Analysis of "the Last Night of the World"

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Another thing that brings about a sense of calm and acceptance is the fact that the characters realize that the end of the world shall no come to only those who did good or to only those who did bad, and therefore they feel no guilt or regret in the way they lived their lives. It just does not matter anymore. The characters also get a sense of calm and acceptance because they realize that people could not be better than they have always been. Towards the end of the story, the wife leaves the tap running and even turns off the faucet (Bradbury 5). This shows that the character have accepted that it is hard to change behavior and even if they were going to face their last night on earth, they will still live to be exactly who they were meant to be.

The characters are trying to get some absolution by admitting that, "things just didn't work out.” (Bradbury 2).This seems to give them some comfort and calm because they feel that there is nothing else that they could have done. The couple further finds calmness in the fact that everybody else was going to spend the night pretty much just like they have any other night, “like always”. The wife in the story even says that, "that's something to be proud of," (Bradbury 4) and the husband agrees that behaving the way they normally did was a sign that, “we're not all bad." (Bradbury 5)

The husband says that he will not miss anything else apart from his wife and their daughter and the simple pleasures like taking a “glass of cool water.” (Bradbury 2).This gives him a sense of calmness because he realizes that the things that are most important to him are his family and his immediate world. He does not care much about what happens after the end of the world; to him what is immediate to him is what he cares much about. Who knows what will happen after this life anyway?

Work cited

Bradbury, Ray. "The Last Night Of The World". Esquire magazine (1951): n. pag. Print.