Compare And Contrast Smart House And The Veldt

For many Millennials, a number of their childhood memories are likely to include a popular form of entertainment during the late 1990s and early 2000s: Disney Channel Original Movies. Thus it is with a sense of nostalgia that one such individual could elicit a connection between one of those movies, LeVar Burton’s Smart House, and Ray Bradbury’s short story “The Veldt.” Labeled as science fiction, both of these works share the common theme of a dependence on technology as illustrated by the lives of the Hadley and Cooper families. In particular, these cautionary tales convey to the audience that too many advancements can sever the relationship between parent and child, foster a lack of responsibility, and establish a new, irreversible way

of life.
Dependence on technology can negatively affect the relationship between parents and their children. For example, the moment in “The Veldt” when Peter and Wendy “had televised home to say they’d be late, to go ahead eating,” illustrates the spoiled, undisciplined nature of the children; they inform their parents of their plans rather than ask for permission (167). Later on, psychologist, David McClean, blames the Happylife Home and its nursery for such behavior, telling George and Lydia Hadley: “You’ve let this room and this house replace you and your wife in your children’s affections. This room is their mother and father, far more important in their lives than their real parents” (171-172). A similar phenomenon occurs in Smart House when Ben starts spending less time with his widowed father, Nick, in favor of getting to know Pat, Smart House’s computer system. Consequently, when his father begins dating again, an angry Ben alters Pat’s programming to make her more motherly. Taking this new role very seriously, Pat begins giving the children commands such as making Angie brush her teeth and watch educational programming instead of cartoons. Furthermore, the fact that Ben would rather have a computer than Sarah, the new woman in his father’s life, take care of his family also demonstrates that depending too much on technology to be both the entertainer and the caregiver of the household can break the bond between parent and child in that the children begin to show affection towards the technological devices and hatred toward their mother and father.
Another consequence of dependence on technology is the fostering of a lack of responsibility.

In “The Veldt,” Bradbury describes such technological advancements as “the voice clocks, the stoves, the heaters, the shoe shiners, the shoe lacers, the body scrubbers, and swabbers and massagers,” leading one to inquire as to why people would wish to cook, clean, or even bathe for themselves when various technologies are capable of completing those chores for them (172). Furthermore, Bradbury illustrates just how helpless those who depend on technology can become when David McClean exclaims to George, “Why, you’d starve tomorrow if something went wrong in your kitchen. You wouldn’t know how to tap an egg” (172). Similarly, in Smart House, Pat performs many household duties including cooking and cleaning. For example, when Pat throws Ben a party while his dad is away, she is the one who tidies up the mess to try to keep him and Angie out of trouble. Additionally, when Ben encounters a bully at school, he has Pat do the bully’s homework to avoid being beat up. Thus with Pat performing all the chores and solving the children’s problems, they become lazy and lack a sense of

responsibility.
Along with relationship issues and laziness, dependence on technology ultimately leads to the establishment of a new, irreversible way of life.

For example, in “The Veldt,” Bradbury illustrates the effects of trying to quit technology cold turkey: “The two children were in hysterics. They screamed and pranced and threw things. They yelled and sobbed and swore and jumped at the furniture” (172). Thus, in order to silence them, George agreed to “turn the nursery on for a minute” (173). However, as George and Lydia are eaten by the lions shortly after, it is never actually turned off. This demonstrates that there really is no going back once technology has been introduced into one’s daily life; some machines can be forgone but others are unavoidable. After all, even if the Hadleys had been able to “move out and get to the airport,” planes are considered to be a form of technology as well (173). Likewise, in Smart House, even after Pat malfunctioned and trapped the Coopers in their home, Nick, Ben, and Angie chose to continue living there; after Sarah, the house’s creator, made a few adjustments, of course. Once she was working properly, the Cooper family viewed Pat as a great addition to their

lives.
Although “The Veldt” and Smart House are considered science fiction, the existence of a common theme allows audiences to relate to both the Hadley and Cooper families. While the technologies found in these works may be a little too far-fetched for today’s society, the consequences of depending too much on technology are very much the same: severed family relationships, a lack of responsibility, and a new way of life. For example, cell phones and tablets impede communication between parents and their children at the dinner table, many basic tasks can be performed using an app or robot, such as the Roomba, and no matter how hard one might try, it is nearly impossible to avoid contact with all of the technological advancements that exist today. Thus, the key to incorporating technology into daily life is finding a healthy balance; allow it help you, but do not become helpless in its absence.