The Jar story
A gentleman buys a jar with something strange inside it. Directed by: Norman Lloyd. Story by: Ray Bradbury (short story), James Bridges (teleplay).
22 total · 1 choice · 9 major · 12 minor
| Theme | Level | Motivation |
|---|---|---|
| the need to be treated with respect | choice | Central to the story was lowly Charlie using the spellbinding jar he purchased at a carnival to become the talk of the town, and the ongoing center of attention. People now ventured from afar to visit his humble shack, and he would even plan for serving refreshments. It is conveivable that Charlie's obsession with the jar was in part due to him overcompensating for his not being able to control his young and flagrantly unfaithful wife. |
| curiosity | major | The townspeople were fascinated about the contents of the titular jar. |
| extramarital affair | major | Thedy Sue was carrying on a barely concealed affair with Tom Carmody. |
| husband and wife | major | Charlie and Thedy Sue Hill. The story explores how Charlie and Thedy's marriage is derailed by Thedy's infidelity coupled with the added stressor of a mysterious new jar that becomes the talk of the town. |
| love triangle | major | Thedy Sue carried on shamelessly with Tom Carmody right under her husband's nose. |
| spouse murder | major | The story led up to Charlie being outed for killing his wife and putting her severed head on display in the titular jar. |
| the inclination to believe what one wants to believe | major | Each townsperson saw what they wanted to see in the strange jar. |
| the value of imagination | major | The townspeople got a lot of joy out of sitting around the jar and pondering what might be contained therein. Their sotto voce musings indicated it dragged up old memories of things that were important to them. |
| yokel stereotype | major | The viewer is shown some stereotypical country bumpkins in a rural setting. |
| young and old romance | major | There was a marked age difference between Charlie and his younger wife, Thedy Sue, which probably explains why she ran around with a younger man under her husband's nose and why he didn't do anything about it. |