First Discussion Question for Fahrenheit 451

Fahrenheit 451 is very similar in story to 1984 which I read last summer for English. The sense of foreshadowing the possibly not to distant future and the knowledge of the main characters that not everything is how it should, both happen in the books. I like Fahrenheit 451 because of Bradbury's style of writing and the whole concept of the novel. I am an avid reader and the thought of a future when not only was it illegal to read books, but that action got yourself, your house, and your books burnt.

The novel reveals many of Ray Bradbury's values and attitudes about life and where the future is headed. I own the 50th anniversary edition with an interview with Bradbury at the end of the book. In the interview he states in response of if he thinks America is headed toward a future similar to what he wrote about, "Not for a moment. The main problem is education, not politics."(Bradbury 182). I know that he is the creator of the world when fire is the solution to anything that doesn't promote equality and serenity, but I think that the problem of education is pushing America toward a Fahrenheit like future. If less people can read and write, that is fewer people who read and appreciate books. The people are the ones who stopped reading books, then that is when the government took over and started burning them (Bradbury 183). If the average Joes of America stop caring about books, which many people already do, then we are on the path to Bradbury's future of Mechanical Hounds and Seashell ear radios.

Bradbury writes from the perspective of Guy Montag. He is the protagonist of the story and is the "hero". As Montag goes though changes in his opinion and faith in society and his job, the reader sees the world through new eyes instead of the brainwashed ones of the majority of the people in the future America. By becoming an outlaw, Montag is a great person to read about because then we get to see the government try to cover up what Montag has discovered.

Bradbury, Ray. Fahrenheit 451. New York: Ballantine, 2003. Print.