literary analysis.pdf - Holmes 1 Elijah Holmes...

Holmes 1
Elijah Holmes
5/13/18
“Literary Analysis: A Sound of Thunder”
In Ray Bradbury’s, “A Sound of Thunder,” several recurring themes are addressed such
as the dangers of changing what time had already presented and ripple effects of the what was
changed. The author offers this interpretation through the use of certain literary devices such as
imagery and personification between the living and nonliving which really drawls into the
narrative. Overall, Bradbury’s short story addresses both the cause and the effect of the
protagonist dimenna as well as exploring the relationships between the past, present, and future.
Bradbury’s “A Sound of Thunder,” is centered around a man named Eckels whom along
with two other men named Billings and Kramer paid a company to travel back in the past to hunt
the wildlife of that time. Although the company doesn’t guarantee their safety and are given
strict instructions to follow, the men still agree to travel back. However, before the men leave
they engage in a small political conversation where it eventually reveals background of what is
going on in current events for the main character. In this, the men expressed enthusiasm in the
President's Keith’s winning of the elections instead of a Deutscher whom is considered to be a
potential sadistic dictator. Shortly after the conversation, the men are again instructed to not
leave the designated path nor shooting anything besides a tyrannosaurus rex. The reason behind
this is that while killing a Tyrannosaurus rex would not implicate any long term effects in the
future, killing something as small as a mouse would lead to significant harmful effects. The
scientist explain why as killing a simple mouse in the deep past would eliminate its future
generations which are essential to its ecosystem as it provides food and protection for other

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wildlife. As the men travel back to the time of the prehistoric ages, Eckels becomes more
careless about things and accidently steps off the path. Although the men only killed the
tyrannosaurus rex, they still were livid at Eckels due to his recklessness and were concerned
about being shut down by the government. Going back into the present, several things are