The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury
Science Fiction
Humans are the cause of destruction, as science constantly
tells us. If all of humanity was wiped out, eventually the ecosystem would become
balanced, pollution wouldn’t be a problem, and animals’ habitats would stop being
destroyed. If humans hadn’t tried to expand, and then destroyed what was there before
them in an attempt to become more powerful, the world wouldn’t be in such an
awful state, as it is today. In The Martian Chronicles, Bradbury
illustrates this in a collection of short stories giving an account of man’s colonization
on Mars. He points out the flaws in humanity
and how they cause the destruction of humans and the world they live in.
One of my favorites is The Off Season. In The
Off Season, Sam Parkhill is overjoyed with the creation of his hot dog stand,
he is positive that he will earn thousands of dollars, and all of Mars, and
soon Earth, will be flocking to eat there. He is jubilant, euphoric, and giddy,
almost to the point where the reader begins to hate Sam for his stupidity. For
example he says, “Here’s the main highways, over there is the dead city and the
mineral deposits. Those trucks from Earth Settlement 101 will have to pass here
twenty-four hours a day! Do I know my locations, or don’t I?” That hatred grows
when a Martian approaches Parkhill, and Sam promptly shoots him, convinced that
he was going to attack, when the Martian really meant to tell him an important
warning. More Martians come, and Sam’s hand doesn’t leave his gun. Bradbury
uses Sam Parkhill as a symbol of the negative aspects of human beings, their
self-centeredness, aggressiveness, and isolation.
