The Veldt

By: Tyrea Carroll

The mind will adapt, and do anything to survive. Many people believe this thinking that i this was not possible then how will a human being be able to handle the physiologi!al e e!t o moving to a new home or wel!oming the bitter sorrow o a passed loved one" This is a strong theme in #ay Bradbury$s The Veldt, the igurative sense o abandonment symboli!ally re ers to how the mind will do anything to try and ill in the gaps and emotional holes le t behind. This points out how te!hnology destroyed a amily and was used to repla!e what was lost. %n this short story, there are ma&or !on!erns about the !hildren, 'endy and (eter. )ne being that they were given everything they wanted at the slightest impulse. But nothing$s too good or our !hildren. *pg.+, this -uote taken rom .eorge /adley, the ather implies that 'endy and (eter most likely were given everything they ever wanted and more, whi!h is true. Their parents went as ar as to pur!hase an entire house that takes !are o the !hildren$s every want and need, rom !lothing, ood, and even shoe0tying. 'hen 1ydia was distressed, she began sitting down in a !hair that immediately began to ro!k her. *pg 2,, this shows that the house was even there to help them !ope with their emotional needs also. 3s the parents relied heavily on the house, they le t knowing that their !hildren would be greatly !ared or. 4evertheless, what they ailed to reali5e was the need and want rom their !hildren or them6 but rather le t it to the house to take their roles. 7avid M!Clean tells .eorge, 8ou$ve let this room and this house repla!e you and your wi e in your !hildren$s a e!tions. This room is their mother and ather, ar more important in their lives than their real parents. *pg9, )ver time the house was all that (eter and 'endy !ould truly see as the parental igure.

/owever, a ter .eorge and his wi e had their irst en!ounter with the nursery, they began to reali5e the roles that the te!hnology around the house seemed to have distan!ed themselves rom their !hildren. The house itsel has be!ome the main antagonist to the !ouple themselves as they battle over who is the dominant one in !ontrol. 1ydia eels as though she does not have an appropriate pla!e in the home, she says, % eel like % don$t belong here. The house is the wi e and mother now and nursemaid. *pg 2, This was the most a!!urate statement o all, or that$s e:a!tly what (eter and 'endy saw. 'hen both parents agreed among themselves they de!ided to alienate themselves rom all te!hnology to try and worm their way ba!k into the hearts o their son and daughter, but instead (eter and 'endy elt as though their parents were trying to take away their new parents. This !aused them to rea!t negatively to the whole situation. (eter who a!tually went as ar as to threaten his own ather when the possibility that the nursery would be taken away rom him, saying !oldly, % don$t think you better !onsider it anymore, ;ather, and also, % wish you were dead<, when the idea o shutting down all te!hnology was brought up to him. This shows a darker personality that his ather has never seen be ore, showing that (eter did not !onsider him as a parental igure anymore. 3s a result, (eter and 'endy show their true !olors by de!eiving their parents into death and elt no remorse or them a terward. This shows &ust how they$ve be!ame as li eless, inhumane and !old as the ma!hines taking !are o them. This shows us how ast and easily one !an be repla!ed when one ails to uphold their responsibilities and a!tions and break away rom another$s li e.