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The Golden Kite, The Silver Wind
A famous short story
About the author
Ray Bradbury
2,577 books25.8k followersRay Douglas Bradbury was an American author and screenwriter. One of the most celebrated 20th-century American writers, he worked in a variety of genres, including fantasy, science fiction, horror, mystery, and realistic fiction.
Bradbury is best known for his novel Fahrenheit 451 (1953) and his short-story collections The Martian Chronicles (1950), The Illustrated Man (1951), and The October Country (1955). Other notable works include the coming of age novel Dandelion Wine (1957), the dark fantasy Something Wicked This Way Comes (1962) and the fictionalized memoir Green Shadows, White Whale (1992). He also wrote and consulted on screenplays and television scripts, including Moby Dick and It Came from Outer Space. Many of his works were adapted into television and film productions as well as comic books. Bradbury also wrote poetry which has been published in several collections, such as They Have Not Seen the Stars (2001).
The New York Times called Bradbury "An author whose fanciful imagination, poetic prose, and mature understanding of human character have won him an international reputation" and "the writer most responsible for bringing modern science fiction into the literary mainstream".
Bradbury is best known for his novel Fahrenheit 451 (1953) and his short-story collections The Martian Chronicles (1950), The Illustrated Man (1951), and The October Country (1955). Other notable works include the coming of age novel Dandelion Wine (1957), the dark fantasy Something Wicked This Way Comes (1962) and the fictionalized memoir Green Shadows, White Whale (1992). He also wrote and consulted on screenplays and television scripts, including Moby Dick and It Came from Outer Space. Many of his works were adapted into television and film productions as well as comic books. Bradbury also wrote poetry which has been published in several collections, such as They Have Not Seen the Stars (2001).
The New York Times called Bradbury "An author whose fanciful imagination, poetic prose, and mature understanding of human character have won him an international reputation" and "the writer most responsible for bringing modern science fiction into the literary mainstream".
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
February 4, 2022
A very, very short story that is a parable for the cold war. Of course, the race continues and the results are much the same as when the story was written.
December 26, 2023
I fell in love with Ray Bradbury when I was in middle school. His stories and novels made you think long after you finished reading them. When I became a teacher, I added many of his stories or novels to my curriculum. One of the textbooks had “The Golden Kite, the Silver Wind,” which I had never read before. I loved the fable/parable. It was a great way to introduce my students to a different type of fable than Aesop’s fables, which are great but I needed to elevate for my audience. This story is about rival cities that reshape their city walls to symbolize different things that will metaphorically hurt the other city. It’s a story about how humans will hurt themselves in trying to beat someone else. Ultimately, it’s about learning that we all succeed if we cooperate and work together.
October 22, 2025
Изключително силен и поучителен разказ за безсмислената омраза между два града...
„— Но какво е хвърчилото на земята? — попита тя. — Нищо. Какво е нужно, за да бъде то прекрасно и наистина възвишено?
— Вятър, разбира се — отвърнаха двамата.
— А от какво се нуждаят небето и вятърът, за да бъдат те прекрасни?
— От хвърчило естествено — от много хвърчила, за да нарушат еднообразието. От летящи разноцветни хвърчила!“
„— Но какво е хвърчилото на земята? — попита тя. — Нищо. Какво е нужно, за да бъде то прекрасно и наистина възвишено?
— Вятър, разбира се — отвърнаха двамата.
— А от какво се нуждаят небето и вятърът, за да бъдат те прекрасни?
— От хвърчило естествено — от много хвърчила, за да нарушат еднообразието. От летящи разноцветни хвърчила!“
June 24, 2014
The story I read is “The Golden Kite, The Silver Wind,” by Ray Bradbury I think this story was pretty good. It didn't really relate to me, but it was still good.
The story is about two towns and how their walls symbolize what they believe in. One town’s walls are built in the shape of an orange, while another town builds its walls in the shape of a pig. The town with the walls shaped as an orange is scared the other town's walls will eat them. Because they are scared the town with walls shaped like an orange rebuilds its walls in the shape of a club to drive away the pig. The town of the pig then changes the shape of its city walls to resemble a fire that can burn the stick. In response to the other town's change in its city walls’ they then shaped their walls into the form of a lake.
This continues for a very long time. Both towns need a chance to have fun and enjoy their lives. Both towns are cursed until, finally, the daughter of the first town’s emperor says that one town should build its walls in the shape of a kite, while the other town’s walls are built in the shape of wind.
The kite needs wind to fly, but the wind needs a kite to make it look like it is helping each other. Once this is done, both towns thrive, and the sickness stops.
I would recommend this book to an adult to read to kids. Both male and females will like this book. I liked it because they had a disagreement with each other and then one girl made a change. It is an amazing book. I would rate this book a 8 out 10.
The story is about two towns and how their walls symbolize what they believe in. One town’s walls are built in the shape of an orange, while another town builds its walls in the shape of a pig. The town with the walls shaped as an orange is scared the other town's walls will eat them. Because they are scared the town with walls shaped like an orange rebuilds its walls in the shape of a club to drive away the pig. The town of the pig then changes the shape of its city walls to resemble a fire that can burn the stick. In response to the other town's change in its city walls’ they then shaped their walls into the form of a lake.
This continues for a very long time. Both towns need a chance to have fun and enjoy their lives. Both towns are cursed until, finally, the daughter of the first town’s emperor says that one town should build its walls in the shape of a kite, while the other town’s walls are built in the shape of wind.
The kite needs wind to fly, but the wind needs a kite to make it look like it is helping each other. Once this is done, both towns thrive, and the sickness stops.
I would recommend this book to an adult to read to kids. Both male and females will like this book. I liked it because they had a disagreement with each other and then one girl made a change. It is an amazing book. I would rate this book a 8 out 10.
July 30, 2015
What I thought of the short story The Golden Kite, The Silver Wind, was it was very interesting because it had a view on how culture can cause conflict.
In the short story, The Golden Kite, The Silver Wind, there are two villages that have walls. One wall has the shape of an orange; the other the shape of a pig. The culture of the country, which appears to be China, uses symbols. Being in the village with the pig shaped wall means visitors live a very comfortable and posh life. Not much is told about the village with the orange shaped wall. The village with the weaker shaped wall will be cursed by demons with poverty, disease and death. The Mandarins ruin each other’s villages by constantly changing the shape of their walls, such as a club to beat off the pig, a fire to burn the club, a lake to douse the fire, a mouth to drink the lake and so on. The spiritual power of the village is affected by the different shapes of walls. It continues until both Mandarins are tired and sick of the constant disease and death. To create an agreement, the daughter of one of the Mandarins comes with a shape of a wall for each of the villages to help both of them- a kite for one and wind for the other.
I recommend this to guys and girls ages seven to adult. I recommend adults read it to younger kids because younger kids, may not understand the vocabulary. The moral of the story is help another and they may help you; almost anyone within this age group could relate to the moral.
In the short story, The Golden Kite, The Silver Wind, there are two villages that have walls. One wall has the shape of an orange; the other the shape of a pig. The culture of the country, which appears to be China, uses symbols. Being in the village with the pig shaped wall means visitors live a very comfortable and posh life. Not much is told about the village with the orange shaped wall. The village with the weaker shaped wall will be cursed by demons with poverty, disease and death. The Mandarins ruin each other’s villages by constantly changing the shape of their walls, such as a club to beat off the pig, a fire to burn the club, a lake to douse the fire, a mouth to drink the lake and so on. The spiritual power of the village is affected by the different shapes of walls. It continues until both Mandarins are tired and sick of the constant disease and death. To create an agreement, the daughter of one of the Mandarins comes with a shape of a wall for each of the villages to help both of them- a kite for one and wind for the other.
I recommend this to guys and girls ages seven to adult. I recommend adults read it to younger kids because younger kids, may not understand the vocabulary. The moral of the story is help another and they may help you; almost anyone within this age group could relate to the moral.
December 21, 2024
The Golden Kite, the Silver Wind_Ray Bradbury
The missing points make a masterpiece complete.
That’s what I fancy while reading this story. The two towns changed their shapes five times in silence. The Cold War began in ancient times, when societies were led by irrational beliefs. The so-called “happy ending" occurs when residents still need to rebuild the towns when ailments, disasters, and poverty lead them to the brink of collapse.
The two Mandarins are awake, but how about the commons? The main workers that contribute to sixth-time altering the towns’ shapes (including the golden kite and the silver wind). They have blindly obeyed their leaders since the very beginning, and even in the end, when the leaders realize how irrational they were, the residents are still sunk in the lake of blind beliefs.
Their uncertain fates—the missing point but the brick to build a perfect building.
In the past, nobles and leaders’ lives were important, but who cared about the commons? No one, literally no one, not even themselves. This makes sense in the story with virtues that are still valuable in modern life, as even though life is easier now, marginalized people are often neglected.
The residents in “The Golden Kite, the Silver Wind” resemble the residents back then and even nowadays.
The missing points make a masterpiece complete.
That’s what I fancy while reading this story. The two towns changed their shapes five times in silence. The Cold War began in ancient times, when societies were led by irrational beliefs. The so-called “happy ending" occurs when residents still need to rebuild the towns when ailments, disasters, and poverty lead them to the brink of collapse.
The two Mandarins are awake, but how about the commons? The main workers that contribute to sixth-time altering the towns’ shapes (including the golden kite and the silver wind). They have blindly obeyed their leaders since the very beginning, and even in the end, when the leaders realize how irrational they were, the residents are still sunk in the lake of blind beliefs.
Their uncertain fates—the missing point but the brick to build a perfect building.
In the past, nobles and leaders’ lives were important, but who cared about the commons? No one, literally no one, not even themselves. This makes sense in the story with virtues that are still valuable in modern life, as even though life is easier now, marginalized people are often neglected.
The residents in “The Golden Kite, the Silver Wind” resemble the residents back then and even nowadays.
March 23, 2021
“The Golden Kite, the Silver Wind” by Ray Bradbury is a parable that tells about two cities that were competing against each other, changing the form of their city’s walls trying to gain an advantage.
The moral of the story is that uniting is a great strength. Ray Bradbury is as always concise and conceptual.
Here is the link to the text of the story:
https://mschapmansclass.files.wordpre...
The moral of the story is that uniting is a great strength. Ray Bradbury is as always concise and conceptual.
Here is the link to the text of the story:
https://mschapmansclass.files.wordpre...
May 11, 2024
I enjoyed this story! It’s a reference to Cold War of course but I had read a synopsis before that likened it to the world’s rock paper scissors. It was simple but not as barren of ideas as some other Bradbury short stories. I do wish the voice behind the silk curtain was explored more, as arguments could be made for manipulation and ill intent from them but there simply lacks information about them
July 31, 2025
A beautiful short anecdote. I can see how impactful this would have been at the time of writing, and even now I think it's a valuable lesson we could all learn from regarding the futility of conflict for no reason when we could all just work together and support each other.
Obviously it is just a short parable so I can't exactly give it a high flying score, if you'll pardon the pun.
Obviously it is just a short parable so I can't exactly give it a high flying score, if you'll pardon the pun.
November 16, 2023
i've hit a slightly lean spot in this anthology. haven't really enjoyed the last few. this is a fairly heavy-handed weapons race warning. meh. it's important to match your weaponry & improve it when your enemy wants to conquer you. communists were really bad people.
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August 15, 2024Qur’an: Chapter 2, Verse 69, 70—
He said: “He says that she is a bright yellow cow. Her color gladdens those who look at her.” They said: “Appeal to your Lord for us to explain to us what she is like. Cows seem all alike to us and we should be guided properly, If God so wishes.”
He said: “He says that she is a bright yellow cow. Her color gladdens those who look at her.” They said: “Appeal to your Lord for us to explain to us what she is like. Cows seem all alike to us and we should be guided properly, If God so wishes.”
July 7, 2024
Hell no.
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April 14, 2025I wanna be a hater, but really I'm just dumb and had to Google what this was about. that's on me.
December 11, 2025
If you're a high school English teacher, this is a very easy way to teach students about symbolism and allegory. If you're not a high school English teacher, its themes are a bit ham-fisted.
June 21, 2023
Excellent book
May 9, 2017
Beautiful, meaningful, and truly symbolic. Ray Bradbury shows that we have to live in harmony, we need to depend on each other. I had to read this short story for an English assignment, and I'm happy I did, it shows how truly we rely on other people.
February 10, 2015
Golden Kite, The SIlver WInd by Ray Bradbury has to be my second favorite book written by him that I have read. Just because of the detail and how he used the daughter to represent the culture of the woman in that time period.
April 1, 2011
I liked the lesson in this story.
May 28, 2011
This is another one of Ray's phenomal work. Once again he uses his plots to symbolize today's society.
December 6, 2012
I'm not sure I really liked the story itself, but it teaches a good lesson.
June 13, 2013
It's a beloved short story to me !
July 17, 2016
What a beautiful story about compromise and working together.
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews