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Idealism And Truth In Ray Bradbury's Something Wicked This Way Comes

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The novel “Something Wicked This Way Comes” is a story based on good versus evil. The story is a coming-of-age tale, in which three characters encounter an inner conflict between their idealism and truth; one of the characters is Jim. Ray Bradbury presents the reader with two sides of James Nightshade’s(Jim’s) character, and introduces the conflict of idealism and truth within him. Through Jim’s journey from a character who had an idealistic view of seeking adventure to escape his painful past through his realization that he has an inevitable past, Bradbury relates the importance of this conflict to Mr. Dark, who acts as a trigger for Jim’s desire to grow older by riding the carousel, which in turn, adds to Jim’s internal conflict.

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Bradbury points out that Jim does not want to have any children, only because people die one day and he does not want to be hurt. Bradbury also elucidates that he cannot look beyond the world, and only sees the present. A father and son’s relationship is really sacred, when this relationship is broken, we often lose a part of ourselves. Jim feels that he has lost a part of him, and his heart has been torn in half. To get older, he wants to ride the carousel forward. This is shown when Will asks Jim, “You want it to go forward, don't you, Jim?” (Pg.96) Once again, Jim does not know the truth behind the carousel either, he does not know of the consequences linked to it. Bradbury explains that the carousel is nothing but a cheap trick. Will tries to stop Jim, but he still desires it. Along with that, getting older requires time, you cannot just wish to get older and expect to reach maturity right away. Jim pursues his desires in an unrealistic manner because his painful past restricts from looking at the real word, in which he cannot escape his unpleasant past. He must learn to depend on those who might, in fact, eventually hurt him unintentionally, such as his friendship with

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