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In the novel Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury seasons is a motif that symbolizes many different aspects of the book. In Something Wicked This Way Comes Bradbury uses the motif seasons to explain how good vs. evil is a battle everyone must encounter by characterizing different phases of life and personalities. Each season has different meanings like summer, it deals with adulthood and fulfillment, winter symbolizes old age and resentment, autumn represents the end of youth and tiredness and spring symbolizes childhood and youth.
For the season summer Bradbury symbolizes a great amount about this season.
”does that make us … summer people...Charles Halloway shook his head Oh you're nearer summer than me. If I was ever a rare summer person, that’s long ago (pg. 193).” He talks about the summer people, who aren’t vulnerable to the carnival because they’re connected and they aren't alone. Summer represents happiness, adulthood and the carnival preys on people who desire youth and people who are unhappy with themselves.
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”Oh gosh, said Will. It’s hopeless! No. The very fact we’re here worrying about the difference between summer and autumn, makes me sure there’s a way out (pg.195). “ Here Bradbury is symbolizing that realizing you're a summer person which is a happy connected person and not a autumn person a miserable person that wants youth, then they can defeat the carnival with the good they have bestowed in them. Summer is symbolizing the good and autumn is symbolizing the bad showing the good vs evil battle.
“Jim swung round the waiting night in a great dark summer circle, Will racing after (pg. 269).” Summer is describing the carousel because summer means youth and fulfillment and the carousel can give you a sense of your every desire but it doesn't really end up that way and the carousel can make you younger or older. It’s also shows how Will keeps Jim from being sucked in by the carnival because Jim is in between a summer and autumn person meaning he sometimes desires to be older but he also has happiness with his friend Will. Summer in the novel represents the good and self-acceptance to keep you connected and not able to be seduced by the carnival
In the novel winter is mentioned a lot showing old age and resentment. “You could never strike bottom there, it was like winter standing tall, waiting to kill with a glance (pg. 62).” It was like death and resentment was awaiting Ms. Foley. When Ms. Foley went into the mirror maze all she was going to see was a reflection of her old self and she was going to desire youth more. “Stay away from the maze where winter slept (pg. 122).” The mirror maze represents death and its shows you an image of yourself you don’t want to see and it toils with your self-perception so it can reel you in into the carnival. So since winter symbolizes death it is connected to the mirror maze which represents the same thing and also the evil of the carnival. “And winter lived in the witch (pg.250).” When Will and Charles Halloway showed the witch their teeth, meaning they smiled and saw how they were defeating her because good trumps evil. Winter is representing death and resentment which the witch basically is; Bradbury uses winter to symbolize a lot of different characters that are older and lonely and looking for youth so they could be happy.
Bradbury uses autumn to symbolize the end of youth and spring for youth in the novel. “Beware the autumn people (pg.192).” The autumn people symbolize the desire for youth and loneliness and they try to allure unconnected lonely people to the carnival. They show the bad part of becoming old and they let their desires consume them. “But there are times when we’re all autumn people (pg.193).” Everyone has a little bad in them as long as you don't let it consume you. As long as you have more good than bad you're okay. “Jim out in the starlight leaping way up and coming flat down like a spring tomcat (pg.94).” This is showing that Jim represents youth. Even though Jim wants to be older he is still a model for youth. “For it seemed woven of boar-bramble, clock-spring hair, bristle, and a sort of ever-trembling, ever glistening dark hemp (pg.73).” Explaining how Mr. Dark clothes are dark but still representing youth. Like Mr. Dark is a bad guy but he just desires youth and doesn't want to be lonely.
For this motif which is seasons I explained how Bradbury develops each season winter, summer, spring, and autumn. He used the seasons as symbols to represent different personalities good and evil. Bradbury likes to use seasons to show different stages in life and what they represent “depending on the season and the need” (pg.197).Seasons were very important in the novel they showed how the characters were and their desires. In Something Wicked This Way Comes seasons plays a big role in knowing the overall theme in the novel that good vs evil is something everyone has to go through.
Something Wicked This Way Comes: Four Seasons as a Symbol. (2024, Feb 02). Retrieved from https://studymoose.com/something-wicked-this-way-comes-four-seasons-as-a-symbol-essay
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