The Function and Significance of Setting in Bradbury’s

The Fog Horn

The mysteries of the sea," said McDunn thoughtfully. "You know, the ocean's the biggest damned

snowflake ever? It rolls and swells a thousand shapes and colours, no two alike. Strange. One night,

years ago, I was here alone, when all of the fish of the sea surfaced out there. Something made them

swim in and lie in the bay, sort of trembling and staring up at the tower light going red, white, red, white

across them so I could see their funny eyes. I turned cold. They were like a big peacock's tail, moving out

there until midnight. Then, without so much as a sound, they slipped away, the million of them was gone.

I kind of think maybe, in some sort of way, they came all those miles to worship. Strange, But think how

the tower must look to them, standing seventy feet above the water, the God-light flashing out from it, and

the tower declaring itself with a monster voice. They never came back, those fish, but don't you think for

a while they thought they were in the Presence?"

Ray Bradbury’s The Fog Horn follows the mystical experience of the protagonist, Johnny, as he

and McDunn encounter a primeval “dinosaur of some sort” that rises from the Deeps after being attracted

by the resonating sound of the fog horn in the lighthouse. Through the effective description of the

capricious nature of the ocean, and the divine disposition of the lighthouse, Bradbury sets the platform for

the inexplicable events that ensue.

This passage appears at the beginning of the story and is primarily used to set the narrative in

motion and introduce the reader to the character of McDunn. It also relates some of the mysterious events

that transpire around the lighthouse that caused McDunn to “[turn] cold.”

The primary function of setting in The Fog Horn is to establish verisimilitude and thus convey the

themes expressed within the science fiction novel effectively and realistically. For example, he uses the

lighthouse (a key element of the setting) to convey the central themes of saudade and loss. The monster

pictures the lighthouse that is “standing seventy feet above the water” and “declaring itself with a monster
voice” as the companion “who never came back”. The personification of the lighthouse here helps the

reader to relate more to the narrative because it is easier to relate to something with human attributes.

Upon realising that it has been tricked, the monster wants to “destroy” the lighthouse so it “can’t hurt [the

monster] anymore.” The plot is centred on the demolition of a lighthouse by a mythical sea monster – a

storyline that is not wholly believable to the casual reader. Thus, in order to animate the plot and hammer

home the themes, Bradbury includes places and objects such as the “ocean” and the “tower” that the

reader can relate to from everyday experience.

McDunn muses thoughtfully on the “mysteries of the sea” and describes the ocean as the “biggest

damned snowflake ever.” This immediately throws an aura of mystery around the ocean and all the

creatures within, also foreshadowing something inexplicable that may rise from the ocean. The reference

to the ocean as a snowflake is contradictory as one does not expect something as rough and capricious as

the sea to be compared to an object as delicate as a snowflake. Thus, the metaphor becomes a reflection

on the vulnerability of everything and, in this manner, the lighthouse is set up to take the fall early on in

the narrative. Bradbury then describes the “rolls” and “swells” of the ocean, which has a mimetic effect,

once again suggesting the presence of something mysterious under the waters. As the story progresses,

the irony is further reinforced; it is the two largest things in the narrative that either physically or

emotionally take the fall, while the smaller beings (such as “all the fish of the sea” and the two humans)

are shielded from harm.

The passage contains repeated religious references that augment the importance of the lighthouse.

McDunn recounts how one night “all of the fish of the sea” surfaced near the lighthouse and “stared up at

the...God-light.” He then wonders whether “they came all those miles to worship” and whether they

“thought they were in the Presence.” Bradbury bestows the lighthouse with a divine aura, which

intensifies the mystical mood of the story. It also increases the irony within the story as one does not

expect such a godly object like the lighthouse to be brought down. Additionally, it symbolises the power

that physically superior things have over their subordinates. To us humans, the lighthouse appears to be

only what it is: a lighthouse. However, to the fish, it was almost like they “were in the Presence.”
Similarly, Johnny sees the monster as something “impossible.” Therefore, through the prudent use of

religious imagery, Bradbury challenges the reader to consider the hierarchy of power in nature.

The mysterious tone of the passage is augmented by the simple diction that McDunn uses, such as

“rolls and swells” and “God-light”, allowing the reader to easily follow and visualize the image that

McDunn paints with his words. McDunn also describes the “cold” feeling he has when he sees the army

of fish with “funny eyes” that has assembled on the bay. The use of the word “cold” creates a sinister

touch to the already mysterious tone. Furthermore, this also encourages us to easily explore the mysteries

within ourselves, allowing us to relate on a higher level to the strange “dinosaur of some sort” that is

about to be introduced.

Bradbury uses a variety of structural and linguistic devices to convey a strong sense of solitude.

The effective use of diction in phrases such as “I was here alone” and “they never came back” highlight

this loneliness. The use of the single word “strange”, separated by the longer, flowing sentences also

structurally demonstrates the loneliness that the two men in the lighthouse feel. The longer sentences

describe the awe that McDunn feels as he looks out at the sea that “rolls and swells a thousand shapes and

colors” and as he pictures the “peacock’s tail” of fish. In contrast, the juxtaposition of ‘strange’ is almost

like a reality check, pulling the reader back into the present. The most striking phrase, however, is “no

two alike” which is clearly meant to reflect the solitude of the monster and thus allows the reader to

empathize with the monster’s desire for camaraderie. Subsequently, McDunn reveals the similarity

between the foghorn’s “blow” and the monster’s “cry”, and seems to find comfort in these emotions

expressed by the creature, almost as if he can relate to its loneliness. Thus, through the use of diction and

structural techniques put against a lonely setting, Bradbury expresses the loneliness of the characters.

A significant theme in The Foghorn is the relationship between man and nature; we humans think

we are superior, altering the world to suit our needs and wants. However, Bradbury seeks to remind us

that, for all our modernity and technology, we have not been able to conquer all the dark places in the

world even we have not conquered everything and he does this by setting the mystical creature’s lair in

the “deepest Deeps” of the ocean floor. This also causes the reader to consider whether this is also
directed to the fact that each person has a dark, unexplored and unknown component inside themselves. In

addition, Bradbury describes the tower’s light as “red, white, red” and later refers to the monster’s eyes as

“fire and ice.” This could be an allusion to the two projected theories concerning the end of the world: the

world freezing over or burning up. However, the monster has survived through all of this and is now “in a

world not made for [it].” Moreover, at the end of the narrative, McDunn relates that the creature has

probably gone back into the Deeps to “wait another million years.” In this manner, Bradbury exploits the

setting and characters to remind us of our position on this planet.

In this vibrant passage, Ray Bradbury uses the element of setting effectively to establish

verisimilitude, convey a strong sense of solitude and set the platform for the story to play out, while

maintaining a mysterious tone that holds the reader’s attention. In his writings, Bradbury often integrates

childhood memories and, with The Fog Horn, he simply revisited his boyhood love of dinosaurs and spun

a modern tale of loneliness and unrequited love through the heartbreak of an ancient monster of the

oceans. By taking us into the mind of McDunn, Bradbury involves us within the narrative and encourages

us to take home the universal themes of saudade and loss conveyed within the story.