What will be the mark of humanity after we are gone? What will stand left to tell our tale? What will the world look like without humans? Your answer to these questions are probably just as vibrant, different and interesting as mine or your neighbor’s, and while it is interesting to ruminate on these questions, Ray Bradbury manifests his thoughts on these questions in his vivid short story, “There will come soft rains”, describing the aftermath of the obliteration of the human race. “There will come soft rains” is important for us to read because it reminds us of our role in the scope of the universe, and more importantly, is incredibly entertaining to read.
This story is important as it reminds us of our relative importance to the vast outside world. In a cathartic poem, this central idea makes itself clear: “Not one would mind, neither bird nor tree, If mankind perished utterly; And Spring herself, when she woke at dawn Would scarcely know that we were gone”. The incorporation of this strong poem into the text adds emotion and thoughtfulness to the piece, particularly powerful as it is in direct contradiction to the mechanical, monotonous motif exposed by the symbol of one forlorn mechanical house: the only remnants of the human race. This house, without humans to occupy it, goes about its daily routine, making breakfast, cleaning, and reciting poems. This house reminds us that the mechanisms that we’ve built, although not immortal, do not need us. While the mechanisms that we’ve created do not need us, this story emphasizes another step forward in the hierarchy: the Universe does not need us; it is infinitely more powerful that even the most sophisticated mechanisms we can imagine. This message is shown clearly throughout the second half of the story with emphasis on the power that the Universe has over the last remnant of human civilizations. This idea is expanded on later in the text, with an incredibly powerful last line. I would love to dive into depth with this last sentence and the last part of the story, but I wouldn’t want to risk stripping the powerful emotion felt in this story away with preemptive, spoiling, analysis. The lessons conveyed in this story will leave you with a different perspective on the relationship between your life and the lives of the rest of the Universe, a relationship of “maniac confusion, yet unity”. It is important that we all learn these lessons so that we can avoid what happened prior to this story through community and cooperation in saving not only our race, but the world around us.
Besides being a treasure trove of knowledge, this story is also an incredible read as Bradbury kindles our imaginations through an incredibly descriptive, metaphorical writing style. One example of this is his immortalization of a fond childhood memory: “one titanic instant, a small boy, hands flung into the air; higher up, the image of a thrown ball, and opposite him a girl, hands raised to catch a ball which never came down.” More powerful, emotional moments like this make this a rollercoaster of entertainment for the reader. The combination of short, mechanical sentences and long, drawn out, intensity makes this short story easily one of the most exciting pieces that I have ever read. Bradbury couples his sentence structure with the contrasting motifs of mechanics and nature, always keeping us guessing throughout the story. While the focus is on the house itself, short snippets of its interaction with its environment make the story very dynamic, as even without any “living” creatures, the story is ever evolving and ever changing. The final way he keeps us interested is through a dramatic turn in the middle of the story, maintaining a tense intensity until concluding powerfully with an important message.
If these two reasons, learning and entertainment, aren’t enough for you, the background of the author, Ray Bradbury, will surely convince you. Sources call him a “master storyteller and … guardian of the human heart”. Former President Barack Obama gave his highest praise of Bradbury, correctly explaining that Bradbury “understood that our imaginations could be used as a tool for better understanding, a vehicle for change, and an expression or our most cherished values.” (raybradbury.com). He was even called “a master of science fiction whose imaginative and lyrical evocations of the future reflected both the optimism and the anxieties of his own postwar America”(Jonas). The several glowing reviews of Bradbury’s life and his storytelling ability mean that you’ll really be missing out if you don’t sample his work.
All in all, Ray Bradbury’s short story, “There will come soft rains” is one of the defining literary masterpieces of 20th century America and will be remembered for centuries due to its enduring values and its vivid storytelling.
Sources:
Jonas, Gerald. “Ray Bradbury, Who Brought Mars to Earth With a Lyrical Mastery, Dies at 91.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 6 June 2012, www.nytimes.com/2012/06/07/books/ray-bradbury-popularizer-of-science-fiction-dies-at-91.html.
“Ready? Begin!” Ray Bradbury, 26 June 2020, raybradbury.com/.