#THE PEDESTRIAN THEME FREE#

The extent of how much technology limits freedom is shown here as a robot which has no human qualities is given the power to send someone to a corrective institute for being individual.

This makes the police car seem sinister as Mead is harmless and the interrogator is threatening to shoot him. A further example of this is shown when Bradbury writes “your hands up! Or we’ll shoot!”. This implies the car is speaking with an aggressive tone. We can tell this when he writes “metallic voice”. The car blinding him with its lights relates to an escaped prisoner being put under spotlight which adds a dark tone as it shows Mead’s freedom to be taken away from him as he too is now under the control of technology.īradbury, through his use of word choice, effectively adds a sinister tone when the car is shouting orders at Mead. He changes the mood from peaceful to aggressive and sinister when he writes “flashed a fierce cone of light upon him”. In the second half of the story, Bradbury creates a mood change as the police car approaches Mead.

#THE PEDESTRIAN THEME FREE#

Mead’s the more attractive as he is free from technology in the outside world whereas the rest of society are limited due their excessive use of technology. This shows them to be of different worlds. He shows society to be dull and soulless as instead of them being curious and free, their entertainment is provided through television whereas Mead prefers to find his own entertainment. Bradbury once again makes the link between society and the dead. This shows them to be a dark, horrible place to be. He creates a comparison between the houses and a graveyard referring to them as “tomb like”. Bradbury uses a lot of negative imagery to show society to be suffering from technology. We can tell this when he writes “the tombs ill-lit by television light, where the people sat like the dead, the grey or multi-coloured lights touching their faces but never really touching them”. Here, Bradbury draws a contrast between Mead and society. It tells of how Mead relishes in the freedom the night brings which shows him to be unique from the rest of society who are limited by their over use of technology. Ray Bradbury through his use of the simile “his shadow moving like the shadow of a hawk” presents Mead as not just a man who has a love for walking, but as a noble creature. This shows Mead to be at peace outside where he is free from technology. The repetitive sound of the f adds a gentle, soothing tone. This is shown in the line “faintest glimmers of firefly light”. The happiness that Mead gains from walking shows him to be free and not limited by technology.īradbury adds a further sense of tranquillity when he uses alliteration to describe the night. This has connotations of magic and mystery which create a romantic feeling between Mead and the outside world. Furthermore, Bradbury uses the word “misty”. The words link to light and through them Bradbury suggests a feeling of happiness within Mead. This is shown through his use of the words “flicker” and “glimmer”. This shows Mead to be free from technology, as he is outside in a natural environment whereas the rest of society are limited through their over-reliability on technology.Īdditionally, Bradbury allows the reader to appreciate Mead’s love for walking through his use of peaceful language and evocative images. He adds a natural feel to Mead’s walk, one of which would be found whilst walking in a great forest, not a city.

Here, Bradbury emphasises the vast emptiness of the city. This is shown when Bradbury writes “silence” and moon-lit”. In the first half of the story, Ray Bradbury builds a tranquil atmosphere through his use of word choice. Bradbury uses techniques such as word choice, mood, sentence structure and imagery effectively to show how technology limits freedom. He is taken to a corrective institute because his love for walking is seen as unnatural. He loves the freedom of the outside world, but this is taken away from him when he is arrested by the police. However, the protagonist in the story, Leonard Mead, differs from the rest of society, as instead of wasting a lifetime in front of the TV, he prefers to go out walking. Bradbury presents the image of a dystopia, where technology rules over freedom. Ray Bradbury, in his short story ‘The Pedestrian’, depicts a negative picture of the future to the reader. How does Ray Bradbury explore the theme of technology limiting freedom in the short story ‘The Pedestrian’? Ray Bradbury-The Pedestrian Critical Essay Some issues with expression, but the analysis is the kind of thing we're aiming for!

The pedestrian theme