Character Analysis: Something Wicked This Way Comes

Carnivals come around when the weather begins to warm up, but in Something Wicked This Way Comes, by Ray Bradbury, the carnival comes earlier than usual. With the carnivals appearance in fall, characters Jim Nightshade and Will Halloway are left curious with the intentions of the carnival. A story written by Bradbury leaves readers emotionally connected with the boys who risk their lives due to curiosity and temptation. Bradbury focuses on ordinary characters like Jim Nightshade and Will Halloway and what death is to the characters throughout the story. In Something Wicked This Way Comes, Ray Bradbury, explores temptations of characters who are unsatisfied with their lives. Through the setting and characters, Bradbury exemplifies his own views

While Will and his father are having a conversation Will asks Charles,"Is death important? No. Everything that happens before death is what counts (Bradbury 341)." Throughout the story, Will is scared about death and what Mr.Dark is able to do. He continuously resorted to asking Charles about his own views towards death. By looking at what Charles says, it is easy to infer that his views are the same views of Bradbury himself. Bradbury uses characters like Charles Halloway in his stories to express his opinions about death. In Fahrenheit 451, another book by Bradbury, he writes,“Stuff your eyes with wonder, he said, live as if you'd drop dead in ten seconds. See the world. It's more fantastic than any dream made or paid for in factories. (Bradbury 150).” Bradbury continuously sends the message of wanting to live life to its fullest throughout his many books. From reading Something Wicked This Way Comes, the reader can tell that Bradbury is not fearful of death and rather embraces it. Sure at first the character of Charles wishes to be young again, but he soon comes to the realization that he is in the right place. This shows of Bradbury’s attitude of growing old, and later embracing it and death. Furthermore, death to Bradbury is simply a lot of nothing. “Death is a stopped watch, a loss, an end, a darkness. Nothing (Bradbury 243)." This quote further proves Bradbury’s thinking of death as not knowing when it is going to happen. The quote can be tied to the previous quote from Fahrenheit 451 because Bradbury explains that death is sudden and there is everything to lose if nothing has been done. Another quote from Fahrenheit 451 expresses Bradbury’s views on leaving a mark of existence to be remembered