A Sound of Thunder
by Ray Bradbury
Page 581
2007 COS – 2a; 4
CCRS –
AHSGE – R.II.3; R.III.2: R.III.3; R.IV.2; R.Iv.3
ARI – Vocabulary development; Reading comprehension
Literary Skills – Understand elements of style, including figurative
language and mood.
Reading Skills – Understand cause-and-effect relationships
A Sound of Thunder
Literary Focus: Style
The use of vivid images and figurative
language often plays a part in a writer’s style.
• Images—words and phrases that appeal to
the senses.
• Figurative language—imaginative
comparisons between seemingly unlike things.
A Sound of Thunder
Literary Focus: Style
Ray Bradbury tells this science-fiction story in a
lush style.
• He uses vivid images
and imaginative figurative
language to create an exotic
setting.
• The setting and the figurative
language shape a tense and
suspenseful mood, or
atmosphere.
A Sound of Thunder
Literary Focus: Style
As you read “A Sound of Thunder,” notice the
elements of Bradbury’s style.
• Diction and sentence patterns: How do they
create a distinctive writing style?
• Images: Which of your senses do they appeal
to? What feelings do they evoke for you?
• Figurative language: How does it help create
the setting? the mood?
A Sound of Thunder
Vocabulary Page 580
Previewing the Vocabulary
annihilate v.: destroy; wipe out.
expendable adj.: worth sacrificing to gain an
objective.
depression n.: major economic downturn.
(Depression also means “sadness.”)
paradox n.: something that has or seems to have
contradictory qualities.
A Sound of Thunder
Vocabulary Page 580
Previewing the Vocabulary
delirium n.: extreme mental disturbance, often
accompanied by hallucinations (seeing things that are
not there).
resilient adj.: able to return to its original shape
quickly after being stretched or compressed; elastic.
remit v.: return payment.
revoke v.: cancel; withdraw.
primeval adj.: primitive; of the earliest times.
subliminal adj.: below the level of awareness.
A Sound of Thunder
Vocabulary
Vocabulary Activity
Fill in the blanks with the correct Word Bank words.
primeval
resilient
depression
annihilate
remit
depression many people cannot find work.
1. During a ___________
resilient
2. Good rubber tires are strong and ___________.
annihilate
3. Most modern builders are careful not to ___________
the
remains of ancient civilizations.
remit
4. The car will be yours if you ___________
the payments.
primeval
5. Dinosaurs lived during ___________
times.
A Sound of Thunder
Quickwrite
Make the Connection
“A Sound of Thunder” is a story about time travel.
Jot down some thoughts about where you’d go if
you could travel through time. Would you choose
the past or the future as your destination? Would
you stay in the region where you live, or would
you go someplace else? How would traveling
through time affect your life?
While Reading
1. What does Eckels seem to be worried about
when he is planning his time travel trip?
2. Who is the new president at the beginning of the
story?
3. What warning does the tour guide give to the
hunters?
4. How do the hunters know which dinosaurs are
okay to shoot?
5. How does Eckels react when he sees the T-Rex?
While Reading
6. What must Eckels do to be allowed to return
home?
7. Describe the changes that have occurred when
the hunters return home.
8. What is the final outcome of the trip for Eckels?
9. How are the changes that occur significant to the
time period when the story was written?
Activity
• P. 596 Writing – Excursions in Time
Imagine you are entering an essay contest in
which the grand prize is a time-travel journey.
Write a brief paragraph telling the following:
• Where you’d go (place and time)
• Describe what you imagine you will see
• What do you want to accomplish
• Page 596 Questions 1-10