Ray Bradbury: Master author - Part 2
Elements of The Veldt - Tragedy, Horror, Dystopian Fiction
Tragedy
We consider this a tragedy because it ends, well, tragically for George and Lydia Hadley. Plus, these parents are killed by one tragic flaw: too soft parenting. It's hard to imagine what a happy ending would be: if George gives in to his kids, he has failed as a father. If he opposes his kids, they're going to kill him. And that's a classic tragic choice: failure or death.
Horror
In this story we assume the children have programed the fake lions to kill their parents, which shows there's something horrifying about "The Veldt." It could easily be an episode of Tales from the Crypt. (Though they usually use ventriloquist's dummies—not virtual felines.)
Dystopian Literature
Dystopian literature is all about terrible societies of the future. Think Panem from The Hunger Games. But all we ever see in "The Veldt" is one house and one family (plus their psychologist). So how is this considered dystopian? There's no society. We're calling it dystopian because this very same story could be taking place just about anywhere. Parents and children could be struggling over control of nurseries (and other gadgets) all over the world. As David McClean notes, "too many others" (203) are
Similes/Metaphors
In "The Veldt," the virtual sun in Africa is "like a hot paw". And the lion's yellow eyes are "like the yellow of an exquisite French tapestry". And….
Bradbury uses similes and metaphors to evoke atmosphere, the temperature and colours of Africa, esp. the veldt. The sun = hot paw, for example, reminds us of the heat of Africa, the wildness of lions. An exquisite French tapestry-like eyes, makes us see the lions as something beautiful and artistic. Just like tapestries, these lions are essentially man-made. They are creations of the nursery; also made by people. George actually has a little rapturous thought along these lines when he comes into the nursery: "George Hadley was filled with admiration for the mechanical genius who had conceived this room".
So the lions are artistic and beautiful creations. But what George forgets—and what we might forget too—is that lions are also deadly.
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