Fahrenheit 451 - 4/23 Blog

Unfortunately it seems that we are on the path predicted many yeas ago.... The path were ignorance is bliss and the government is the only "truth" around. Many of the novels that we have read this semester highlight Americans detrimental tendencies. They illustrate our impatience and fear of the unknown.

In Culture Jam, we were attacked for our disconnect with nature, our mindless consumerism, and our hours wasted in front of the TV. In Feed the TV graduated to being inside our brains and marketing us. It turned us into the product. In 1984 the TV began watching us. It became necessary to find ways to avoid the telescreen because otherwise you might disappear for doing the wrong thing.

In Fahrenheit 451 they used the television to distract us from all else. They encourage people to fill up their lives learning how to do things rather then pondering ideas. In this society having time to think became dangerous because it might wake you up enough to realize you were unhappy.

All the stories gave control to the government or some other large entity. That entity then began making all the decisions and one by one people started dying. Whether they disappeared or were weeded out by the government because they didn't fit in like Violet. I am truly scared and concerned that this could happen more so than what has already has taken place.

Fahrenheit 451 - 4/16 blog

Fahrenheit 451 was somewhat disappointing. I really wanted there to be a large uprising of some sort. Unfortunately there wasn't much of anything once Montag got away. The fight became a silent one. One that people chose to fight with their minds and hearts instead of their fists.

There is a lesson to be learned from this type of non-violent protest. Bradbury's message to us all is to fight back with knowledge. The idea that knowledge is power and that if we allowed the government to control the flow of knowledge then they will have all the power. This is why they changed the schools in the novel to teach only jobs instead of ideas. This is the same deteriation of education that took place in Feed. People felt it was okay to stop thinking for themselves and when they did they gave up all their power.

Bradbury wants us to realize how important the written word is to survival. We as a society must not let the printed page die. If we do we will lose a vital weapon to fight back. It will create a domino effect of lost freedoms. If you are feeling let down by the government fight back by learning all you can learn and sharing that knowledge with anyone who will listen. This is true about any oppression that may enter your life.

The Temperature at Which Paper Burns- Fahrenheit 451

For some reason I have had a difficult time getting past the beginning of the last 2 novels. This is probably most due to my lack of sleep which decreases my ability to stay awake. Needless to say this novel is a much easier read than the previous. I was pretty much hooked once he stole the book from Mrs. Blakes house. I realized then that the beginning was working up to this moment.

Bradbury used Clarisse to bring out how unhappy Montag was. He subtly deals with the unhappiness and suicide attempt of Mildred by having doctors come and take all the "bad stuff" out. The irony overflows from the story when Beatty states that the point of burning books is to act as "the custodians of our peace of mind." (pg. 59) He elaborates that one cannot have the minorities stirred so that if the "Colored people don't like Little Black Sambo. Burn it. White people don't feel good about Uncle Tom's Cabin. Burn it. [...] Take your fight outiside, better yet to the incinerator." (pg 59). This passage could not be more untrue. Burning paper with words does not erase the feelings that they create. But the real crime is to stop them from being written at all.

Bradbury shows us with Beatty's next explanation that it was not the government who allowed print to go out of preference, but it was the people. Our natural desire to have whats fast and in picture form has allowed our lives to be controlled without a fight. This novel clearly illustrates its relevancy in today's society as we witness the decline of library checkouts. I was listening to National Public Radio a few weeks ago and they were running a program that identifies products that will be obsolete in a few years. I.E. products or services going extinct in the next 20 or so years. Libraries were on the list because most visitors of the library go there to use a computer not check out books.

Sadly many people I know are okay with "not being a reader." It has become socially acceptable to just not be good at it or not like it. It is truly sad to witness the downfall of literature. Bradbury was just one of many that saw it coming.