Notice the use of quotation marks and italics. Stories like “August 2026: There Will Come Soft Rains” appeared in magazines like Fantastic Science Fiction. Other common topics were robots and atomic bombs. This was fiction that told stories that were only possible with technology that was different from the world of that time. A new kind of writing developed: science fiction.

This changed the imagination of everyday people. Science Fictionīecause of the fast technological development, humans suddenly were thinking about the possibility of entering outer space and traveling to the moon, to other planets, even to the stars. Was your home country also affected by the Cold War? Brainstorm a few facts you know about the U.S. Americans were suspicious and sometimes accused each other of being “Communists.” The Cold War went on until the 1980s, and it affected many countries. This competition was called the “Cold War.” It affected the US by creating a feeling of distrust and fear. People in both countries lived in non-stop fear of the other side. The US and the Soviet Union were enemies both sides raced to create more powerful weapons, rockets, satellites, computers, bombs. These technologies were also used for war. At this time Russia was called the USSR.īut these technological advances had a dark side. Most countries at this time could be divided into two groups: the capitalist and democratic group, which included the US and Western Europe, and the Communist group, which included Russia. Everyday people were more comfortable than ever before. Many everyday objects for us – cars, phones, computers – were available to common people for the first time ever, and that changed American culture. The 1940’s and 1950’s – after WWII – were a period of incredible technological change. Ray Bradbury, the writer, was one of the original creators of the science fiction genre. “There Will Come Soft Rains” was written in 1950. Learn about the culture Ray Bradbury lived in at the time this story was written. What kind of technology are “relays” and “memory tapes?” Do we use these technologies today? What is a “voice-clock”? Is it actually afraid?ĭescribe the family who would eat this breakfast. Today is the anniversary of Tilita’s marriage. Said a second voice from the kitchen ceiling, Read this part of the story aloud or listen to your instructor read.

The house short story by ray bradbury