Fahrenheit 451: A Novel

Fahrenheit 451 is one of the most famous works of science fiction, and with "Brave New World" and "1984" represents one of the most memorable and haunting dystopias. In a future world, books are banned and firemen actually set fires instead of extinguishing them. The state exercises a form of social control through controlling what sort of information people have access to. It turns out that not all books are banned, only those that we would today consider "great works" - Plato, Shakespeare, The Bible, Darwin, etc. For me one of the biggest surprises about Fahrenheit 451 was the rationale that was offered for the burning of those books. In a nutshell, they offended politically correct sensibilities and the authorities felt that they would undermine the social cohesion. This expunging of the classics from the culture has an uncanny resonance with the attempts over past few decades to expunge them from the undergraduate liberal arts curriculum. And rationale is also similar: these books are not "diverse" enough and may offend the sensibilities of an ever-increasing list of "minorities." It is hard not to wonder if a milder, softer version of dystopian future that Bradbury was worried about in the early 1950s has not in fact arrived. Bradbury's writing and ideas are somewhere between those of George Orwell and Philip K. Dick. His style is very engaging, and even poetic. His writing is at its best when one of his characters engages in a prolonged monolog. However, the plot development could use some improvement. There is very little in terms of transition from one scene to the next, and most scenes are overly compressed. It is very hard to follow the plot developments at times. Nonetheless, Bradbury is a wonderful stylist and unlike much of science fiction this book is a pleasure to read on a purely literally level as well as for its sweeping ideas. As a last note, I found it incredibly ironic that I read this book on Kindle. Based on this alone I am fairly optimistic that reading and great books will not only survive but in fact thrive well into the 21st century.

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury gives the reader a peak into a not-so-distant future. Bradbury’s use of symbolism and descriptive language helps to show the consequences of overlooking important aspects of life such as; nature, knowledge, and personal relationships with other living beings. The book is set in a futuristic America where books are outlawed, and those who defy this law have their books burned along with their house and all other belongings. Guy Montag is one of the firemen who start fires rather that extinguish them. Montag does not agree with the society’s rules and views on books and those who possess them, and this book shows his struggle with this and many of society’s other laws. Fahrenheit 451 focuses on the dramatic censorship implemented in America. The censorship in the book has many similarities to the censorship that occurred during the red scare and The Cold War which were both thriving at the time Fahrenheit 451 was published, which was 1953. The book shows the future that Bradbury envisioned if this censorship continued, he told of a society that frowned upon excessive knowledge and free thinking. The book also focuses on society’s dependence on technology for all aspects of its everyday life. For instance, when Guy’s wife needs to have her stomach pumped a pair of dim-witted machine operators come to her aid rather that a doctor. This shows how machines and technology are seen as more important than personal intuition and intelligence. This idea is also represented in the robotic firehouse hound that replaces the traditional dalmation. Although Bradbury is conveying such a dark topic his se of symbolism gives the reader a glimpse of hope. The phoenix represents new beginnings and rebirth, which is why it is used throughout the book as a symbol of America rising from the metaphorical ashes of the present struggles and being reborn into a great civilization once more. The phoenix is first mentioned in a description of Montag’s uniform which might have been meant to foreshadow his role in the rebirth process of society as well as his own spiritual rebirth. The bird is also mentioned after the city is bombed when mankind is compared to a phoenix that continues to be reborn. Bradbury does a great job of making a story with such a complex subject and making it easy and enjoyable to read, his descriptions throughout the story ensure that the reader is easily able to continue reading the story. One such description comes on page 5 as Bradbury describes Guy’s walk home from work “The autumn leaves blew over the moonlit pavement in such a way as to make the girl who was moving there seem fixed to a sliding walk, letting the motion of the wind and the leaves carry her forward. Her head was half bent to watch her shoes stir the circling leaves. Her face was slender and milk-white, an in it was a kind of gentle hunger that touched over everything with tireless curiosity.” I enjoyed this book and the fact that it was written in such a way that made it easy to read and comprehend. After I began reading I found it quite hard to put the book dawn. I also like how the book made me think more about society today and how we are headed to a future that isn’t much different than the one portrayed in this book. I think that I will definitely read other books on this topic such as 1984 by George Orwell.

I read this book when it was first released way back in the distant past and have read it with some regularity over the years. Each reading provides something new. Most recent reading was about 2000 proved to be downright scary because it gave new meaning for the direction we are now headed. There is a fork in the road and our leaders seem to be leaning in favor of the road to abolish what does not please them. Perhaps Ray Bradbury was born twenty years too soon.