Cemetery Quote by Ray Bradbury
““The graveyard was at the top of the hill. It looked over all of the town. The town was hills - hills that issued down in trickles and then creeks and then rivers of cobblestone into the town, to flood the town with rough and beautiful stone that had been polished into smooth flatness over the centuries. It was a pointed irony that the very best view of the town could be had from the cemetery hill, where high, thick walls surrounded a collection of tombstones like wedding cakes, frosted with white angels and iced with ribbons and scrolls, one against another, toppling, shining cold. It was like a cake confectioner's yard. Some tombs were big as beds. From here, on freezing evenings, you could look down at the candle-lit valley, hear dogs bark, sharp as tuning forks banged on a flat stone, see all the funeral processions coming up the hill in the dark, coffins balanced on shoulders. ("The Candy Skull")””
About This Quote
Source Short Story: “The Candy Skull” in *The Martian Chronicles*, 1950
A cemetery hill offers a stark, beautiful view of the town, juxtaposing death with the town’s stone landscape.
In simple terms: The hill shows the town’s stone beauty and its connection to death.
Key Takeaway
Notice how surroundings reflect deeper themes.
Themes
death
beauty
perspective
Mood
reflective
melancholic
Type
literary
descriptive
When to use this quote
- City planning
- memorial design
- tourist guides
- photography
- urban literature
Key Concepts
urbanism
mortality
contrasts
Questions to Reflect On
- What does the stone symbolize?
- How does setting affect mood?
A Different Perspective
The description may romanticize death.
