The_Martian_Chronicles

The one of the social ills that Ray Bradbury described in The Martian Chronicles is the issue of colonization: the invasion of Mars by Earth Men. People were leaving the Earth on the edge of distruction and This story is similar to what America experienced during time when it was discovered by Columbus. their home planet to start over in Mars. Settling on Mars is the only escape left for the population on Earth, which has become a decaying planet facing major environmental, social and political problems. As people have destroyed their former basis for living, they try to find a new one on the foreign planet Mars. History repeats itself during the colonization of Mars, as native populations are decimated and strangeness is familiarized by cultivating the foreign land in order to suit the colonizers’ desires. In his novel, Bradbury questions and criticizes the concept of colonization, thereby drawing on Mars as a symbol of America after its discovery by Columbus, and its inescapable ‘cultivation’ through the Pilgrims. However cruel the history of colonization might be, it is also regarded inevitable for the rest of the world as increasing populations long for more territories and resources. The criticism in the novel primarily centers on how this expansion takes place, namely in a destructive and exploitative way. Bradbury reveals the tensions between inhabitants of Earth and those of Mars, thus questioning the Earthmen’s reckless behavior towards native Martians which serve as a symbol for Native Americans. Moreover, the author criticizes mankind’s irresponsible exploitation of the resources they have been given on Earth, and their ability to destroy nature without even realizing or considering the terrible outcomerom Earth and Mars, but also the future of America.  Bradbury’s mentioning of the Pilgrims clearly compares the colonizers of Mars to those of America; everyone had their reasons for emigration, no matter if it presented the escape from the old world or the search of a new one. In addition to this reference to the Pilgrims, an association with Native Americans is provoked when Spender asks Cherokee how he would feel if he were a Martian and people came to his land to tear it up. Cheroke’s following answer puts the reader on the side of the Natives and compares the colonizers’ reckless treatment of Martians to their cruel behavior towards Native Americans. Themartians are described as if they are American Indians at the time of the American Revolution.  For example, in the beginning of the story, Bradburydepicts Martians "they had the fair, brownish skin of the true Martian, the yellowcoin eyes, the soft musical voices."   Through Bradbury's The Martian Chronicles, Bradbury warns us of ourfuture.  In the episode of "June 2000: And the Moon ve still as bright," CaptainWilder said, "one day Earth will be as Mars is today...It's an object lesson incivilizations.  We'll learn from Mars" (pp. 55).  Through his story, we, as readers, realize the concerns for the future while reflecting on the past.