THERE WILL COME SOFT RAINS

Ray Bradbury’s “There Will Come Soft Rains” tells the story of a house that has survived a nuclear
blast in the year 2026. The house has automated systems, not unlike a modern-day smart home.

Theme: The Benefits and Danger of Technology

In the story, humans have developed technology that they use both for good and bad.

The Good
The level of technology allows people to live fairly carefree, at least when they're at home.
Throughout, the house takes care of many things that increase people's leisure time or increase
convenience.

It issues alerts for waking up, meal times, the date, personal reminders, the weather and departure
times.

The house also prepares meals and clears the table, and cleans the house at preset times and when
the need arises.

It opens and closes the garage door, waters the garden and provides security. It sets up the tables,
chairs and cards for a game.

The nursery produces a show of sights and sounds for the children. The house closes the day with a
relaxing evening routine.

The house also has an impressive defense against the fire that starts.

The Bad
While the story is full of details about the benefits of technology, its main point is the danger.

This house is the only one left standing in its city, possibly in the world. A technological advance
has made that possible. A nuclear blast, as suggested by "the radioactive glow", has leveled
everything else.

There's obviously a disparity between the stakes involved—advancements can improve quality of
life, but they can also end it. Or, to be less charitable, advancements can improve quality of life but
not the quality of the people using them.
Theme: The Insignificance of Humans

The world in the story hasn't come to an end, just human life. The earth won't be worse for the
change—all the current damage has been done by people. Now, earth's natural processes will have
time to undo it.

Although humans built the technology, they're not important to it. The house continues functioning
as it's programmed to do. The fact that humans aren't there to benefit from it is irrelevant.

Likewise, nature is uninterested in humans. The earth can't notice that humans are gone. Any
animal or insect life that survived the blast can focus on its own survival without threat from
people.

The same lack of regard is seen over the death of the dog which, as a domesticated animal living
off humans, can be included in the human realm. It dies without anything caring, and is disposed of
without ceremony. For the mechanical mice, it's no different from any other mess that needs
cleaning.

Ultimately, humans need to care about their survival, because nothing else does.

Among the major themes in the story are automation, catastrophic effects of war, the
paradox of technological and scientific development, destruction of mankind and robotic
domination.

The title explains that the author is talking about the future, visualizing a life-giving scene
when “soft rain” “will” possibly come after a calamity has taken place. The term “soft rain” signifies
a calm and gentle imagery; an example of visual as well as tactile imagery. The "empty house”
seems to be overwhelmed by the 'ticking of the clock'- the futuristic house seems to be intimidated
by the 'clock'- as if imprisoned by it. "Rain" appears to be the only sign of 'life'- as it sustains life-
but ironically, here it "tapped on the empty house echoing."

There is an undeniable suggestion that the house and the occupants were very systematic as there
is a time for everything and is very precise. "But the tables were silent and the cards untouched."-
this arouses the readers' curiosity and strikes an anticipatory note. Why did the scene not take off
into merriment after the mention of the "martinis"? Why were the tables "silent?"

The fact that time governed and dominated over each segment of the day- creates a horrific impact
as it connotes a complete lack of freedom, suggesting a shocking sense of imprisonment. The
inclusion of "the tables folded like great butterflies" may be a beautiful simile and visual imagery,
but the tables to fold without anybody 5 feasting off them- is a grim and murky idea. It suggests
that the children were young in age and were fond of nature as the room has a jungle theme and
décor. "The Nursery walls glowed"; "The walls were glass." -the metaphor suggests how the walls
came into life- at the same time in contrast - the house was dead. "The animals took shape"-
makes the animals come alive; although they were only pictures on the wall- but this makes the
absence of the humans even more prominent. PERSONIFICATION: "and the walls lived" suggests
how the inanimate outlived the humans.

The abundant onomatopoeic effect: "sounds like a great matted yellow hive of bees within a dark
bellows, (COLOUR IMAGERY) the lazy bumble of a purring lion." "And the murmur of a fresh jungle
rain, like other hoofs falling upon the summer-starched grass."- makes the animal world dominate
over the dead human world. The "dinner dishes" "manipulated like magic tricks" showcases
PERSONIFICATION along with ALLITERATION as everything was ‘manipulated’ towards regression.

The personification of the voice, "The voice said at last" once again highlights the fact that the
"voice" was not of the humans. The poem is brought to the fore only as a voice as if in the past-
now all voices being dead following a nuclear war. The poem reflects McClellan’s state of mind and
probably her fear that the war would end mankind and destroy humanity. "Not one would mind,
neither bird nor tree, If mankind perished utterly;" signifies a human less world and the writer's
vision of complete annihilation in the times to come.

The use of the VERBS: “scalded”, “burned”, “charred” depict a horrific image of all moving towards
ruin. The verb phrase "The wind blew." The use of varied sentence structure adds to the dramatic
effect on the narrative flow- in contrast with the complex and compound sentences used in the
story. Although the wind- a positive force- here appeared as an added incentive to the fire.

The McClellan house which was the only standing structure in a city of ruin and ashes, was also
destroyed by the fire. '"Fire!" screamed a voice. The house lights flashed, water pumps shot water
from the ceilings.' Again, it was only a 'voice' that announced the outbreak of fire and the high-tech
technological provisions in the house set automatically at work, to douse the fire. 6

"The house tried to save itself. Doors sprang tightly shut," –PERSONIFICATION again suggests the
"house" seemed to be making every desperate bid to stop the fire; this highlights the dramatic
irony in the story; with the humans already all gone, what would the house gain for itself by saving
itself.

The short sentences capture the fast pace at which the fire was consuming all, creating devastation
on all fronts. This is a masterstroke by the writer to underscore the wastefulness of the entire scene
and of every effort, thereby, conjuring a highly horrific scene. The PHRASES: "bared skeleton",
"voices died", "carry the horrid ashes away", "fiery study", "The fire burst into the house and let it
slam flat down, puffing out skirts of spark and smoke. " (ALLITERATION) evoke a horrendous image
of death and destruction.
The expression "rain of fire and timber" is an amazing allusion which is a metaphor (a near
oxymoron and paradox) captures the incessant consumption by the fire on all sides. The
SIMILE-"and all like skeletons thrown in a cluttered mound deep under;"
ALLITERATION//FRAGMENTS-"Smoke and silence. A great quantity of smoke" leave the everlasting
image of "smoke" in the readers' mind.

The hyperbolic expression "the fire in ten billion angry sparks moved with flaming ease” depicts the
fast spreading flames which consumed everything in no time. "The fire crackled up the stairs. "THE
PERSONIFICATION OF FIRE: "It fed upon Picassos and Matisses in the upper halls," shows how all
artistic, posh artefacts, life itself, was wiped out.

"Now the fire lay in beds, stood in windows"; "But the fire was clever". "The fire rushed back into
every closet..." uses PERSONIFICATION. The grueling impact of the story lies in the fact at how the
writer builds in detail after detail to show how all was devastated by the fire. "Dawn showed faintly
in the east. Among the ruins, one wall stood alone. Within the wall, a last voice said, over and over
again and again..." Even the image of the new dawn did not have much to uphold- although "one
wall stood alone" but perhaps to no major effect.

"Today is August 5, 2026, today is August 5, 2026, today is..."With a jolt the readers are reminded
that the setting is futuristic-with all human voices dead; it was only computer-generated message
announcing the time. The REPETITION creates a 7 jarring spell and the ellipses leave the future
undefined and muted- left to an everopen conjecture for the readers.

Having maintained a consistently dismal tone, that follows at an unprecedented pace, the writer,
not only creates an image of utter despair, but at the same time suggests the ludicrousness of all
scientific and technological advancement, all accuracy and precision, if it is to gear mankind
towards devastation, may it be in the garb of a nuclear, chemical or a biological warfare. Bradbury
has unflinchingly set out the definite code that the worst enemy of mankind would be man himself.
History is smeared with many a bloody pages-the story shall never end, unless mankind learns to
become a better reader of its Fortune.

The irony of the story "There Will Come Soft Rains" is strong. The poem within the story describes
how happy nature will be when man has destroyed himself, but the truth is that nature has been
decimated by the war. The dog that comes in to die is lean and covered with sores. The rest of the
city is "rubble and ashes." Radiation hangs in the air. Yet nature lives on in a mechanical form.
Mechanical mice scurry about the house. The closest thing to soft rains that fall are the mechanical
rains of the sprinkler system that goes off when the house catches fire. The poem, which seems
pessimistic, is actually very optimistic compared to the reality. In this penultimate story, Bradbury
shows his final example of the folly of thoughtless technological development. 
Key Quotes

1. The voice-clock sang ... seven o'clock, time to get up ... as if it were afraid that nobody
would. 
Narrator

The opening line of the story introduces several elements of the story in one efficient gesture. First,
the verb sang personifies the house, giving its technology will and personality. This might seem like
a poetic metaphor, but in this case there's a fair degree of literal truth: this is what's now known as
a "smart house," a house with a degree of awareness and intelligence. The simplicity and repetition
of the line indicates the story will have a fable-like quality.

Though it is high-tech, the house here is as isolated and in its own way magical as any cottage in a
fairy tale. Finally, to say the voice-clock sang as if it were afraid no one would get up is deeply
dramatically ironic. The house is empty, but it doesn't know it, and so the clock's fear is very
literally true: no one will respond.

2. The clock ticked on, repeating and repeating its sounds into the emptiness. 
Narrator

This line is very descriptive. It makes the sound of a ticking clock into poetry and is a fine line in
itself. However, it also really drives home the limits of technology and the house's programming:
the clock (and all other mechanical entities in the story, including the house itself) does for the
family all it was programmed to do. However, the family is no more.

3.This was the one house left standing. 

Bradbury starts the story with the wonders of the house and does not reveal its tragic
circumstances right away. Here, in a single simple sentence, Bradbury says so much. This is not
just the only house nearby, which might suggest it is an outpost in a new or frontier setting. This is
the only house anywhere, which indicates something else knocked all other houses down. This is
the lone, if temporary, survivor of a huge catastrophe.

4. At night the ruined city gave off a radioactive glow which could be seen for miles. 
Narrator
Bradbury does not directly say there was a nuclear war. Instead, he describes the results of that
war and lets readers deduce what happened. He is not particularly subtle—a "radioactive glow" one
can see from miles away is a very high level of radiation indeed—but he is indirect. He gives images
rather than facts.

5.The five spots of paint—the man, the woman, the children, the ball—remained. 
Narrator

This is another place where Bradbury provides images but does not explain what they mean. These
"spots of paint" are silhouettes of the people who used to live in the house. They were playing and
working in their yard in a nearly perfect stereotype of the 1950s American suburban family. The
father is mowing the lawn, the mother is gardening, and the two children are playing together. This
suggests the sudden strike of nuclear war happened on a weekend, when they could all be home
together.

6.  It quivered at each sound, the house did. 

This is one of the lines where Bradbury strongly suggests the house is more than a machine. This
house is so concerned about keeping itself safe for its absent humans that it is nervous, even
neurotic.

7. The front door recognized the dog voice and opened. 

This line indicates just how high and subtle the house's level of programming is. A basic robot could
prepare a specific breakfast menu if programmed to do so. However, the house's programming (or
function) goes much further. The house has been defending itself against animal intruders, but it
recognizes and admits the dog.

8. Dropped into the sighing vent of an incinerator which sat like evil Baal in a dark
corner. 
Narrator

Baal was worshipped as a god in the ancient Middle East. Baal was a fertility god but also a god of
rain. Early in the history of the Jews, the term was used positively, to refer a lord or ruler of Israel.
Later, though, this term became more negative, referring to a false god. During the Puritan period
of Christianity, the term became harsher, directly associated with Satanism.
The trash robots carrying refuse to the furnace would therefore be offerings to a false god.

9. The house tried to save itself. 

This line matters because it indicates the house is more than just a mindless robotic servant. A
robot would only do what it was programmed to do, no more and no less. Robots traditionally lack
a sense of self-preservation (though some science fiction authors such as Isaac Asimov (1920—92),
with his famous laws of robotics, did posit a programmed drive for robots to preserve themselves).
In this line the house breaks with both of these past limits. It "tried" to do something rather than
just doing it or not doing it. And what it tried to do was "save itself." Before this time most of the
house's actions were in the service of its absent people. It did act to preserve itself but primarily to
keep the house pristine for humans. Here, Bradbury explicitly gives the house a drive for self-
preservation.

10. And the wall sprays let down showers of mechanical rain. 
Narrator

The story's title says that "soft rains" will come. They may come, but they don't in the story.
Instead, the only rain in the story is "mechanical rain," which falls in showers as an act of war
against the invading fire. This rain is the opposite of the title's soft rain in intent, nature, and
duration; it quickly ends, because the house has wasted its water reserves on baths. There is no
natural cycle to this; this represents how limited the house's programming is.

11. From attic trapdoors, blind robot faces peered down with faucet mouths gushing
green chemical. 
Narrator

Many medieval European cathedrals had gargoyles on their corners. These grotesque figures
peered down at worshippers, often expressing humor or a striking sense of personality. Being
(usually) stone, these gargoyles were sightless but still functional: the architects built them around
gutters so that the rain that fell on cathedral roofs was directed down and away through the
gargoyles' mouths. This description draws a parallel with the "blind robot faces" Bradbury deploys
here. Whereas the original gargoyles gushed water, these gush chemicals. However, both guard
what are essentially houses of worship.

12. Now there were twenty snakes whipping over the floor, killing the fire with a clear
cold venom of green froth. 
Narrator

Literally, these 20 snakes are chemicals, sprayed by the robot faces in the attic. They are intended
to fight the fire. Stylistically, they fit with the image of an elephant (the fire) rearing back from a
snake, a metaphor Bradbury had just introduced. Symbolically, the snakes continue the negative
associations within a Christian framework Bradbury began earlier with his mention of Baal.
Vomiting is never positive in the Bible; at best it is wasteful and at worst a sign of sin.
In Genesis, Satan takes on the form of the serpent to mislead Eve, causing original sin. These 20
snakes therefore appear positive but lead only to negative results.

13.  Help, help! Fire! Run, run! 

When the fire is consuming the house, it cries for help. There are many voices in the house, but
Bradbury says all "dozen voices" cry this in unison. It is "like a tragic nursery rhyme, a dozen
voices" and rings out "like children dying in a forest, alone, alone."

This is Bradbury at one of his most poetic moments. The house is dying, and in one sense this
threat unifies it: all dozen voices say the same thing. In another sense the house is still divided;
the "run, run" could apply to the people it is still trying save. On the other hand, the house could be
talking to itself, trying to send its robots away, or to run ... neither of which is possible.

14. And one voice ... read poetry ... until all the film spools burned, until all the wires
withered and the circuits cracked. 
Narrator

One measure of intelligence is an ability to adapt to changing situations. Another closely related
attribute is an ability to solve problems or adapt to challenges. In this line Bradbury shows the
limits of the house's programming and how far it really is from functional intelligence. There had
long been no point in reciting poetry to an empty room, but when the house did that, it was merely
wasteful. Now, the house is actively stupid in its lack of adaptation; reciting poetry while it's being
burned alive is almost suicidal.

15.Today is August 5, 2026, today is August 5, 2026, today is ... 

The house has the final line in the story; rather, the one wall still standing has the final word. It
brings the story full circle. It had started when the house announced the start of August 4. The
house will mindlessly try to fulfill its programming even when it is dead and gone. The house's lone
wall now haunts the land the way the image of the humans burned into the wall used to.