Jealousy In All Summer In A Day By Ray Bradbury

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What would it be like to live on a planet of almost eternal rainfall? In the short story “All Summer in a Day” by Ray Bradbury, many humans have moved to Venus. On the planet, it always rains, for seven years nonstop. The main character, Margot, was born an Earthling and can still remember the sun on Earth, unlike the Venerian children. The Venerian children deny she remembers it and harass her for her memories of the sun, because she is different.One big thematic idea in the story is what jealousy can cause, and how what it causes can create other things. It causes Margot to isolate herself, and she feels depressed as well, which in turn means she is the recipient of harassment from the other Venerians. The author shows this through long and …show more content…

For this reason, the others exploit her frailty and attempt to convince her she cannot adopt their customs, causing them to metaphorically excommunicate her except when they want to harass her. Bradbury writes, “‘What’re you looking at?’ said William. Margot said nothing. ‘Speak when you’re spoken to.’ He gave her a shove. But she did not move; rather she let herself be moved only by him and nothing else.” Bradbury also writes, ‘Oh, but,’ Margot whispered, her eyes helpless. ‘But this is the day, the scientists predict, they say, they know, the sun…’ ‘All a joke!’ said the boy, and seized her roughly. ‘Hey, everyone, let’s put her in a closet before the teacher comes!’" (Bradbury 1954) The first quote shows how William exploits Margot’s depression by forcefully moving her to show she can’t resist, almost conducting an experiment to observe whether she will react. The second quotation shows how she wishes to see the sun on the one day the eternal precipitation lets up and is locked away by the kids after they try to convince her the rain will not cease on that …show more content…

Bradbury writes, “But Margot remembered. ‘It’s like a penny,’ she said once, eyes closed. ‘No it’s not!’ the children cried. ‘It’s like a fire,’ she said, ‘in the stove.’ ‘You’re lying, you don’t remember!’ cried the children.” Bradbury also writes, “They surged about her, caught her up and bore her, protesting, and then pleading, and then crying, back into a tunnel, a room, a closet, where they slammed and locked the door.” This quotation shows how the kids seem to consider her unworthy of consideration, because she has experienced things they want and they are jealous. They think that because she remembers the sun and they don’t, she doesn’t deserve to be accepted. The kids continuously deny the fact that she remembers the sun and also hurt her and make sure she doesn’t see the sun again by locking her in the closet the next time the rain lets

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