Hey SuperBeast, sorry so slow.

I think I read this story back in 10th or 11th grade (for me that would be 1971 or 1972). Yes, I'm still alive and somewhat coherent.

I think prejudice and wealth are both reasonable themes for the story, and could be defended. I think, however, that Dandelion's comment on it being about haves and have nots combines these two ideas into a single and stronger theme. The haves are rich/wealthy whites who are prejudiced against the third world hispanics by looking down their noses at them and not taking them seriously. (A comment one of the guards made affirms this, if you'll recollect -- so that is an easy claim to defend. "We were always a joke to you, weren't we? . . . you laughed at us . . .") The have nots are also prejudiced because they lump all the wealthy people together as being insensitive to the poor. They also lump all whites together as being wealthy.

I agree with you that a crisis occured when they were not allowed to leave the country. There are several smaller crises throughout the story, but that is one that leads to all the others (the lost car, the lost gun, etc.).

In my mind the story ends as the climax is still building. The climax, it seems to me, would be the killing of John and Leonora Webb -- which seems to be an assumed climax. It is not shown.

On the conflicts you list -- man v self or man v society -- they are probably both defensible. A third alternative would be man v man. This may be my choice. This would allow you to deal with the individual conflicts between the Webbs and the angry citizens of the country they are trapped in, AND it would allow you to deal with conflict between groups of men. Prejudice, while a societal problem, resides in the hearts of individual persons. The conflict of man v man may also be expanded to include the conflict that lead to the [assumed] nuclear war that occured between Eastern Europe and the USA and Western Europe.

As usual, Bradbury is able to distill all these themes into a short, simple story about normal people just going about their business. This, I think, is one of Bradbury's true gifts as a storyteller.

I think when an author "frames" his story with similar images, you need to look at what that technique is telling you. In this story, the beginning and the end both take place in the same little outdoor meat market where the flesh is decaying, stinking and covered with flies. When John Webb hits the hanging carcass, the flies rise, but they settle back down on the carcass in just moments. What is Bradbury's image telling us here? Is the carcass man's hatred, resentment, anger and prejudice? Will the decimation of the whites and the "freedom" of the third world characters really solve anything? Is the "freedom" proclaimed by the mob really freedom? Or will another form of caste system develop with it's own forms of prejudice, privilege and resentment just replace the old one? The imagery (the flies rise, but they immediately resettle in the same place) seems to indicate that Bradbury is not optimistic that this has resolved anything. This pessimism is also reflected in John Webb's comment: "Oh, I've seen it [their side of things] ever since I was that high. I'm glad they're happy. God knows they've waited long enough to be. But I wonder how long that happiness will last. Now that the scapegoat is gone, who will they blame for oppression, who will be as handy and as obvious and as guilty as you and I and the man who lived in this room before us?"

Leonora seems a bit sensitive to the anger of the mobs. She says you need to see things from their point of view, etc. But does that sensitivity get her anywhere? Also, John Webb had been sensitive to the native who stared at his watch -- a symbol of the haves v the have nots. John Webb removed the watch and never wore it in public. These acts did not do them any good (except with the hotel proprietor) and in the end, we assume they are both killed. Again, the prejudice is not just toward the poor, it is toward the rich. Both sides are prejudiced.

Another interesting sidebar is that when America existed -- as a nation and as an idea -- they were protected. Without that protection, there was nowhere to hide. This is made clear in their observation that they are "alone" and in the quoting of the spiritual song where the lyric says: "And the rock cried out, 'No Hiding Place, There's no Hiding Place down here'". This is also represented when the guards say that the value of money is based on its promise and with no America, there is no way to fulfill that promise.

The materialism theme is highlighted when John Webb realizes that they are getting used to not having things. "I think it's good to be down to essentials. Now instead of worrying over a dozen damned things, it's just two items -- you and me." When Leonora worries about the car, Webb says, "It was only a machine." She replies that she loved it. His response is, "We're always loving everything too much."

Anyway. Great story. Glad you asked the question. Glad you had some ideas for us to respond to.

Be well. Hope this is a bit helpful.

One last thing I am lookinf for is the setting? I got the date it took place but I need a location. I had a hunch that it was in South America or Mexico and so did a few other people in my class. Does anybody know exactly where it took place?