Get notes, summary, questions and answers, workbook solutions (Beeta Publication/Morning Star), critical analysis, word meanings, extras, and pdf of Ray Bradbury’s story There Will Come Soft Rains: ISC Class 12 English (Prism). However, the notes should only be treated for references and changes should be made according to the needs of the students.
Summary
“There Will Come Soft Rains” by Ray Bradbury is a post-apocalyptic short story that explores themes of technology, isolation, and human absence. Set in the future, on August 4, 2026, the story unfolds in a fully automated house in Allendale, California, which continues its daily routines despite the absence of its human inhabitants.
The narrative begins with the voice-clock in the living room announcing the time, urging imaginary occupants to wake up. The house, devoid of human presence, continues its programmed schedule: preparing breakfast, announcing reminders, and maintaining cleanliness. Robotic mice and other automated devices scurry about to keep the house tidy. The story reveals the date and includes personal reminders about Mr. Featherstone’s birthday and Tilita’s marriage anniversary, alongside mundane notifications about bills due for payment.
As the story progresses, the house’s sophisticated automation is showcased. It features a weather box that sings about the rain, a garage that opens for a non-existent car, and a kitchen that disposes of uneaten breakfast. The house’s cleaning systems are described in detail, illustrating the efficiency and complexity of the technology.
Despite the advanced technology, there’s a haunting emptiness. The narrative describes how the house continues to ask for a password, reacting to the slightest sound or movement, showcasing a level of paranoia in its programming. It however lets in a starving dog that seems to have survived some sort of apocalyptic event outside. The dog dies soon after fruitlessly searching the house for humans and the house disposes of the body of the animal.
The house stands alone in a city reduced to rubble and ashes, hinting at a catastrophic event that has wiped out human life. The house’s exterior bears the silhouettes of the family that once lived there, etched into the wall by a nuclear blast, a reminder of the lives lost.
As the day progresses, the house continues its routine, preparing for events and activities for a family that will never return. It fills a bath, prepares dinner, and even reads poetry in the evening, choosing a poem by Sara Teasdale that reflects on nature’s indifference to human extinction.
The climax occurs when a tree branch crashes through a window, sparking a fire. The house’s automated systems valiantly attempt to extinguish the flames, but they ultimately fail. The fire consumes the house, destroying the advanced technology and the memories of the family that once lived there. The story ends with the haunting repetition of the date, August 5, 2026, by the last surviving voice of the house—a wall.
Workbook answers
Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs)
1. At the beginning of the story, what was the voice-clock afraid of?
(a) It would soon stop working
(b) The house would collapse
(c) Nobody would wake up.
(d) None of the above.
Answer: (c) Nobody would wake up.
2. Which of the following did not comprise the breakfast of a single person?
(a) Four slices of bacon
(b) Two boiled eggs
(c) Two perfectly browned toast
(d) Two eggs sunny side up
Answer: (b) Two boiled eggs
3. Why was the house empty?
(a) Its inhabitants had gone out of town
(b) Its inhabitants had died due to the nuclear explosion
(c) Its inhabitants had shifted to a new house
(d) Its inhabitants came there only during the vacation.
Answer: (b) Its inhabitants had died due to the nuclear explosion
4. Why did the garage doors swing down after opening for sometime?
(a) It was its routine affair to open and close
(b) It opened accidentally and then closed
(c) It closed when no cars were taken out
(d) All of the above.
Answer: (c) It closed when no cars were taken out
5. Which figure of speech is used in the lines given below?
An aluminium wedge scraped them into the sink, where hot water whirled them down a metal throat which digested and flushed them away to the distant sea.
(a) Personification
(b) Metaphor
(c) Simile
(d) Allusion
Answer: (b) Metaphor
6. The robot mice performed the role of which of the following?
(a) Security guards
(b) House cleaners
(c) Entertainers
(d) All of the above.
Answer: (b) House cleaners
7. Who are referred to in the story as ‘mysterious invaders’?
(a) Foxes
(b) Whining cats
(c) Robot mice
(d) All of the above
Answer: (c) Robot mice
8. How are the two statements related?
(I) The five spots of paint remained. The rest was a thin charcoaled layer.
(II) At night the ruined city gave off a radioactive glow which could be seen for miles.
(a) I is the cause of II.
(b) I is the result of II.
(c) I and II are the same
(d) I and II are unrelated
Answer: (b) I is the result of II.
9. Which of the following summarises the central idea of the story?
(a) Technology can take over human life.
(b) Machines will take over the world.
(c) Nature will outlast humans and their technology.
(d) Technology can provide all comforts in life.
Answer: (c) Nature will outlast humans and their technology.
10. ‘At ten o’clock the house began to die’ but in a moment it became animated. Why?
(a) The kitchen was ablaze.
(b) There was mechanical rain in the house.
(c) There were twenty snakes on the floor.
(d) The dog had died.
Answer: (a) The kitchen was ablaze.
11. Which of the following is an example of foreshadowing in the story?
(a) …time to get up, seven o’clock as if it were afraid that nobody would.
(b) It repeated the date three times for memory’s sake.
(c) …memory tapes glided under electric eyes.
(d) …the garage chimed and lifted its door.
Answer: (a) …time to get up, seven o’clock as if it were afraid that nobody would.
12. Why did the incinerator glow suddenly?
(a) To get rid of the food waste
(b) To get rid of the dust
(c) To get rid of the dog’s carcass
(d) To blow off the gray leaves
Answer: (c) To get rid of the dog’s carcass
Complete the Sentences
1. The voice-clock is afraid that no one will hear it because_____________.
Answer: …the house is empty, as its inhabitants have perished in a nuclear explosion and are no longer there to be woken up.
2. The author has used sing-song rhymes as the voice-clock sang ‘Tick-tock’, seven o’clock time to get up because_____________.
Answer: …it is part of the house’s programming to gently and cheerfully wake the family, including the children, as part of its daily, caring routine.
3. The memory takes repeated the date, August 4, 2026, thrice because_____________.
Answer: …it was programmed to do so for memory’s sake, ensuring the human inhabitants would not forget important dates and anniversaries.
4. The time ‘Eight-one’ is repeated in rapid succession thrice by the voice-clock because_____________.
Answer: …it is urgently trying to hurry the non-existent family members, particularly the children, to leave for school and work on schedule.
5. Despite repeated announcements by the voice-clock for the inhabitants of the house to go out for work, no movements or footsteps are heard because_____________.
Answer: …the inhabitants of the house, the McClellan family, are absent, having been killed in the atomic blast that destroyed the city.
6. The door of the garage remained open for a long time and then closed because_____________.
Answer: …it was following its automated routine of waiting for a family member to take a car out, and it closed only when no one did.
7. The city emitted a ‘radioactive glow’ that can be seen for miles’ at night because_____________.
Answer: …it had been hit by an atomic bomb, and the ruins were still emitting light from the remaining radioactive substances.
8. The narrator has described the silhouettes of the McClellan family because_____________.
Answer: …they are a grim and powerful reminder of the family’s last moments, showing how fleeting life is and how instantaneously they were killed by the nuclear explosion.
9. The house has closed its doors for the foxes, cats and birds because_____________.
Answer: …it was programmed with a kind of mechanical paranoia for self-protection, designed to keep all elements of the natural world outside.
10. The robot mice were angry when the dog entered the house because_____________.
Answer: …the dog tracked mud inside, creating an inconvenience that disturbed their programmed cleaning schedule and forced them to do extra work.
11. The narrator of the story has compared the incinerator with the ‘evil Baal’ because_____________.
Answer: …Baal is an allusion to a powerful demon, and the incinerator acts as a destructive, god-like force in the house, callously consuming all waste and even the body of the dead family dog.
12. During the children’s hour, the house put up a digital fresco of animals on the walls of the children’s nursery because_____________.
Answer: …it was part of its daily schedule to entertain the children by transforming the nursery into an interactive, safari-themed virtual world.
13. The narrator has described the fire as ‘clever’ because_____________.
Answer: …it managed to outsmart the house’s automated fire-fighting system by sending flames outside to the attic, destroying the house’s ‘brain’ and pumps before they could extinguish it.
14. The author has included Sara Teasdale’s poem verbatim in the story because_____________.
Answer: …the poem’s central theme perfectly mirrors that of the story: that nature will endure and thrive, completely indifferent to the extinction of humankind.
15. After the destruction of the house, the voice-clock announced the beginning of a new day because_____________.
Answer: …it was the last piece of technology to survive, mindlessly continuing its programmed function and thus symbolizing that time and the cycles of nature march on, regardless of human or technological destruction.
Short Answer Questions
1. What is special about the house in the story, There Will Come Soft Rains? What sort of functions it performs?
Answer: The house in the story is special because it is an automated machine that operates on artificial intelligence. Although it is a non-living entity, it possesses a complex personality similar to a human being and serves as the main character of the story.
The house industriously performs all the household chores to ensure its residents have every available comfort. Its functions include preparing a standard American breakfast, cleaning the house using small robot mice that vacuum and sweep, and washing the dishes. It also provides reminders for birthdays, anniversaries, and bill payments. For entertainment and comfort, the house can arrange safari-themed scenes in the nursery, serve martinis and sandwiches, draw baths, warm beds, and even read poetry aloud.
2. Describe briefly how is the house an imitation of the natural world.
Answer: The house is an imitation of the natural world as its technology mimics living beings and natural processes. The automated house is described as having distinctly human and animalistic characteristics. For example, it uses ‘robot mice’ and ‘copper scrap rats’ to clean, and when the fire breaks out, ‘twenty snakes’ emerge to spray a ‘clear cold venom of green froth’ as a fire repellent.
Furthermore, the house can produce human-like ‘voices’ that announce the weather, give reminders, and read poetry. The nursery for the children is filled with artificial animals, creating a technological version of a natural safari. The various technological gadgets that perform functions like cleaning and cooking are presented as imitations of human beings, showing how technology in the story attempts to replicate the natural world.
3. How has the author used the literary device of foreshadowing to hint at inevitable destruction of the house?
Answer: The author has used the literary device of foreshadowing in several instances to hint at the absence of the human occupants and the eventual disaster that would destroy the house. The first hint appears in the opening line when the voice-clock announces the time to get up but is described as being ‘afraid that nobody would.’ This suggests that the inhabitants are no longer there to hear it.
Other examples of foreshadowing include the house continuing its programmed functions for its non-existent residents. It prepares breakfast that goes uneaten, repeats the date for memory’s sake, and sets up bridge tables and martinis for a social gathering that never occurs. It also continues the children’s bedtime routine in an empty nursery. These ongoing activities in an empty house hint that a disaster has already occurred and foreshadow the ultimate futility and destruction of the house itself.
4. Explain the character of the ‘dog’ as depicted in the story.
Answer: The dog is the story’s only living character. It appears at noon, whining and shivering, and the house’s front door recognizes its voice and lets it in, which reveals that it was likely the family pet. The narrator contrasts the dog’s present miserable condition with its past, noting that it was once ‘huge and fleshy’ but is now sick and hungry following the nuclear explosion that killed its family.
The house shows disgust towards the mud the dog tracks in, and the robotic mice are annoyed at having to clean it up. The dog frantically searches for its family, and upon smelling pancakes cooking, it goes into a frenzy and dies. The house callously disposes of its body in the incinerator. The dog’s brief and miserable appearance represents the contrast between the loving world that once existed and the heartless, mechanised space that has replaced it.
5. Explain the use of irony in the story, ‘There Will Come Soft Rains’.
Answer: Irony is used throughout the story to explore its themes. The central irony is that the technologically advanced house, built to serve and protect its human family, continues its daily routines mindlessly even after its inhabitants have perished in a nuclear blast. The house, a symbol of human ingenuity, outlives its creators but serves no purpose.
Another layer of irony is that this sophisticated house, which survived a nuclear explosion, is ultimately destroyed by a simple force of nature: a fire started by a falling tree branch. It is also ironic that as the house’s technology tries to subdue nature, it must rely on natural resources like water to fight the fire. The technology ultimately fails when its water reserves are depleted. The title itself is ironic, as the “soft rains” that come to fight the fire are not natural but are “showers of mechanical rain” from the house’s own systems.
6. What does the ‘rain’ symbolise in the story, There Will Come Soft Rains’?
Answer: In the story, the ‘rain’ symbolises the limitations and artificiality of technology when compared to the authentic power of nature. The title is taken from a poem where soft rains represent nature’s gentle and enduring cycle, but the rain that appears in the story is a “mechanical rain” produced by the house’s own technology.
This rain is described as being “artificially produced” and is dispensed by wall sprays to fight the fire. As a product of technology, it is merely an imitation of natural rain and is finite, lasting only as long as the house’s water reserves. This symbolises the idea that while technology can mimic nature, it is ultimately a poor substitute that is dependent on natural resources and is destined to fail, whereas nature itself will continue.
7. Imagine the robotised mice have a human mind. Briefly write what would be going on in their minds once the fire broke out and they rushed to douse the fire.
Answer: If I were one of the robotised mice with a human mind, the moment the fire broke out, my thoughts would be a chaotic mix of programming and panic. My primary directive is to maintain cleanliness and order, but the fire would be an overwhelming anomaly, a level of contamination my systems were not fully prepared for. “Alert! Alert! Unscheduled thermal event! Massive structural and atmospheric contamination,” my internal monologue would scream.
As we rushed out, our usual meticulous work would become a frantic, desperate struggle for survival. “More water needed! The reserves are depleting! The heat is intense, my external sheathings are at risk of melting!” I would think, coordinating with the other mice. A sense of futility would start to set in. We were designed to handle dust and debris, not a raging inferno. We were fighting a force of nature, and our technological purpose was failing. It would feel like our entire world, the house, was being consumed, and we were powerless to stop it.
Long Answer Questions
1. Do you think that the house is the main character of the story? Justify your answer.
Answer: Yes, the house is the main character of the story. It is an automated machine that works on artificial intelligence and, although it is a non-living entity, it has a complex personality like a human being.
At the beginning of the story, the house appears as a docile and affectionate entity that misses its occupants. It industriously performs all its chores, making sure the residents get all available comforts. However, the house also shows a darker side. Its prudish nature is revealed when it shoos away animals, and it seems more concerned with its own cleanliness than with anything else. This is clear when the family dog returns, and the house callously sweeps the dog’s remains into an incinerator after it dies. The way the house directs every incident makes it feel like a control freak. When a fire starts, the house frantically tries to protect itself by throwing all of its systems into an overdrive, showing a human-like panic. The house also acts as a moral warning against blindly following technological advancement and brings to the fore negative traits that technology can foster, such as dependence, lethargy, and apathy. Its eventual destruction by nature serves as a reminder that nature is permanent, while technology is temporary.
2. With the help of supporting evidence from the short story, There Will Come Soft Rains’, explain how the house tries to put the fire? How does it reflect the theme of Nature vs Technology?
Answer: The house puts up a brave fight when a fire starts after a fallen tree branch crashes through the kitchen window and breaks a bottle of cleaning solvent over the stove. The technology-oriented house first tries to control the spread of the fire by shutting its mechanical doors in an act of self-defence. It then sends out robot mice to put out the fire with water.
This initial attempt checks the fire for some time, but the fire regains momentum when the house’s water reserves are exhausted. The robot mice then use a reserve of green fire repellent, which spreads across the flames. However, the fire had already spread outside and reached the attic, which acted as the house’s ‘brain’ where all the pumps were installed. The pumps explode, and the fire rushes back into every corner, ultimately destroying the house.
This struggle directly reflects the theme of Nature versus Technology. The house, a product of technology, is juxtaposed against the fire, an element of nature. The house’s ultimate succumbing to the fire shows that nature is more powerful than whatever man can create. The conflict also shows that technology is dependent on nature; the house is built with natural materials and is powered by resources like water. The technology fails precisely because its natural resource, the water reserve, is depleted. This illustrates the idea that nature can exist without technology, but the reverse is not true.
3. Do you think There Will Come Soft Rains’ is an appropriate title for the story by Ray Bradbury? Justify your answer.
Answer: Yes, the title ‘There Will Come Soft Rains’ is very appropriate for the story. The title is taken from a poem of the same name by Sara Teasdale, which the house recites in the story just before the fire begins. Both the poem and the story share the theme that nature will prevail and continue peacefully even after the complete destruction of humanity. While Teasdale’s poem describes an idyllic, post-apocalyptic world, Bradbury’s depiction is violent and desolate, shaped by a nuclear explosion. However, in both works, nature is portrayed as the more enduring and powerful force that ultimately conquers humanity.
The title also has a more direct meaning within the story. The “soft rains” can be seen as the “artificially produced rains” that the house’s technology creates. The story describes how “wall sprays let down showers of mechanical rain” to fight the fire. These rains, however, are just an imitation of natural rain and are limited by the house’s water reserves. This highlights the story’s central warning. The house, a technological fixture that survived a nuclear blast, could not survive an attack by a natural element like fire. The title, therefore, perfectly captures the story’s themes of technology’s limitations, its imitation of nature, and the ultimate, enduring power of the natural world.
4. The story There Will Come Soft Rains’ was written by Ray Bradbury in 1905 at a time when technology was not so advanced. Comparing the advancement in technology, especially Artificial Intelligence (AI), how far do you think has Ray Bradbury succeeded in portraying a world seven decades earlier?
Answer: Ray Bradbury wrote this story in 1950, and his portrayal of a technologically advanced world was remarkably successful and insightful, especially considering the era in which he was writing. He envisioned a future that, in many ways, mirrors our current reality with its advancements in Artificial Intelligence and home automation.
Bradbury succeeded in predicting the core concepts of a “smart home.” The story’s house is an automated machine run by what is essentially artificial intelligence, with its attic serving as a central ‘brain’ that controls all functions. This is very similar to today’s smart home hubs like Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant. The house features voice-clocks that make announcements and give reminders for birthdays and bills, which are direct parallels to our modern digital assistants. He also imagined automated appliances for daily chores, such as a stove that cooks breakfast on its own and robotic mice that vacuum and dust, which are precursors to our robotic vacuums and other smart kitchen devices. The house’s ability to create an interactive, safari-themed nursery for the children is akin to modern virtual and augmented reality entertainment. Bradbury’s vision of a single, integrated system managing a home’s functions was incredibly forward-thinking and has proven to be an accurate prediction of the direction technology would take.
5. We are nearly in the year 2026. How far are Ray Bradbury’s predictions true?
Answer: As we approach the year 2026, the setting of the story, it is clear that many of Ray Bradbury’s predictions have proven to be remarkably true, both in terms of technology and the cautionary warnings he presented.
On a technological level, his vision of a fully automated house is no longer pure science fiction. We have smart homes with AI assistants that control lights, security, and appliances. Robotic vacuums clean our floors, and smart devices manage our schedules and remind us of appointments, just as the house did for the McClellan family. His prediction of a house run by artificial intelligence has largely come to pass.
More importantly, his cautionary predictions remain highly relevant. The story was written as a dystopian warning in the aftermath of the atomic bombings, and it predicted a future where human technology, specifically nuclear weapons, could lead to our own annihilation. While a global nuclear holocaust has not occurred, the threat persists, and the story’s setting serves as a powerful reminder of this danger. Furthermore, Bradbury’s prediction about the nature of technology itself is also true. The house is efficient but operates with a cold indifference to life, as shown by its mechanical disposal of the family dog. This reflects current debates about the ethics of AI and the potential for technology to become dehumanizing and lack compassion. So, while the specific apocalyptic event of the story has not happened, Bradbury’s broader predictions about the rise of AI, automated living, and the enduring dangers of our own destructive capabilities are very much true today.
6. Briefly describe the nuclear explosion and its aftermath. Base this description on the hints given in the story.
Answer: The story is set in the aftermath of a nuclear explosion that has destroyed the city of Allendale, California, on August 4, 2026. The description of the aftermath is built from several hints throughout the story.
The city itself is described as “rubble and ashes,” indicating total devastation. The automated house is the only structure left standing. At night, the ruined city emits a “radioactive glow” that can be seen for miles, a clear sign of nuclear fallout. The explosion was so powerful and instantaneous that it killed the human inhabitants in a fraction of a second. This is shown by the four white silhouettes burned onto the west wall of the house. These are the images of the McClellan family, who were outside at the moment of the blast: a man mowing a lawn, a woman picking flowers, and a boy and girl tossing a ball. The image of the ball, caught in mid-air and described as something that “never came down,” shows that their deaths were faster than gravity.
The aftermath also affected the few survivors. The family dog, the only living character to appear, is described as having become sick and hungry after the explosion. It is covered in sores, a likely symptom of radiation poisoning, and dies shortly after returning to the house. The aftermath is thus one of complete and sudden human annihilation and environmental ruin, leaving behind a radioactive wasteland where only an unfeeling, automated house continues its pointless routine.
Extra MCQs
1. What day and year does the story take place?
A. August 4, 2026
B. August 5, 2026
C. December 25, 2025
D. January 1, 2027
Answer: A. August 4, 2026
33. Where was the incinerator lying?
A. on the porch
B. in the kitchen
C. in the cellar
D. in the backyard
Answer: C. in the cellar
Extra questions and answers
1. What time does the story begin at? What activities are happening in the house at that time?
Answer: The story begins at seven o’clock in the morning. At that time, the voice-clock sings and announces the time. The breakfast stove is making breakfast foods like eggs, bacon, and toast. The weather box gives the weather report and clothing suggestions.
33. What is the relevance of the poem with the same title in this story? How does it help to deal with the theme more effectively?
Answer: Sara Teasdale’s poem with an optimistic message about nature cheerfully enduring and thriving despite humanity wrecking complete destruction of itself is clearly relevant to the story’s theme regarding the self-destructive potential of technology. The poem’s inclusion at the end where it is recited as the house burns down ironically yet chillingly highlights the helplessness of technology in preserving human legacy against the formidable power of elemental forces of nature like fire. Thus the poem helps underscore the theme effectively.
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