11/12/2022 1 Comment "The Pedestrian" and "The Fun They Had." - One cannot hold onto things from the past Technology constantly evolves as the ages pass, regardless of the current market conditions. Ground-breaking innovations and changes in everyday life are debated if they are a positive impact on society or not. The following statement is for sure; one cannot hold onto the things from the past. This theme is portrayed in the short stories "The Pedestrian" and "The Fun They Had."
These short stories were written more than 50 years ago and are a creative way of demonstrating how changes to the usual routine and recognizing these changes make us realize how scary the concept of time can be. A close friend once told me that life is like a train; it keeps moving forward. The fear of technology and not knowing what further awaits to step onto this train prevents one from moving forward. Many "conditions" will get on and off at these different train stops when passing through them, but we cannot keep dragging them along behind us when they have already gotten off the train and learned to adapt to what has come on board. When relating this notion to futuristic technology-centred short stories, it is crucial to understand how we recognize what is changing in the dystopian futures predicted. In "The Pedestrian," there is a dark twist on technology. Leonard's refusal to hook himself into the electronic brain-drainer as he wants to take the air, which the rest of the community has voluntarily accepted, makes the police focus on him. At the conclusion of Asimov's short story, Margie goes to "school," but she cannot focus because she daydreams about how it must have been in the preparatory schools. Similarly, "The Fun They Had" details how Margie has a mechanical teacher and books are now digitally transferred as she discovers new concepts about the past. Once again, this short story demonstrates that even though one might like their situation another way, we should not put all our attention on the past and focus on the future. What I feel Bradbury and Asimov are warning humankind about and perhaps commenting on in our society today is that it is too dependent on technology. The advancement of technology is changing how we interact with each other. By virtue of this, and as exposed in each of the stories, technology is isolating society from the outside world and constantly promoting ways to interact less with the community. Overall, the short stories "The Pedestrian" and "The Fun They Had" take a darker look at technology to portray an evident theme and comment on society today.
1 Comment
11/16/2022 06:21:36 am
I thoroughly enjoyed reading your analysis of the short stories "The Pedestrian" and "The Fun They Had." Your ability to connect the concepts and themes of these short stories to our life allows someone like me, a reader, to fully understand the underlying messages. The train analogy contributes to the text to real world connections. However, I would explain it slightly differently. I would not change the fact that the train represents life. I would say that as the train moves forward and the majority of society is happy to board and ride the train as a collective group with similar ideals, the stragglers like Mr. Mead who chose to be left behind will face the consequences of not following the designated route. There may also be people like Margie and Tommy who were very young or not yet born at all when their parents boarded the train. Now all grown up, they are able to reflect on what life was like before everyone boarded the train, and what would have happened if more people remained on the platform.
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