Essay on Censoring the Pages of Knowledge

Fahrenheit 451 is a book by Ray Bradbury, written after World War II and it examines the corruption of technology in a dystopian society. This book explains how a dystopian society works and how people are so attached to television and cars and do not enjoy the natural world. People in a dystopian society are full of fear and sadness. They do not have equality or freedom, they are all so soaked up in technology that it is illegal for them to do simple stuff, such as, reading books. The book, Fahrenheit 451 explains how firefighters start fires rather than stopping them. A firefighter’s job is do burn books, since books are illegal to have because they go against the power of technology and modernization. In a dystopian society, people should be unhappy, unequal, violent, and brutalized and that is what is exactly being seen throughout this book. As Ray Bradbury captures the attention of many readers, he captures our attention on how the future could be if technology would become so extreme. Bradbury’s novel, Fahrenheit 451 is not about control, but it is a novel about how television destroys curiosity in reading literature.

In the future, the job of firemen morphs from putting fires out to burning books. The story Fahrenheit 451 revolves around this issue of book burning, but there is a deeper meaning to the book. Bradbury is warning that the monopolizing effect of social media will transform generations to come into a society with no genuine connections, no distinctive thoughts, and excessive reliance on technology. This book was written in 1951, and today, the propositions are no longer fiction, but are becoming a reality.

To begin with, the author uses a woman, a character in the book, to explain how people suffer more when the government bans something to fix an issue. Montag and his boss, Beatty, have to burn a woman’s house because she has been caught with keeping books inside her home, and as per the law, the house must be burned along with the books. “You can’t ever have my books.” (woman, pg. 38) “You know the law… where’s your common sense? None of these books agree with each other.” (Beatty, pg. 38) “I want to stay here.” (pg. 39, woman) “Beatty flicked his fingers to spark the kerosene. (pg. 39) The action that the government did was for everyone, to protect the people from sadness, however, based on that woman’s attitude that she will die with her books, the government’s law wasn’t for everyone, and that woman was

The novel Fahrenheit 451 takes place in a dystopian society that represents the remnants of the United States. The novel explains that in this time period firefighters burn down houses instead of saving them. Firefighters demolish a house if they discover that the inhabitants are harboring books. Books seem like an ignorant thing to destroy a house over, but in this age books are believed to create original thought which could be a “horrible thing”. The main character is Montag, a firefighter, who rebels against the society after he witnesses the horrible death of an elderly woman who dies merely for reading a book. From this point, he seeks out more people who loathe the ideas of the government. In the end he discovers group a people who are dedicated to making literature and integral part of society. Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451 exhibits many similarities to the novel The Road by Cormac McCarthy.

People need to stand up for what they believe in and fight hard for it. In Fahrenheit 451 books are outlawed. Any person with books is evacuated from their home, and their books are burned in their house. The burning of books is a form of censorship by this book’s government because they are trying to limit people's knowledge.

FIrst of all, in Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, he shows the theme that the rules might not always benefit us. In the text on page 48, Bradbury states, “‘There must be something in books, things we can't imagine, to make a woman stay in a burning house; there must be something there. You don't stay for nothing.’” What Ray Bradbury is basically saying is that Guy thinks that there is something interesting in books that people haven’t seen before. Furthermore, he thinks it can benefit the city because people have been away from having their own thoughts and feelings. However, the rules are clear and state that people aren’t allowed to read books and whichever household contains books must be burned down. This shows that the rules might not always be good because there might be something for everyone to learn in a book, but people are not allowed to

Could you imagine a world with no books, and a government oppressing all of its citizens without them having a clue to what’s really going on? Some stay strong and don’t fall into the trap the government has set for its people. Guy Montag, a fireman whose job is to burn any books he finds, is finally starting to question if what he is doing is actually the right thing. The only world he has ever known is where fire is used for destruction and punishment. Ray Bradbury’s 1953 novel Fahrenheit 451 makes the reader realize the importance of books and the possibility of a world where fire is used to control people.

“Censorship reflects a society’s lack of confidence in itself. It is a hallmark of an authoritarian regime.” (Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart). This quote is showing exactly what the government in the dystopia of Fahrenheit 451 is doing wrong to the society. Written by Ray Bradbury in 1953, this book is set in the 24th century, where the population is controlled and books are illegal. The protagonist, Guy Montag, is a fireman in charge of burning any book that is found. The problem with the society, which relates to the quote above, is that the government has used censorship of knowledge and ideas to control the people; they did this in three major ways:

Ray Bradbury’s novel, Fahrenheit 451, depicts numerous ways the government controls the citizens and their beliefs. The protective state that firemen are portrayed as in modern society is transformed within this futuristic economy. This predominant bureaucracy downgrades books and the value of having them in society. Government authorities depict books as harmful and dangerous to humankind, yet there are still very few people who realize how useful their insight can be to a society. The importance of knowledge from books are illegalized within Fahrenheit 451, which causes this dystopian society to believe they are of equal intelligence and happiness when in reality it deprives the citizens of beneficial awareness.

The burning of those books that create discontent by the firemen in the plot of 451 is used to create a passive thinking, politically correct, ignorant society through the censorship of ideas. This idea is present in 451 due to Bradbury’s social context of censorship, which was prevalent during the time Bradbury was constructing the text. This shows that Bradbury has constructed 451 to be a criticism of censorship. The fireman, in Fahrenheit 451, sole job is to burn and destroy books, they burn books because they trigger thought, which then triggers discontent amongst the population. The destruction of those that trigger discontent is used to make a sterile, plain society. Furthermore this leads to a society of political correctness, due to

Fahrenheit 451 accurately portrays Censorship as it has been throughout history. Ray Bradbury was probably influenced by world events during his time, such as the cold war and other diplomatic leaders who have censored their citizens to avoid the truth from getting out. From politicians right now and their attempts to censor the media, to censorship from the history of other foreign countries the actions of the “Firemen” in Bradbury’s novel Fahrenheit 451 are similar in method and meaning. The action of the book burnings by the “Firemen” to destroy self-thinking and self-awareness has been shown in a never ending cycle within the book and throughout history. Disposing of offending literature, violence or potential harm to the authors of books and writings are just some of the method in which people use to ban literature.

Censorship throughout history is accurately portrayed in Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. From the politicians of today and their attempts to censor the media, to the censorship of the past by foreign countries, the actions of the “Firemen” in Bradbury’s novel Fahrenheit 451 are similar in method. It shows how encouraging censorship can lead to the loss of other freedoms. Examples of this censorship include banning of literature, banning of the internet, and no freedom.

In the sci-fi novel Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury censorship is a very important theme. The censorship gives a lot of power to the government, making the society seem like a dictatorship rather than a democracy. The government hires men to burn down houses that have been “infected” with books, because of this people have become numb to the outside world. They have almost no idea what’s happening outside of their own homes.

The story takes place years into the future where books are forbidden and firemen start fires rather than putting them out. Montag is introduced to Clarisse, a free-spirited abstruse 17 year old girl, who questions him and the society. Weeks later Clarisse is run over by a car. This is one way the theme of censorship is conveyed is revealed. Clarisse was a symbol of what a world of books would be like, and the society unable to comprehend her perspective found a way to get rid of her, or in this case censored what she represented. “Then she seemed to remember something and came back to look at him with wonder and curiosity. “Are you happy?” she said” (Bradbury, p.7). This question leads Montag to contemplate his occupation. He grabs a book in hopes of finding answers of why Clarisse was so different.

Rampant violence fills Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451. Violence is a reoccurring reality within the novel’s society. The novel’s most detrimental act of violence towards its people and their own individuality is the action of removing information and truths about different subjects. The most explicit example of this censoring of the truth and information is the burning of books by the firefighters in Fahrenheit 451. Destroying and eroding the truths and information of the world allows the controlling powers of the society to manipulate their people; the censorship intends to cause people to become less antagonistic towards one another and society. The society hopefully becomes easier to control and easier to appease. However, Bradbury’s assertion is that violence and conflict is still present within a society that censors truth and burns books.