2. January 1999 ROCKET SUMMER Plot Summary: People are going about their ordinary daily lives during an Ohio winter. Suddenly, the climate changes and a wave of heat sweeps over the city. The season-changing heat comes from a rocket perched on a launching pad ready to take off.

3. Basic Situation: Ohio town having an ordinary winter. Conflict: The weather suddenly turns hot. Complications: snow melts, people remove winter clothing and go outside. Climax: Rocket Summer. Reader discovers change is due to a rocket. Resolution: The rocket is on the launch pad ready to take off.

4. No parallel Episodes. No Subplots.

5. Motivations of the Fictional Characters: Change in temperature motivates them to change clothes. Curiosity about the rocket launch motivates them to come outside and watch the sky. Contrast to Real Life Characters: Real life people would react exactly like Bradburys characters in this chapter.

6. Idioms, Analogies, Metaphors and Similes Personification: panes blind with frost… The rocket stood in the cold winter morning, making summer with every breath of its mighty exhausts. Metaphors: icicles fringing every roof… a flooding sea of hot air… Similes: housewives lumbering like great black bears… it seemed as if someone had left a bakery door open…

7. Themes: Man is always seeking to explore new frontiers. Mans effect on the environment can be drastic. Expect change; it is inevitable. ©Created by Cathy Shope, EWMS 2002