Eckels 'Mistake In A Sound Of Thunder'

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“A Sound of Thunder” by Ray Bradbury tells the story of a man named Eckels who makes a single mistake that has a lasting effect on the world. Eckels travels back in time on a safari to shoot a Tyrannosaurus Rex. His safari guide instructs him to not step off of the path created by the company, Time Safari, Inc., but Eckels makes the mistake of stepping off the path. Although his mistake seems small, the consequences are significant. Bradbury uses the path in the story to represent the path that people should take in life. In the story, he explains how stepping off of the path can have consequences greater than one could ever expect. Ray Bradbury’s story “A Sound of Thunder” insinuates that every small thing affects the world in some way. When the safari group reached its destination in the past, Travis mentioned a path that Time Safari, Inc. had constructed. The path hovered six inches above the ground, and it did not come in contact with anything from the past. Eckels questioned the significance of the path, and Travis stated that “We don't want to change the Future. We …show more content…
The Time Safari Inc. sign had changed to Tyme Sefari Inc., the presidential election results had reversed, and the bright and beautiful colors of the world no longer existed. Smashed on the bottom of Eckels’ shoe laid a beautiful, vibrantly colored butterfly. Eckels only discovered the butterfly after he had made the mistake of stepping off of the path. There was no way that he could go back and change what he had done. The butterfly represents the unforeseen consequences that can come from a mistake. While in the time machine, Eckels believed that he had only stepped on dirt and hoped that everything would be okay when he returned to the present. Similarly, a person who has made a mistake may think that everything will work out in the end, but be surprised by the consequences that come from the
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