A Sound of Thunder by Ray Bradbury

A Sound of Thunder Theme

The short story “A Sound of Thunder” by Ray Bradbury is about a hunter, Eckels who pays a company to take him back in time to kill a dinosaur. One theme the story develops is tiny actions leads up to huge consequences. The author develops this theme through foreshadowing. Three examples is Travis explains that changes that seem minor now turn major in the future. The second example is the story puts the election under the spotlight thus showing something is going to happen to it and the third example is how the company takes many precautions to make sure nothing is changed. By using foreshadowing the author is able to tell the theme to the reader early in the story and is able to reinforce it.

Travis explains how minor changes turn into major effects in the future. “The step your foot, on one mouse, could start a series of events, the effects of which could shake our earth and the future down through Time”. It shows the potential tiny changes can have. “Step on a mouse and you leave your mark, like a Grand Canyon, across all of Time. Queen Elizabeth might never be born, there might never be a United States”. The quote shows the scale of effects that could happen. By using foreshadowing it shows us the scale of the effects before they happen

The author puts the election under the spotlight thus highlighting the chance that something will affect the election. “ Thank God Keith won. He'll make a fine President of the United States." "Yes," said the man behind the desk. "We're lucky. If Deutscher had gotten in, we'd have the worst kind of government”. The author mention the election about a story about shooting dinosaurs, thus implying something will affect the election. “ Killing one butterfly couldn't be that important! Could it? His face was cold. He asked