Fahrenheit 451 is a book I’ve heard a lot about and is frequently referenced in popular culture. I heard it was banned in schools for a while, though I’m not sure if that’s true. Either way, I was very excited to read it. This book was sent to me by a friend/fellow reader, which makes it even more special. This book is also in one of my favorite genres: dystopian future/science fiction. Spoiler alert!
To fully understand this world, you must first know the time period in which it was written: the 1950s. You must imagine the author, Ray Bradbury, living in these times. The Cold War was in full effect, TVs were becoming more and more popular every day, and cars were the latest craze for young teens. Life in America was generally good. The economy was booming, and new inventions that made life easier for even the lowest economic classes were coming out daily.
To fully grasp the commentary of the book, you must imagine a future written by someone living in this past.
The main character is an old fireman named Montag, although “fireman” in this world is a completely different type of profession. In this world, books are illegal, and when a concerned citizen reports someone having books, the alarm is sounded at the firehouse. The firemen hurry over in their firetrucks, filled with kerosene instead of water, and burn the books as fast as possible. These firemen think this is what firemen have always done since there are no books to inform them otherwise. The hounds in this world are also fireproof, making it even harder for them to imagine another use for “firemen.”
Everyone is very happy in this world. They have TV rooms with screens instead of walls, so the TV characters they watch all day feel like family. The TV can even replace character names with your own to make you feel even more engaged. The youth, on the other hand, have no discipline and drive their super-fast hover cars all night, causing trouble.
Montag begins to question this life when he goes to burn some lady’s books, and she lights herself on fire in protest. He returns home after this to a wife he barely knows, who is trying to kill herself with sleeping pills. Don’t worry, though; they have a stomach pump service that comes to your house at night for this very common occurrence.
The name of the book comes from the temperature at which book paper burns. It is rumored that when Ray Bradbury had the idea for the name, he called up a local fire department to ask for the correct temperature of fire for paper. The introduction to the book suggests the fireman lied to him. If I wasn’t in prison, I would Google the real temperature.
Great book. 5 out of 5 stars.
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