By Cozette Calderon
You were most likely forced to read Fahrenheit 451 at some point in your highschool. Although, in my opinion, no one is forced to read Fahrenheit 451 and is rather given the chance to read such a fantastic piece of literature. Still, it is understandable that being 14 and having to read about a dystopian world where all books are burned seems unimportant or perhaps just not enjoyable. But I’m simply not on that boat. I read and fell in love with the book around the age of 13 or 14, I believe.
The writer of Fahrenheit 451, Ray Brabury, is known for being a dystopian writer, often depicting strange worlds in his books and stories. I personally don’t care much for science fiction, and dystopian novels often teeter on the edge. However, Bradbury’s work has never crossed the line in a way that has repulsed me, and he became one of my favorite authors. I hope this article will help you return to Bradbury’s work with a new found love or explore his work for the first time.
In my exploration of finding more of his work, I found “There Will Come Soft Rains.” I will not go into detail about the plot so that you may experience the joy of reading it for the first time yourself. Instead, I will simply be explaining why the story caught my eye and some of the reasons I believe you should try reading it.
One of the best things about this story is the mysterious creepiness that brings a weird comfort that’s embedded into the story. The story revolves around a house with a robotic house care system that sits on top of a hill. Though at first one may have hope, it becomes extremely clear that the family is not living there anymore. Through the absence of the family, one begins to feel connection to the robots that take care of the house.
A story is hard to read without the audience having an emotional connection to characters but even this story that exists without human characters allows the audience to gain emotional attachment—so much so that at the end one may feel deep sorrow, as I know I did. A story is supposed to move the audience, and this story does not fail such responsibility. The content of the story itself is powerful and moving.
Still, there are more reasons I suggest this short story if you are trying to find more fascination in Ray Bradburry. One of the most interesting reasons I suggest this story because Ray Bradburry reflects the fear and emotions of the era. For those of you who may not know or be able to recall information about Fahrenheit 451 or Ray Bradbury, his books and stories were published in the 1940’s-50’s. This was when the nuclear age was taking place. Nuclear weapons were a part of mainstream conversation, especially the fear of what nuclear weapons could do. Bradburry’s work heavily relies on some themes. One of my favorite things about this story is that when one searches briefly for some history, there’s new depth discovered, and perhaps Badburry’s exigence for writing. Hint: In 1950, on January 27 Klaus Fuchs confessed that he gave atomic secrets to the Soviets while working on the Manhattan Project, which is one of the most well-known nuclear programs. Then, on May 6th, “There Will Come Soft Rains” was published.
Though “There Will Come Soft Rains” is perhaps not one of Braburry’s most well-known works, it certainly is reflective of Bradburry’s talent. Do not give on an author because a certain teacher drowned you in homework for it or asked you to write an essay with terrible prompt based on the author’s work. Always explore if you enjoy the author because sometimes you find wonderful gems—like I did with Ray Brabury’s “There Will Come Soft Rains.”
A pdf linked for your convenience: https://www.btboces.org/Downloads/7_There%20Will%20Come%20Soft%20Rains%20by%20Ray%20Bradbury.pdf
beniciapaw.com 