When nature threatens to destroy it, technology is able to put up a comprehensive defense. Comically, the narrator describes the stern response of the house to a sparrow brushing up against the window: “No, not even a bird must touch the house!” This protective impulse turns sinister when the house dispassionately disposes of the family dog’s carcass, treating the pet as nothing more than some smelly bio-matter. It shuts itself whenever “lonely foxes and whining cats” get too close. This house even seems to take its responsibility to battle nature a bit too far. The house protects its residents from the forces of nature: its walls close out harsh weather, its kitchen machines spare humans from hunting and foraging in the wilderness, and the cleaning mice ward off the chaos of the outdoors, cleaning up the mud, dust, and hair that accumulate in a natural environment. By having the house ultimately succumb to a fire and be destroyed by the natural world, Bradbury suggests that nature is more powerful than whatever man can create.īradbury physically establishes the animosity between the house-a symbol of technology-and the natural world. To do so, however, it relies a great deal on the natural world, both for inspiration (many of its automated functions, such as the robot mice, are based on animals) and for the raw materials to keep running. “It turned on the chimney.”Ģ- The automated house of Bradbury’s story presents itself as the perfect environment for human beings-a space that readily caters to nearly every imaginable need. “The stove was making pankakes.” It could turn on the chimney. “The front door recognized the dog and opened the door.” The house could cook.

What happens to the house at the end of the story? What is the lesson that Bradbury is trying to teach?ġ- The house can recognize someone and open the door. What is the significance of the poem, and therefore the title þf the short story? What is this poem saying that directly ties into the theme of the story?ġ0. Why does the author personify certain characteristics of the house?ĩ. Find two examples of personification in this story. Based on the story’s details about the city, what do you think happened? Why was the west face of the house black? How did the silhouettes get there?Ĩ. Provide two quotes below that capture vivid imagery throughout the story.ħ. What can you infer the family usually does at 2:35? What did the children usually do at 4:30?Ħ. Why is the dog very thin and covered in sores? What happens to the dog’s remains?ĥ. What do you learn about this society as a whole based on the home’s many automated features?Ĥ. What does the description of the house tell you about the family and their relationship to nature?ģ. What unusual qualities and appliances does the house have? List 3 functions the house performs.Ģ.

Ray bradbury house story