A Futuristic
Family Thriller:
A Text Analysis on the Veldt by Ray Bradbury
Focused on Character
and Tone
By: Didimus Estanto T.
Sanata Dharma University
A.
Introduction
Family is the situation that supposed
to be warm. Futuristic and technology are
also supposed to be something bright and enlighten, but Ray Bradbury delivers a
very dreadfully short story about both of them. He brings the idea of thriller
on the condition that supposed to be warn and enlighten. This is such a great
short story bringing the new sensation of thriller. This is a futuristic family
thriller short story. This is the text analysis which focused on character and
tone.
B.
Characterization
There are four major characters
and a minor character in this story. The writer also can say that there are two
protagonist and two antagonist characters. There are George Hadley as a father,
Lydia Hadley as a mother and Peter and Wendy as their children. The last
character which also the minor character is David McClean as a psychologist and
consider as George’s friend.
Characterization of the
characters:
1. Father
The father is George Hadley. Mostly
the descriptions of him is taken by his conversation with his wife, children
and friend. As a husband, he is a highly noticing husband by the way he tread
his wife. "All right, let's have a
look." That’s the way he responses his wife’s will. As a head of family,
he is such a wise and distinct father. It is showed by the punishment that he
gave to the children: "You know how difficult Peter is about that. When I
punished him a month ago by locking the nursery for even a few hours the tantrum he threw! And Wendy too. They live
for the nursery." The wise side is showed when he considering the good of
his family: “Too much of anything isn't good for anyone” and when he considers
to go on vacation: “ Perhaps they needed a little vacation from the fantasy
which was growing a bit too real for ten-year-old children”. Beside those
things, the author describes the father in some many ways. He gave the way he
think, the way he talk, the way he solve the problem, the way he is looked in front of his children. It derives
the idea that the father is type of a common good father which is trying to
relive his family. The way he solve the psychotic problem is a significant part
which build this story a lot.
2. Mother
The mother is Lydia Hadley. She is
describe as a very noticing mother with a lot of anxiety and love for her
family. The expressions like "Oh,
George!" and "George, I wish you'd look at the nursery" show
that he is a loving wife. She is also an anxiety mother by worrying so much
thing such as the children and the stuff that she cannot do. It is proven by "I
just want you to look at it, is all, or call a psychologist in to look at it"
and “Can I compete with an African veldt? Can I
give a bath and scrub the children as efficiently or quickly as the automatic
scrub bath can? I cannot.” Besides the conversations, the author does not
really describe Lydia’s quality. Personal thinking is she is just the trigger which
lead the husband realize the situation and make an action.
3. Children
The children are Peter and Wendy Hadley.
Both of them are described as a rounded characters because of their age is 10 (one
of them and the other is younger). They are a good child. It is showed up when
they greet their parent nicely and accompany them in dinner table “Hello, Mom.
Hello, Dad." They are addicted to the nursery room so much even worse, the
Psychologist said. “This room is their mother and father, far more important in
their lives than their real parents”. In the middle of the story, their
character change because of the consideration for shutting the nursery room
down. They turn to very cruel and snivel for asking for the opposite. "Don't
let Father kill everything.", "Oh, I hate you!", "I wish
you were dead!", “Wendy was still crying and Peter joined her again. ‘Just
a moment, just one moment, just another moment of nursery,’ they wailed.” At the
end of the story, they show up as a bad person who kill their own parents. The author
used the highly cruel word in the children’s conversation, in the purpose that
readers can see how bad the effect of the psychological disorder happened to
the children like ‘death’, ‘killing’, ‘blood’. The author does not really
describe the quality directly but he shows it by showing the action that those
children do. It means that they are still children which losing their control,
lacking of control and do not really think about what they are doing. They just
do what is something that they thing good or want to do.
4. Psychologist
The psychologist is David McClean.
He is a friendly and noticing friend of George. He is the one who suggested
George to start the real life. It is proven its expert on psychology while he
describe the situation: "Can't say I did; the usual violences, a tendency
toward a slight paranoia here or there, usual in children because they feel
persecuted by parents constantly, but, oh, really nothing." Beside it as a
friend, he also suggest George to take his family on vacation and help him to
do it: “And then we're going on a vacation. David McClean is coming back in half
an hour to help us move out and get to the airport.” Beside those conversations, the author does not
really expose David’s quality. There is just an indicates that he is close to
the George by their expression which used like: "Am I on time?", "Thanks,
had some. What's the trouble?” and his knowledge: "My dear George, a
psychologist never saw a fact in his life. He only hears about feelings; vague
things. This doesn't feel good, I tell you. Trust my hunches and my instincts.
I have a nose for something bad. This is very bad. My advice to you is to have
the whole damn room torn down and your children brought to me every day during
the next year for treatment."
C.
Tone
Family is the situation that supposed
to be warm. It is the setting of this
story. Happylife Home is the name of the house, which means the house full of
high technology machine that will help the owner do everything they want. Those
things supposed to lead readers to the lovable situation, but there is a murder
in this short story. The tension is highly tight. The author uses the simple
present tense to build the sensation of immediate situations flew in the story.
The plot is so tight, by keep giving the feeling of anxiety. The author success
gives the impression of the dreadful high technology machine. The characters
are common, a little family, but the way they live is definitely different. The
family which is losing a control of their children, addicting to technology and
finally killing the parent are the guidelines of this story. The dictions also
influence, the using of the words killing, blood, death, room, vulture and prey
indicate that there is a thriller. The fact
that the children hate the parents (father) and kill them indicate that there
is an irony. Readers are afraid and anxious while read this short story, it
means that Ray Bradbury with all the
character, setting, atmosphere and diction is success in bringing the idea of
thriller and irony in this short story.
D.
Conclusion and Writer’s Opinion
This is a very great tragedy
short story. The writer does feel tense and a little bit afraid while reading this horror masterpiece. Ray Bradbury
is definitely genius in arranging this short story by making it as real as
possible. It feels like this is a kind of futuristic family thriller. There is
a nursery room, the place which catch all of our mind and show them up to us
looks like a dreadfully impossible for people in this era. Family is the core
of this short story. The setting of the family with the ten years old children
play around with only their futuristic machine, it seems cruel and not living
family. The sense of loving and work together is none there. They are dying in
the word of being served in that house. The core of being family is having each
other with love by helping and carrying each other, but it does not really show
up in this family. That is why writer says this is not a real family, they just
the person in same blood who live above the same roof. Thriller is a kind of high tense story with a
tragedy in the end. This story goes with a dreadfully high tension in all part
of it. Since the beginning, the main theme is an anxiety and it keeps going through
until the end of the story. The using of the present tense is also very
influence the whole tension of this short story. It make readers feel in the
exact time while they read the story following each tension. By leading readers
in the exact time like in the story goes, the author hold the suspense goes
high and down in every part. Ray Bradbury surely success make this as one of
the best thriller short story.
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