Plot
The story concerns a nation that constructs a deadly amusement park to remedy its overpopulation problems. In charge of this operation is the Populace Control. People who win a ticket are sent to the carnival on a bus; cars would become a problem as many visitors do not return. Passengers who die are placed in black plastic bags and thrown into a mass burial pit. It focuses on a young boy (Jerry) who wins a ticket to the titular Carnival, much to his mother's grievance. It is revealed that Jerry is obnoxious and has a sense of invulnerability knowing that the possibility of living that day was 1 in 8. After he arrives, he realizes the park's true nature while on a ride called the "Thunder Clapper" that electrocutes some of its passengers, including the person next to him. The story ends as the protagonist is being thrown off a ride called the "Whirl-Away" to his death and the body is caught in one of the black bags.
Read more about this topic: The Carnival (short Story)
Famous quotes containing the word plot:
“We have defined a story as a narrative of events arranged in their time-sequence. A plot is also a narrative of events, the emphasis falling on causality. “The king died and then the queen died” is a story. “The king died, and then the queen died of grief” is a plot. The time sequence is preserved, but the sense of causality overshadows it.”
—E.M. (Edward Morgan)
“After I discovered the real life of mothers bore little resemblance to the plot outlined in most of the books and articles I’d read, I started relying on the expert advice of other mothers—especially those with sons a few years older than mine. This great body of knowledge is essentially an oral history, because anyone engaged in motherhood on a daily basis has no time to write an advice book about it.”
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““The plot thickens,” he said, as I entered.”
—Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859–1930)