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There Will Come Soft Rains Metaphors

Decent Essays

Ray Bradbury’s short story, There Will Come Soft Rains, centers around a self-automated house within a technologically advanced and possibly post apocalyptic time period. Similar to many other works of Bradbury, the story begins with little to no context and can only be described as vague. However, Bradbury employs diction, metaphors, and imagery throughout to allow readers to grasp the setting and overarching atmosphere of the story. To begin with, Bradbury utilizes word choice to communicate the setting to his audience. After establishing the peaceful operations of the house with words such as “warm”, “gently”, and “soft”, Bradbury all of a sudden uses words such as “rubble”, “ashes”, and “ruined” (Bradbury 1). The contrast between the light-hearted and the desolate diction gives the impression that though the house may seem calm, something terrible …show more content…

He compares the house to “an altar with ten thousand attendants” and the absence of people as “the gods had gone away” (Bradbury 2). By including this extended metaphor, Bradbury confirms that the house is indeed the last remaining structure and entity of the now decimated society. Through detailed comparison, Bradbury helps the reader infer the twistedness of the situation and understand the reality of the setting. Finally, Bradbury imbeds vivid imagery in to strengthen the audience’s comprehension of the setting. Bradbury hints the fate of the family that may have been the residents of the house, “The five spots of paint - the man, the woman, the children, the ball - remained”, “their images burned on wood” (Bradbury 1). Through the intense descriptions of the silhouette remains of a family, Bradbury paints a disturbing image in the mind of the reader and provides evidence that the people in this period have been killed. By evoking such a terrifying illustration, Bradbury divulges the uncensored truth of the

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