...We do it for a hundred reasons" (Gaiman xi). Neil Gaiman says it best in the introduction to Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, whether it be to warn the public, or to encourage, examine, or imagine, writers continue to describe dystopian worlds that may not be real. Gaiman tells the readers of Fahrenheit 451 that "there are three phrases that make possible writing about the world of not-yet[…]and they are simple phrases: What if…? If only…? If this goes on…" (Gaiman xi). Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 utilizes the latter of these three phrases. Bradbury pictures that if our society continues to substitute knowledge with instant, mindless gratification, the product would be similar to that of Guy Montag's world. Likewise, "Harrison Bergeron" by Kurt Vonnegut Jr. is created around the phrase, "What if...?" Vonnegut's story was developed while thinking about how the world would be if people were handicapped based on their strengths and weaknesses. The genre of science fiction conveys an author's feelings towards our community, and typically towards our community's future. Both of these texts demonstrate a strong theme, while simultaneously allowing these themes to reveal truths about our society. Firstly, Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury demonstrates a theme of how one must be aware and knowledgeable to...
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...Rama Khader Mrs.Kellogg H English (Per.4) 3 November 2015 The Hearth and the Salamander “I am fire. I am death” taken from the Hobbit is filled with a lot of meaning. In the book Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, fire is nothing but death. A hearth and a salamander both have characteristics of fire, hence they both bring destruction and death. Although many readers might think the Hearth and the Salamander might mean warmth and light, other readers will think the name “The Hearth and the Salamander” is symbolic of fire, evil and the destruction the fireman brings on as shown throughout the entire first section of the book. A hearth is the floor near or in the fireplace. Usually where the fire is. Fire brings warmth when needed,...
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...451: More Than Just an Auto-Ignition Point A look to the future seems bleak for the literary world. Forcing us to see the prospect of a world without the influence of creative thinking, this novel conjures a grim outlook. In the novel by Ray Bradbury titled Fahrenheit 451, fire symbolizes everything from the destruction of social issues to the renewal of hope. Guy Montag is the protagonist who faces a dilemma in a community that has chosen to burn all of the books. Montag is a fireman who is tasked with burning books as a profession. Montag meets a series of characters who aid him in his journey of preserving the information in the books. In the end, the knowledge is preserved in an unconventional way. In the article by Michelle Dean, titled “Our Young-Adult Dystopia”, she describes the current situation of books being mass produced without much substance. She discusses works that are similar to each other and lack depth....
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...The society consists of a general public who don’t seem to do anything except feeding their minds with anything that will entertain them. There are firemen whose job is to burn books to rid the community of the past and the valuable knowledge that books contain. These people are conditioned to think that their simple, routine life, makes them happy. In the beginning of the book, the main character, Montag, doesn’t even realize how dissatisfied he is with life until a teenager named Clarisse brings it up to him. She asked Montag if he was happy and his first thought was to be stunned at such a question. When Clarisse asked him he responded by saying “ ‘am I what?... happy! Of all the nonsense.’ ” (Bradbury 7-8). Montag was so greatly affected by society that he thinks it’s impossible for someone to be sad. This is Bradbury’s way of providing social commentary on the fact that people think that they must be happy. Society when he wrote the book, and currently, is in this mindset. It is an issue to be discussed because people often think that it’s not okay for them to be sad. This leads to people staying unhappy and not reaching out for help because they think they will look foolish for not fitting in with the world’s “norm” of having fun and constantly being...
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...they give you lined paper, write the other way” (Juan Ramon Jimenez). In Ray Bradbury’s dystopian novel, Fahrenheit 451, their society functions very differently than the society we live in. The dissimilarities and similarities between the societies are the views and treatment of books, the obligations and job requirements of firemen and how the youth functions. “All I have learned, I learned from books” (Abraham Lincoln). In our current society, books are valued and are presented as a helpful, educational tool as well as a pleasurable, recreational activity. Books are accessible by not only students with school libraries but by all members of society. In a recent survey, 95% of people said that public libraries provide and promote literacy skills and a love of reading. Books are a crucial part of our society, they inform us, they make us feel and help us understand our world and ourselves. Books in our current society are praised and are a common household item,...
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...How many hours do you think you spend on your phone everyday? I know I spend at least two hours a day, if not more, on my shiny iPhone. The novel Fahrenheit 451 is a dystopia in which the world has been engulfed by the usage of electronic devices, mainly large TVs called parlor walls. The protagonist of the novel is named Guy Montag and throughout the book he slowly opens his eyes and sees what is happening. Guy’s wife,on the other hand, is completely consumed by these parlor walls. Guy’s new found friend in later chapters of the book, Faber, helps Guy look at the world in a different way - that the parlor walls brainwash and enslave the viewer. Through the characterization of Faber, and his use of figurative language in Fahrenheit 451, Ray...
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...What if your house was burned down because you did something illegal, like keeping a shelf full of books? This concept, along with others, is displayed throughout the book Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. Fahrenheit 451 is about a utopia gone wrong and converted into a dystopia due to an over-ruling government and a corrupt society where man’s best friend is his TV. One man, named Guy Montag, is a firefighter who burns books for a living, but learns to disagree with the ways of society when he meets a girl named Clarisse McClellan. Although this society sounds a little strange, our society today can relate, but still differ from their idea of a “correct” society. But in the end, both societies have their own views on the way people should...
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...One of the worlds greatest literary figures, William Shakespeare, voiced the truth about desired knowledge by saying that “ignorance is the curse of God; knowledge is the wing wherewith we fly to heaven”. One must presume that Ray Bradbury, Author of Fahrenheit 451, learned from this. Ray Bradbury’s distopian novel shares a similar representations towards knowledge. In the novel the protagonist, Guy Montag, becomes aware of the fact that he is living in a world were knowledge and individuality is lost. People tolerate and abide by the rules and limitations specified by the government. There is nothing except for books in this society to cause people to wonder about how valuable and important knowledge and identity are. Guy Montag is a fireman whose job is to search for books and burn them. Most of the people in Fahrenheit 451 are convinced that books are a waste of time and are useless. Montag also believes this up until a change of...
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...about a lot. This is especially true of books like The Hunger Games, and Divergent have given new to life and popularity to the genre. However, the messages are a little misread by a society obsessed with stories. These stories in actuality remind us of what we could become in the future. There are many classical works of literature that shows us the future of our society. There is Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury where knowledge and reading are sin. There is Anthem by Ayn Rand which handles the topic of collectivism, and only doing what the party tell you to do. There is Brave New World by Aldous Huxley, where the main topic of discussion is how media distracts and brainwashes you, while also...
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...degradation by the totalitarian government of Oceania, the country in which he lives. It has been translated into sixty-two languages, and has deeply impressed itself in the English language. Nineteen Eighty-Four, its terms and language, and its author are bywords in discussions of personal privacy and state security. The adjective "Orwellian" describes actions and organizations characteristic of Oceania, the totalitarian society depicted in the novel, and the phrase "Big Brother is watching you" refers to invasive surveillance. In turn, Nineteen Eighty-Four has been seen as subversive and politically dangerous and thus been banned by libraries in many countries.[1] Along with Brave New World, by Aldous Huxley, and Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury, it is among the most famous dystopias in literature.[2] In 2005, Time magazine selected it as one of the 100 best English-language novels since 1923. Probably the most important thing to remember while reading 1984 is that Orwell never intended the book to be a prediction of the future. It was more or less a satire of political fiction, however, I believe Orwell was on the right track concerning future possibilities of a New World Order, or total government control. An interesting quotation from the book is from the "thought police" when they say "If you want a picture of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face forever." I believe Orwell's hope in writing the book was to warn people of political warning signs he saw. Another interesting...
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