The Jar story

rbt1985e5x03 · 1992-01-17

A farmer purchases a strange creature in a jar from a carnival sideshow, but becomes a danger when he finds out it's a fake. Directed by: Randy Bradshaw. Story by: Ray Bradbury.

13 total · 1 choice · 7 major · 5 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. It is conceivable that Charlie's obsession with the jar was in part due to him overcompensating for his not being able to control his flagrantly unfaithful wife.
curiosity	major	The townspeople were fascinated about the contents of the titular jar.
love triangle	major	Thedy carried on shamelessly with Tom Carmody right under her partner Charlie's nose.
romantic infidelity	major	Thedy was carrying on a barely concealed affair with Tom Carmody.
romantic relationship	major	Charlie coped with his partner, Thedy, openly running around town with another man. Charlie and Thedy lived together, but whether they were married or not is unclear.
spouse murder	major	The story led up to Charlie being outed for killing his romantic partner 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. For instance, Juke feared that the jar held the remains of a helpless kitten that his mother had forced him to drown in the river in his childhood. The bereaved Mrs. Tridden, by contrast, was adamant the body of her dead baby was in the jar.
wicked wife stereotype	major	Thedy took pleasure in humiliating her meek husband in public.
creative writing	minor	In the introduction, Ray Bradbury shared with the viewer the wellsprings of creativity that inspire his writing.
jealousy	minor	Charlie insinuated that Tom was jealous of him over his newfound fame.