An Analysis of a Ray Bradbury’s Story or Three of His Stories
- For your fourth essay you will choose ONE of the Ray Bradbury’s stories we studied in class, namely, “The
Last Night of the World,” “A Sound of Thunder,” or “There Will Come Soft Rains” and write an analysis of the
story. You can analyze any of the literary elements we have studied (characters, conflicts, settings, themes,
etc.).
However, you can choose to analyze horror in the three stories, which I strongly recommend. If you decide to
go that way, I suggest the following:
· One way to start is by identifying horror. Find a suitable definition and structure your introduction around it.
Make sure your thesis refers to Bradbury’s use of horror in the three stories. You can find a good horror
definition here: https://literaryterms.net/horror/
· Next, identify elements of horror in each of the three stories and the characters’ reaction to them. For
example: the horror in “The Last Night of the World” is caused by the imminent end of the world. Then, there is
the way in which the two main characters accept that reality. - Make sure you cite at least one serious source that informs your analysis. Your essay should include at least
one in-text citation that corresponds to the source you cited. Consult Analysis p. 1122 in your textbook, Fifth
Edition, or p. 1180 in the Sixth Edition. Read the sample papers provided.