Beyond that, here's the scoop. Ray Bradbury wrote this novel in the 1950's, as the Cold War and McCarthyism were starting and everything in America was getting modernized and standardized. The idea that Americans would all like in cookie cutter houses in the suburbs with white picket fences and happy smiling housewives who served TV dinners to a family glued to the TV screen (a new invention in the 50's) terrified Bradbury. Fahrenheit 451 shows what he imagines America would become around 2025 if people continued blindly trusting technology and the government.
Response #1: The fictional world of Fahrenheit 451 is called a dystopia. A dystopia is a nightmare world, the opposite of a utopia (paradise). Remember, in a nightmare, you recognize elements of your life, but your world is turned upside down and terrifying. What are ways that Guy Montag (our main character)'s world is a dystopia? How is the world that Bradbury created similar to real life but also like a nightmare? What evidence do you see of Bradbury's concerns about what will happen to American society?
Also think about our main characters. How does Guy Montag fit into his world? How does Clarisse fit in? How does Guy's wife Mildred fit in? What is the purpose of these two female characters?
Rules for the post: I asked you a lot of questions. Focus on one or two. Write at least 5 sentences, including one quote from the book that supports your argument.
Guy Montag's world is a dystopia. An example of why it is a dystopia is because of Montag's job as a fireman. Montag's job is to start up fires and burn books. Bradbury the author of Fahrenheit 451(underlined), is concerned about what will happen to the society because the main character, Montag begins to get worried about the details in his job. Montag tells his wife with a look of dismay that "we burnt an old woman with her books" (page 49). Montag feels remorse for the terrible job his firemen had done by burning a human being alive. Earlier in the book before burning the woman with her books, his neighbor Clarisse had challenged him by asking why he was a fireman. She asked him because he was a much more of a gentleman than majority of the fireman.
ReplyDeleteRay Bradbury created a similar world to the present because of the use of the technology. The imagination, thoughts and the being unique has been left in the past because it is overrated when technology can do the work for the person. It is not the popular thing to think of out of the box things because usually to create an imaginary world to think that way requires to read a book, but that has been left in the past because having the time to sit and read a book is “uncool” because you actually have to read when you can go on the internet and download the audio and hear it read to you or just not read at all. But it is also like a nightmare because Bradbury develops the story that fireman burns books instead of putting fires out and that portrays that the imagination, thoughts and uniqueness is all gone because the firemen are considered “Happiness Boys, the Dixie Duo” (61) they stand in the way of “those who want to make everyone unhappy with conflicting theory[s] and thought[s]” (62). They are the ones that keep the people from the reality because they assume that it not worth knowing because there is no defined answer or two or more possible answers to a question creating people that depend on others to tell them what to do. In Bradbury having all that eliminated expresses how life would be without books and how it may be not entertaining to read them but they are important to the being of humans because they make an impact on how we are different from each other. Also Bradbury shows that the humans are becoming too dependent on other resources that they don’t exercise their own intelligence.
ReplyDeleteFor the modern day readers of Ray Bradbury’s book, Fahrenheit 451, the idea that Guy Montag’s world is a dystopia is completely true. This comes from the fact that our present day society can acknowledge all books as a way to help its citizens, but in Montag’s world, books, by all means necessary, must be destroyed. That is where the ideas of a fireman’s job changes and a dystopia is created. As we read through the book, many things that appear in the year 2010 are also mentioned. One character, Clarisse McClellan tells Montag of her experiences in school mentioning “[the] hour of TV class, [the] hour of transcription history or painting pictures, and more sports…” (pg 29.) To the children in Fahrenheit 451 this is normal, but because there exists a different experience with books in the year 2010, this to society now is “a nightmare world”.
ReplyDeleteGuy Montag is unfortunately living in a dystopia because of his duties as a firefighter. He and his co-workers are doing great harm to families and the world by putting an insult to men who are suppose to be brave and heroic. Instead he creates most of the fires that he puts out which is cowardly. Eventually living a double life with men including yourself who are cowardly fear will get to you. He himself sees he creates his own nightmare in the dirty work he and his men do. Bradley creates a world that is cold and unexpected. The firemen here are doing opposite of what one would expect them to do put out fires. His creates this world where people are afraid and remain bystanders, yet it is so realistic because people are cold and afraid to stick up for what it just. Bradbury with this allows readers to see how the world may become so oblivious they will not realize they must stop being cruel and listen to themselves not others. Page 50 reads, “ Your not sick said Mildred”{Bradbury). Here Guy Montag realizes he needs a breath of fresh air and a day off to think for himself. With this pressure from his wife he will never be able to change and live a life away from Bradbury’s fearful view of America’s ignorant and cold society.
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