So to start, this is my first time posting up a blog, as well as reading this novel; lots of "first times" for me. As some can expect, this will be merely a series in which I talk, er write, er type, about Ray Bradbury's novel Fahrenheit 451.
I find it quite interesting how banned books are threatened with mass extinction, which is the general plot of this dystopian novel. It starts off with a "fireman" named Guy Montag (we'll call him Montag throughout this series) performing the usual ritual of this "utopian" society: mass banned book burning. The event hated by almost every reader, writer, and intellectual alive, in our world, integrated smoothly into this new society created by Bradbury. It should, at some point, make one think about how the world will turn out to be in the future, where houses will eventually be "fire-proofed" and education becomes very technology-dependent, rather than literary-dependent.
It brings me to another point through the book that really makes me concerned for the future: the behavior and discipline of the newer generations. Throughout the novel Montag runs into an "insane" character Clarisse McClellan and grows close to the seventeen year-old. Upon the eventually usual meet-up, Montag ponders why Clarisse doesn't go to school like most teenagers. Clarisse, open to answer almost any question, explains how she is "antisocial" and "doesn't mix in" with the normal teenager. I find this especially astonishing because as I grew closer to Clarisse, I concluded she's the perfect intellectual and, regretfully, one of the only intellectuals left within that society. She continues to explain that the teenagers now are violent, bored, and blind as education grew to be an automated process. After losing countless friends due to teenage violence, Clarisse decided to lose contact from school and simply explores the neighborhoods and forests, watching. THINKING. That's what has been lost in that society, the ability to THINK as an intellectual. This is my concern: That the newer generations are becoming increasingly mindless. I fear for the worst but, yet, hope for the best. To hope for the day when the heralded utopian concept falls and humans remain human, rather than instinctive beasts performing tasks simply to complete them.
Here's my mentality, people are different for a reason, there shouldn't be "doppelgangers" only to "fit in". Humans must remain inquisitive if we are to survive and retain independence.
--David Lim, Hot Wings
I'm wondering if there is a lot of historical correlation of the burning of books in this novel! Drastic measures have been renowned to be taken for as long as books have been mass produced, so I wouldn't be surprise if there was an allusion or two!
ReplyDelete- Kristen E.
David, first a small word of warning. I would advise against posting your email in your signature. Spammers use webcrawlers to find emails that are left out in the open like that.
ReplyDeleteI too am reading Fahrenheit 451 and I agree with your points. As you get further in the book, Bradbury will scare you even more. (Oh, and although I know where you are in the book based on the context you've provided, I think it would be helpful if you stated what percentage through the book you are when you do additional updates in this series.)
-Travis S.
Oh and, it's not banned books that are being burned, it's ALL books. Scarier!
ReplyDelete-Travis S.
The funny things is, if I had read this any earlier, I would have ruined a small epiphany for myself! haha
Delete(I'm a rather slow person, aren't I? haha)
David-
ReplyDeleteI only have one question and it might be obvious so bear with me. You called Montag a fireman, which usually means he is the one putting out fires as most do. However, I was confused as to whether or not he was participating in the book burning or was he trying to stop it? Other than that I enjoyed reading your review and can really see the correlation between the society in the book and how you connected it to the faults in our society now.
Kevin W.
Oh! haha! I totally forgot to explain that!
DeleteThe "firemen" of this society literally start the fires for these book burnings. Because houses and structures grew to become fireproof, the original duty of a firemen went from putting out these natural disasters to starting them.
My apologies,
David Lim, Hot Wings
David, your description of the book so far is very compelling, I think I may want to make this my next read. Do you see a correlation between the technology-based utopia in the novel and the technology-driven world we live in today? What kind of hope do you see in the characters?
ReplyDeleteJillian D.