For my Dystopian Novel, I read Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451, named for the temperature at which books burn.
The novel is set in a Dystopian America in the not too distant future. This America is very violent and has apparently reduced all opposing countries to next to nothing, and lives off of their labors. The government wants to keep its people in the dark, with very limited knowledge and thinking state. Censorship is a central plot point, as it is the primary method of controlling and reducing knowledge.
It's not just a portion of books that are censored, however. All books are outlawed and anyone who is found with books will have their books burned by the Firemen, the enforcers of this society. Those who try to resist the firemen are burnt along with their books or given a lethal injection by the mechanical hound, a spider-like robot.
The primary pressure on society is the conformity to illiteracy. Most of society accepts this pressure and follows the rules, But protagonist and fireman Guy Montag resists this pressure when he comes to see the horrors of his job, and when he takes a look at a book he was supposed to burn.
Bradbury is against the censorship seen in his novel, whose message comes across as a warning against letting any society set up that is similar to the one in Fahrenheit 451. I agree that it is important for a society to be as knowledgeable as possible because not only is it much more efficient, but also just.
-C. Gilchrist
I definately agree with what you had to say at the end of your statement. "The primary pressure on society is the conformity to illiteracy. Most of society accepts this pressure and follows the rules...". I think that in this day and age, although technology is a huge success and part of our culture, too much emphasis is put upon it. I think that it's extremely important that we continue to say educated and most important literate. What would it say about you if you couldn't read or understand a simple book? I'm always joked around with and made fun of because I'mconstantly reading and people nowadays find it oldfashioned and nerdy. But in my opinion, books are important. The type of books you read say something about the type of person you are.
ReplyDelete- Erin Bissot
Yes, I agree. If society stops reading and taking in worthwhile, stimulating information, It will stop thinking. And if society stops thinking... It becomes full of mindless puppets as seen in Bradbury's novel.
ReplyDelete-Collin G.