Plot holes in A Sound of Thunder

[KevinW]

I think there were quite a few problems with the story. Problems with the plot. I don't understand how some things could happen:

1. How could Time Safari lay down the path? What if other animals tried to touch it? What did they use to not "interrupt" the past when they were laying down the path?

2. The Tyrannosaurus dying by the tree was a lot different than dying by being shot. The T-rex had struggled, swung its tail and cut down trees, as well as slam and squash the metal path in its death throes.
Doesn't this already change history?

3. How can it be possible that the government is willing to overlook the problems with time travel?
"Oh, we know that anything you do can cause insane amount of damage to today. But you know what? Our top scientists say a lot of money and your word is more than enough for us to trust you with the most powerful weapon in the world!"

Really, government? Why can't they time-travel to some past and began dominating the world there?


And just for fun, how do you think the butterfly caused the whole nation to change? Make a chain, butterfly caused this, which caused that, which caused this that this that......and finally, Deustcher became president!

[ExtremelyExtremeExtremist]

1. I believe Time Safari established a hidden barrier which makes animals refuse to go inside before laying the metal path.

2. Yep. Eckels was not the only person who did wrong. They should have waited until the T-rex came to "ideal spot" and kill it with long-range anti-material sniper rifle (well... there could be a hard time to pick up the bullets from the cadaver).

3. The government is taking no actions to the problem because they don't know the seriousness of the past. They only want money from people who like to travel to past.
Additionally, Bradbury is saying that laziness and greed are crimes today.

4. Butterfly died, the posterities of that butterfly were unborn (other butterflies that were not killed survived, but the amount decreased), animals that eat butterly were greatly decreased, animals (I'll name this "2") that eat animals that eat butterfly were decreased, human hunted "2" (humans were not extinct) and made alphabets from the shape of butterflies that survived, someone had a difficult time making grammar and spelling, but because that person didn't see butterflies spreading pollens, that person became lazy and made a wrong spelling (but fortunately made correct grammar), because spelling vocabularies were easy, people became lazy and didn't think, didn't learn the downside of dictatorship, thought dictatorship is a great regime, democracy was outlawed, viewed Keith as a weak person and the legislature voted Deutscher.

[gb1708]

1. Yeah, it is so confusing because if people can stand on that means animals also can stay on that. Maybe, that path causes the consequence more severe than killed butterfly.

2. I think it really can change the history because Archaeologists will find the bone of the killed dinosaur and they will be curious that how can the dinosaur have crack bone by bullet. They will think people had invented high weapon in the past.

3.I remembered that Time Safari bribed the government a lots money so they overlooked it.

4. I think the death of butterfly can't cause the severe consequence like that. I think the author just give this idea to prove the point that one thing from the past affect severely to the future.

[lukejoo1092]

1. what if the time machine itself was made of anti-gravity metal? then they'd be floating from the ground which wouldn't be a problem

2. true...but maybe it didn't kill any crucial animals while the trees got knocked down. there is a huge possibility that it should have changed history but it looks like the author just wanted it like that way.

3. maybe its a paradox for them too. how can there be a new government from the future be in the past because if they do, then that wouldn't lead to the formation of their government in the first place? maybe they simply can't do so.

4. the butterfly could have been an important food for a certain species of animals which humans fed on. maybe the original creator of the alphabet was supposed to feed on that type of animal where he comes from but since there aren't any of them anymore, the guy starved to death. therefore, a different guy came up with the idea of inventing the alphabet but in his own weird way.

[nadiraamalina]

1. The background info mentioned that the fourth dimension of time was needed for time travel right, so perhaps only beings that have experienced that fourth dimension can use the metal path. This sort of links to your third question, but this story is set in the future. Technology is so advanced that the government barely takes something as science breaking as time travel seriously, so they should be able to create anti-gravity metal.

2. How can the people have invented a time machine and not invent a instant-kill sniper rifle. Which, coincidentally, could also have been used by Travis to kill President Deutscher after he was done with Eckels.

3. Isn't that what some governments do today? They try to make money but don't think about the consequences of what'll happen because of their greediness. Technology may have advanced further, but what makes us human will always stay the same.

4. The butterfly was clever symbolizing on Ray Bradbury's part. We could spend hours giving our opinion on one of the infinite possible futures that the death of the butterfly could've influenced. So here's mine: I believe that the butterfly would evolve into something that pollinated some plants that a clan of wandering early humans ate. Since it was killed before it could evolve, the plants died out and that wandering clan of humans couldn't find food and their brains didn't develop as well. One of them was the ancestor of the person who would invent writing.

[KevinW]

2. Plot hole, then. They've hunted more than once, too. At least for a year. That's a lot of knocked down trees, smashed metal paths (proves animals can touch it) and stuff. That's quite a bit of change to time.

3. Governments today may ignore certain issues, but they're not blind, bumbling idiots. Even today.

Traveling back in time is a much, much worse issue than an oil spill.
I think it's even worse than a genocide (e.g. Jews in WWII)
I even think it is worse than the extinction of millions of species on the planet.

You change history, and you might just cause all of the humans to go extinct. You change history, and suddenly everyone you once knew becomes someone completely different; you have killed off the ones you know. There are so many unknowns with these time paradoxes what if you kill off yourself?
...
You change history, you might even destroy the universe! Breaking the laws of the universe...

Sept 11, 2012 2:55:04 GMT -5 nadiraamalina said:

3. Isn't that what some governments do today? They try to make money but don't think about the consequences of what'll happen because of their greediness. Technology may have advanced further, but what makes us human will always stay the same.

I take issue with that. I see technology bringing power to the people. It is opening up the sour secrets of the world powers and making everyone, everywhere much, much more accountable for what they do. I believe technology has, and will continue to, improve society.

[sergeyfen]

1. Yeah i didnt get it how could the set a path and i think it can go anywhere they want, very unclear.
2. i dont think such big and strong dinosaur could be killed and smash just by a tree, its just impossible.
3. It's just a story thats why government is overlooking it, but still it would never happen in real life and probably government won't receive any bribe for such dangerous thing.
I think that butterfly led one of the ancestors of humans to an invention or so, so thats why we are here, but Eckels killed it and that never happened.

[dwsuh1]

1, they probably laid the path down the same way as they did when they put paint on the dinasours float around put some machines. Other animals would touch but won't really change the path since it's just dinasours and bugs just steping on it. They would have to not go to not interrupt the past or they can actully change the safari into hologram where you actully can stpe on things but it's not all real
2, Yes it would but they would pick a dinasour that is one brained so they can shoot the brain and kill him instent so it doesn't make mess to the futur.
3, I think government is not possible to over look the time travel since only people who knows that time travel changed the futur is the people who was in the time travel and if government is not time traveling with the people they can't overlook.
EXTRA: Butterfly affects and animal that eats butterfly for example rat eats butterfly and this rat death kills millions of death in futur rat and these future rat death causes Homo Sapians(?) to death of hunger since they can't catch animals to eat which kills trillions of voters in futur who tries to vote for president.

[linnie]

Nice observation, I guess? I noticed few problems as well, but you got more than me! Anyway, unlike others, I have like no ideas about the questions. But I have more questions. Like how can time step aside trying to avoid one with oneself? Like how can it work? Also how can machine work in past time? Don't they need electricity or some sort? And also government will surely not allow this because they can change the future, that means that their ruling or laws might change without government noticing it. Also scientists and many physicist believe that time traveling to future is possible but not to past, because there are few fundamental problems. How can they travel back? Did they make some sort of wormhole? Like this, I have numerous questions.

To make time machine, I think those questions should be solved. Even though it might need lots of efforts, time machine can be possible. Because, before, I thought that it won't be possible but after researching it, I found out many of the physicist and scientist support that time machine can be invented within this century. I hope to see time machine in future!

[jisu25]

I don't really understand the issue with the road and the one brained dinosaur killing at all! What is the point in about just killing a gigantic dinosaur that has two brains instead of one? And the Path, how is that thing there in the past? I just don't understand why the author made this story very complicated.

[woori]

hello