"There Will Come Soft Rain" Study Guide
What specific lines in the fire scene describe the house in human terms?
"At ten o'clock the house began to die." The house burnt to ashes in the sub-celler.
Based on Bradbury's descriptions in the story, how do you think the city and its inhabitants were destroyed?
Based on Bradbury's story I do think the city and inhabitants were destroyed because it says "in a city of rubble and ash."
Why do you think Bradbury waited to explain what happened to the city and to show what happened to he family?
Bradbury waited so the reader will continue to read, build suspense to his story, and a way to pull the reader in.
What happens to the dog?
Dies from the radiation and eventually decays.
Why do you think Bradbury chose to use the name of the poem for the title of his story?
He chose this because the theme is the same except technolagy is what doesnt need us.
Which conveniences in this passage already exist in today's society?
Little mice that clean up similar to the "rumba", the clocks that tell time, and the automatic garages.
What comment is Bradbury making about the essential stupidity of machines? Of mankind?
Machines can't reason and only do what they are programed to do. Humans rely on machines for everything.
Why is it dangerous to put too much of our lives in the hands of machines?
Machines only do what they are programed to do and can't make decisions that need to be made quickly.
Who is in the house?
No one.
Describe the scene of the destruction of the house. How is the house left in the end?
Panicked like a person would by slamming doors and using water to calm the fire as much as it could. The house is left in ash and destruction just like the rest of the world.
What does the house recommend?
Raincoats and umbrellas.
What is the weather like on August 4, 2026?
Rainy.
What consequence will the attack of the fire to the "brain" of the house have for the house.
Since the "brain" has been attacked it can not function and do the responsibilities it has for the house.
What record is left of the family? How was the record created?
The calendar, talks about anniversaries, birthdays, and bills that have or need to be paid. The owners had programed the machiens to remember and obtain certain information. There were also images on the side of the house that were where the family was at when the nuclear bomb went off.
What effect has the death of the family had on the house?
The death of the family has no effect on the house because it continues to ask questions, make breakfast, and reminds the previous owners of important dates and information.
What effect do you think the end of humankind has had on the world?
The end has no effect on the world because the world and nature does not care if man is gone.
What part of the house does the fire attack?
The fire attacked the "brain", then the hole house eventually burns down to the sub-cellar.
People have often claimed that at death a person's life "flashes before his or her eyes. In what way is the death of the house similar to the death of a person?
The fire burnt it all to ashes in a matter of minutes.
Why is the action just after nine o'clock somewhat more personal than the others of the day?
The house ask the owner what poem she wants to listen too. The house chooses the poem by knowing that it is the owners favorite poem.
What happens just after nine o'clock?
The house asks Mrs. CcClellan what poem she wants to listen to.
In what ways does the house prepare for people who do not appear?
The house continues to make breakfast and do its everyday activities.
What is special about this house that makes it different from other houses?
The house is different because it does everything for the owners, like clean, make breakfast, baith them.
What is significant about the house's use of language?
The house rhymes when it says something.
What poem does the house select at nine-fifteen?
The house selects "There Will Come Soft Rains" by Sara Teasdale.
What is unusual about the way the house speaks?
The house speaks cheerfully and singingly all the time.
What is ominous (creepy, dark) about the house at the beginning of the story?
The house stood alone but alive while around it the world was burnt and ashy.
What is ironic about the survival of the house?
The house survives a nuclear war but not something as simple as a fire.
Who is talking in the morning of August 4, 2026?
The kitchen.
How des the action of the house in the last line compare to its action in the first line?
The list line it continuously says the date August 5, 2026 till it dies but the house is still telling information that it does in the first line.
What is ironic about the lifelike images in the nursery?
The nursery filled with life-like images yet everything outside is dead.
Who is the house speaking to?
The people who used to live in the house.
Why is the poem that is read in after nine o'clock appropriate for the situation?
The poem is appropriate for the situation because nature has not changed its ways after the people are gone from the war.
What is the theme of the poem?
The theme is that nature does not need us but humans need nature.
How are the themes the same in the story and poem?
They are the same because neither the world, nature, or technology cares if mankind is still around becuase they will continure without humankind.
What makes the actions of the house senseless?
They are useless no reason for the house to clean and make breakfast.
What happened to the other houses in the city?
They burned down to ashes after the nuclear war.
