Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury A Nostalgic Frontier

Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury: A Nostalgic Frontier Looking for reflections of the Frontier in Dandelion Wine to understand Nostalgia Lauren Wilkins

Introduction • Story of a young boy’s summer in a small town • Criticized for being too nostalgic and sentimental • The use of nostalgia creates rich themes and ideas and explores Aim: to look at Dandelion Wine though the Frontier lens to find how nostalgia is working with purpose in the story

Frontier Myth • Idealization of western heroes and the frontiers • Key word: Mythfinding meaning in the past • Bradbury’s strong belief that “the intolerable truth’s of life ” must be masked by fictions • “Realism” takes away- chooses metaphor and symbolism instead • Nostalgia for small towns and a “simple” life

Frontier Thesis • The Significance of the Frontier in American History • Frederick Jackson Turner • Westward expansion defined America • West New opportunities coast filled- new frontiers? • Ideas of growth, rebirth, and movement forwards • Douglas’ growth and learning

Writing Process/History • Read Mark Twain and • Born and raised in more small town Waukegan, IL stories • Basis for many short stories- the Green Town • Word association exercises so he stories “. . . rediscovered my childhood. . . ” • Truths to fictions • Nostalgia for the past

Writing Style Metaphor • Memories as Dandelions • Douglas Spaulding’s - became overarching “Awakening” occurs metaphor in Nature • Uses metaphor to comprehend reality and present it to the reader • Concrete-Abstract imagery • A way of facing the fears and terrors of childhood

Themes Childhood/Growth • Douglas and growing up- moving forward • Textuality, writing to deal with new knowledge • Dealing with the fear of death and the death of those around him Technology/Happines s • Use of technology forward movement to happiness- ex: – New shoes – Happiness Machine – Green Machine • Only lasting happiness is love between people Stasis vs. Movement

Conclusion • Past Nostalgia to move • to Future Nostalgia • Frontier Myth • exploration and discovery of self Told in fictions to deal with difficulty Frontier Thesisavoiding stasis, moving forward to grow “A man cannot possibly speak futures unless he has a strong sense of the past” -Ray Bradbury

Bibliography • • • Bradbury, Ray. Dandelion Wine. New York: Bantam, 1976. Print. Eller, Jonathan R. , and William F. Touponce. "The Carnival Blaze of Summer. " Ray Bradbury: The Life of Fiction. Kent, OH: Kent State UP, 2004. 208 -55. Print. Evans, Jennifer. “ 2005 Campbell Lecture Series: “The American Town: Dreams and Nightmares” by Robert Pinsky. ” Rice University. Web. Faragher, John M. "The Myth of the Frontier: Progress or Lost Freedom. " The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History. N. p. , n. d. Web. 01 Apr. 2015. Mc. Nelly, Willis E. , and A. James Stupple. Two Views: I. Ray Bradbury-Past, Present, and Future II. The Past, the Future, and Ray Bradbury. Ed. Martin Harry. Greenberg and Joseph D. Olander. New York: Taplinger Pub. , 1980. 17 -32. Print. Mengeling, Marvin E. “Ray Bradbury’s Dandelion Wine: Themes, Sources, and Style. ” The English Journal 60. 7 (1971): 877 -87. JSTOR. Web. Mogen, David. Ray Bradbury. Boston: Twayne, 1986. Print. Turner, Frederick J. From The Significance of the Frontier in American History. The Norton Anthology of American Literature. Ed. Nina Baym. 7 th ed. Vol. 2. New York: W. W. Norton, 2008. 677 -81. Print. Waston, Cary. “Book review: Dandelion Wine (1957) by Ray Bradbury. ” Jettison Cocoon. 25 June 2013. Web. Weller, Sam. The Bradbury Chronicles: The Life of Ray Bradbury. New York: William Morrow, 2005. Print. Wolfe, Gary K. "The Frontier Myth in Ray Bradbury. " Ray Bradbury. Ed. Martin Harry. Greenberg and Joseph D. Olander. New York: Taplinger Pub. , 1980. 33 -54. Print.