The Martian Chronicles Art and Culture Quotes

How we cite our quotes: ("Story Name," Paragraph)

Quote #7

They began by controlling books of cartoons and then detective books and, of course, films, one way or another, one group or another, political bias, religious prejudice, union pressures… ("Usher II," 30)

Stendahl argues here that censorship is always bad. Even the tiniest ban, with the best of intentions, can lead to a slippery slope when all of a sudden you're not just banning violent video games, you're requiring ID to buy Lego Indiana Jones.

Quote #8

"No books, no houses, nothing to be produced which in any way suggests ghosts, vampires, fairies, or any creature of the imagination." ("Usher II," 55)

Basically, the censors would just like you to stop using your imagination. Quick brain snack: this sounds a lot like Socialist Realism, the dominant form of art in the USSR which, check it out, was Enemy Numero Uno of the U.S. when Bradbury was writing.

Quote #9

Nine-five. A voice spoke from the study ceiling: "Mrs. McClellan, which poem would you like this evening?" ("There Will Come Soft Rains," 40-1)

Oh, those silly Americans: they like their art in small doses at specific times. Notice that the automated house has no room for spontaneity: everything is a routine—and it's kind of sucking the life out of the poetry.