The Green World in Dandelion Wine

The Green World in Dandelion Wine

Introduction

Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury is a story about a 12 years- old boy named Douglas who used to play and run around as any other young boy would do. Living in Green Town, a city in Illinois, Douglas is trying to live a happy life by enjoying his summer to the best he can. In his adventure, the boy familiarises himself with the nature of the world as he tries to make sense of both life and death (Bradbury 8). From how Douglas is enjoying summer in his unrestricted life, Bradbury teaches us that we don’t need to travel places in search of adventure because the world around us is infused with mystical beauty which we only need to open our eyes to see. The whole summer is exciting to Douglas, and he has to record everything that is happening in every passing hour. The summer that Douglas is enjoying is replete of green apple trees, mowed lawns and new sneakers. The happiness of any man exists within him but does not depend on the external circumstances around.

Bradbury gives us emotional literature by describing real stories of people in contemporary society. The author evokes real emotions in the heart of the reader by describing simple situations of the lives of people while giving them some incredible philosophical insights. “The mystery of man seizing from the land and the land seizing back, year after year” ( Bradbury 17). Even though Douglas happens to be the everyday talk of the book after being presented as a protagonist, the book is also a describing the lives of his family and friends, the way of life of these people in Green town and the conflicts that face them in their day to day lives (Bradbury Bradbury 19). Bradbury also informs us that when people conflict, there are chances of losing friends but the right thing in Green town is that no conflicts are permanent because we see many people reuniting. Douglas is a symbol of a human being making powerful discoveries about life, its sense and philosophical insights.

The Green World exist in Dandelion Wine book because it is presented as another character in the. Bradbury goes ahead to vividly describe how there was a tree-lined street with people sitting porches on that evening summer, frightened by dark ravine “Douglas sprawled back on the dry porch planks, completely contented and reassured by these voices, which would speak on through eternity” (Bradbury 31). However, Green Town is also regarded as a myth in line with the dandelion wine. The town exists there, surrounded by a deep forest that is not connected to the outside world at all. This form of isolation makes people who are living in the town to be isolated as well. They perform their daily rituals of sacrifices to please their gods and maintain their social-cultural ties that stand out in the city. According to the author, it is not easy for people outside the world to understand what is happening in this town. The summer is not stable for the people in the Green World and those who live there seem to live in a state of solitude, dominated by fear and scary nature. “Hand in hand, they head down the street. There is no “life, light, and activity” (Bradbury 40)” This is because the Green Town is isolated by being surrounded by a deep forest that cuts off its connection with the real world.

Friendship is evident in the Green World and has been revealed to be of great importance in the lives of people in today’s life. In the book Dandelion Wine, friendship is one of the supporting themes that stand out throughout the book. We notice that this friendship is coming in all shapes and sizes, and when one loses a friend, there are many effects (Bradbury 87). Some people cannot survive in high school as well as through their adolescent lives if their friends are not there. For example, when John, the best friend of Douglas, moves away, there are many devastating effects in Douglas, and this brings a turning point in the life of Douglas, and he starts complaining. “You, John! John, You’re my enemy, you hear? You’ r no friend of mine !” (Bradbury 111) When Colonel Freeleigh dies, Douglas feels a significant loss, and he discovered that Freeleigh has killed with his legacy. As August begins in the same summer, Douglas starts to lose his enthusiasm. The dandelion wine that is prepared by Tom and his grandfather represents the spirit of summer that raises the raise the spirit of Douglas.

The life of Doulas proves the existence of Green World in Dandelion Wine. The summer of 1928 is full of meaningful memories for the young man that he doesn’t want to forget. Douglas begins his adventure after realizing that he is alive. He goes on and buys tennis shoes and convinces Mr Sanderson that such shoes will make him better and that he will enjoy life. “Feel those shoes Mr Sanderson, feel how fast they’d take me? All those springs inside? Feel all the running inside” (Bradbury 23). Bradbury describes dandelion wine as a “summer caught and stampered”, and by saying this, the author wants to bring the idea that dandelion wine cannot be made during any other time apart from during the summer (Bradbury 13). The wine that is described here is capturing the memories of the day that it was made and that the first harvest of the dandelion also captures the memories of the summer in Green town. This idea of capturing memories is present throughout the story and is also exemplified by how Douglas is recording everything in his adventure.

Bradbury presents the Green World as a kind of Garden of Eden, especially for Douglas. Just like the biblical Garden of Eden is regarded as the place where the life of all human beings was discovered, Green Town is the place where Douglas finds his life. It is a place inhabited by people of different races. “The reason why grownups and kids fight is because they belong to separate races. Look at them, different from us” (Bradbury 27). Additionally, the Lonely One who is skulking about in the dark ravine is the one who brings death to humankind and is regarded as the serpent of Eden. In the book, we also see the Green World undergoing a gradual change from an isolated city with nobody new is arriving in it from the outside world and nobody is moving out of the Green World to join the outside world. The growing awareness of Douglas regarding life is paralleled by the gradual change of this Green World. “And what about all the things I did see here in town? Will I be able to remember them when I go away?” (Bradbury 105). As for Douglas, the new knowledge of this city is dangerous, not only to him but also to the people inside it. After witnessing the murdered corpse, Douglas falls in a coma that nearly drives him to death. The Green World is, therefore, present in the novel because it provides its mythological setting.

The Green Wolrd is present in Dandelion Wine and is regarded as a source of death. As mentioned earlier, Douglas is coming across murdered corpses as he enjoys his summer in this world. He doesn’t know the murderer or the causes of the many deaths, and this raises a lot of fear in him, which finally makes him fall in a coma. The town is, therefore, full of death for a young boy who has just become aware of his mortality (Bradbury 84). According to the author, all the folks who die in this isolated world are not at any peace with it: the only exception Elizabeth Ramsell, a victim of Lonely One. The Green World is also the place where many people learn about deaths and the frequency of killings make them start planning for their deaths. For example, the Great-Grandma Spaulding decides to die one day after realizing that death is part of human life, and no human being can control it under any circumstance. “He speaks in short one-liners as Miss Loomis discusses her readiness for death” (Bradbury 151). People are not able to enjoy life to their fullest because they are pretty sure that one day they will die.

The author presents the Green World driven by technology and modernization. He was sceptical about tech, and this scepticism is seen all through the novel. It is genuine that this book was written in the 1950s when most people were scared about the atomic bomb because of the destruction that it had caused. “Please, he thought, don’t let the arcade fall apart, too. Bad enough that friends disappeared, people were killed and buried in the real world” (Bradbury 51). It was also the time when rock and roll music was frequently playing in televisions for those who owned them. The world has changed so drastically, and we see several characters in Dandelion Wine trying to make sense of technology (Bradbury 48). Machines are present throughout the novel, and they represent the cycles of life. The same way that machines cannot last forever as described by Bradbury is the same way that the presence of people is characterized by mortality. “like machines, for instance, they fall apart, or rust or rot, or maybe never get finished at all” (Bradbury 33). For example, when the trolley stops running, the Green machine is put away, and this makes Douglas realize that nothing lasts forever. The theme of technology and modernization, therefore, prove the existence of a Green World in the Dandelion Wine.

In conclusion, we should teach ourselves to explore the world that is around us. That forms the reason why Bradbury advises us that man’s happiness does not depend on external circumstances but instead on what lies within him/her. The pleasure of life is fixed within the small joys of life, and this is what creates an overall picture of gladness in each person. Additionally, when one is familiar with the world which he lives and that he believes in a miracle, happiness can be achieved. Bradbury thus encourages us to look at the world around us in a different perspective, how the heart of Douglas is open to beauty. In this idea, the author is opening some themes of the book, such as the theme of memory, time, happiness and coming of age. Bradbury, however, presents life, consciousness and existence as the overall message of the reader.