push technology along, the more we rely on it. In this story, the parents rely on the technology to do everything for them and their children, leaving their children to be alone and not parented as a child would be today. Even today, some parents will just turn on the TV and leave their child entertained for hours without actually doing many productive activities for their early development.

Another question that I think is important to note about technological advancements is if technology is something we should put our reliance on. It is clear that today technology is at its highest in terms of function and convenience today, but what happens when we become a little too reliant? What happens when we let technology do everything for us? An example of how this could be potentially dangerous for society is by looking at the movie Wall-E. Silly example, but the humans eventually rely too heavily on technology, become fat, and basically become useless to themselves. As great as technology is, it should not replace overall human integrity and effort. Many dangers can be seen in other films and examples, so technology should not become our everything.

“The Veldt” shows us how great technology can be and to what heights it can reach. On the other hand however, it also shows us that a reliance on technology for ourselves and our children poses a potential threat to our integrity as humans and our overall use in our own lives.