The house recognizes the dog’s whine and allows it to come inside, implying that the dog once belonged to the family. One exception is a dog that comes to the front porch. The ball is the fifth silhouette.Īlthough its inhabitants are dead, the house defends itself from wild animals including foxes and cats. These five spots are the silhouettes of the house’s former inhabitants and their final actions: a man mowing a lawn, a woman gathering flowers, and two children-one boy and one girl-playing catch with a ball. The implied nuclear explosion that destroyed the city has spared the house, but its west wall, once painted white, is now charred “completely black, save for five places” (249).
The city glows at night due to radiation.
The story moves outside, and the narrator reveals that this is the only remaining house “in a city of rubble and ashes” (249). The kitchen cleans itself after no one eats the meal it prepared in the opening scene, and robotic mice come out of the walls to remove dust. On the porch, a weather box complains about the rain while the garage opens its own door. The voice in the kitchen also gives the setting: August 4, 2057, in Allendale, California.Įvery function of domestic life appears to be automated, and the house is full of activity even though there are no human inhabitants. A voice in the kitchen announces the date with a list of reminders, while an automated stove cooks four full breakfasts of eggs, bacon, and toast. The narrator notes early in this opening scene that the house is “empty” (248), and the voice announces that it is time to get up “almost as if it is afraid that nobody would” (248).Īs the story continues, the daily routine of the house unfolds. The house has no human inhabitants to hear these messages. Nine minutes later, the voice announces it is time for breakfast. (248), time for the residents of the house to get up. An electronic “voice-clock” announces that it is 7:00 a.m. The story opens by describing a living room. “There Will Come Soft Rains” describes the operation of a robot-filled, automated house that continues to function after its human inhabitants are killed in an apparent nuclear explosion. Many of his stories feature the dangers of scientific progress as a central theme. This guide refers to the version published in The Martian Chronicles (Harper Perennial Modern Classics Kindle e-book edition, 2011).īradbury wrote his most famous works in the middle of the 20th century at the beginning of the nuclear arms race. Originally published in Collier’s Magazine in May 1950, “There Will Come Soft Rains” was published later that year as a chapter in Bradbury’s novel The Martian Chronicles.
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