August 2026: There Will Come Soft Rains

This short story brought about tall questions, questions that we cannot truly answer, only think about. When will we have gone too far? When does technology outstrip humanity? This fictional piece, and others, even like the movie Wall-E, are good because they force us to think about the far future of our civilization, not just the near future of our convenience and desires. What I found most interesting about this literature was the constant near-human presence, the personification of the objects, the almost motherly qualities of the house. When the dog died, it was devastating because I immediately became attached to anything left living, anything we could identify as part of our family, our world. Until we can establish a global mandate of shared responsibility, this path does seem inevitable, a robotic world that no longer needs humans, like iRobot, (although impending doom is always much nearer in fiction ie. 1984). It's possible that some expressive art piece could call this to attention on a national level, or some eco-friendly well-designed ad campaign, or even an artist who transfers over to politics. But monumental change cannot occur until those with the power to change will agree collectively to give up their comfort for the better of others that they've never met, and that is going to be a challenge.