[Spoilers]
I haven't read a book in like four, five months, work and personal shit keeping me mad busy. Got this one as a birthday present, willed myself to read it because fuck it I needed it. Oh my god this was almost a near religious experience for me. Can't believe it came out nearly 70 years ago. Correct predictions for everything by Bradbury. Simplified content for mass consumption, screens all around, the intellectuals ostracized and crazy government policies just to maintain peace. I get it that it was a narrow field of vision, but that is what makes it perfect. Ray conveyed the sheer existential panic Guy feels perfectly without having to resort to complex world building. A short book, but made me think. We continue to head into a world not too dissimilar from what is in Fahrenheit 451. I think it's upon us to not drown too deep in the mindless content, we can't lose focus of arts and sciences. Humans are fickle and weak and we need to use our minds and brains for better things than endlessly scrolling through dance challenges (or even Reddit for that matter)
If you haven't read the book, I would strongly recommend it.
Edit: Some great original thoughts, book recommendations and opinions in the comments. I'm glad to contribute to a discussion!
As title said, it's really common to see people comparing these three novels, with people saying that one wins because it's more plausible or realistic. I really do think that in comparing and judging them in this way, we miss their ultimate purpose which is drive reflection and warn us of the roads to dystopia. The purpose isn't to say what will happen but what might happen based on present day ills. All three have different strengths:
Brave New World - As the famous quote about this one says, people are easily driven by pleasure and would happily submit to give up their personal freedoms if it meant constant pleasure. Considering the widespread materialism and drug use in society today, it's easy to see why this one seems to be most often cited as the winner.
1984 - I really think this is a lot more dynamic than people give it credit for. Sure, the authoritarian government with constant surveillance is terrifying but the constant claims that ANY country in the West is basically a step away from being like this in real life is ludicrous. China and North Korea on the other hand, not so much. To me, the most important thing to note is the concept of linguistic repression and the effect this has on freedom and human nature. When it goes beyond just what you say but how you think. Considering the fight today over appropriate words and the like, it remains highly relevant.
Fahrenheit 451 - Somewhat of a mixture between the two concepts. People want pleasure, albeit in the much more realistic form of cheap and easy entertainment which in turn allows authoritarian governments to do as they like. It also raises a really interesting concept that it was the people who wanted to ban any kind of media that challenged them, rather than some dystopic overseer.
All three books compliment each other and none of the point of any author was to "win". Each offers an exploration of our relationship as social creatures, with each other and with authority. I'm not saying reading a three will make you some kind of genius whilst the rest of world are sheep, but they will give some insight into your own behaviour and that of the world that you may not have if you didn't engage with them.
I don't know how to say this but the end gave me whiplash. It was a bit slow, Like "ooo is he gonna be caught" but then it just exploded. It felt like all happened so fast, and then it ended. I don't know if I really understand the "deeper meaning" but even at face value it's a good read for people. Some more things I have to say are i read this book during school after classwork, and I'm just speechless. When he got out of the city, the last thing I was expecting was it to be reduced to rubble. If even. And how Beatty knew almost the entire time made everything so very tense. And when he let Guy burn him, it poses a lot of questions for me. Based on what he said at the fire house I think he read a lot of books too. Faber was an interesting character he was like a real person. If I'm going to say more I'm going to need time process all of it. I am still in a state of just.. I don't know.
While looking through the subreddit for similar posts, I found that so many people focus on the books/TV aspect. I believe that if Ray Bradbury wrote this today, he probably would have chosen some different aspects of life (perhaps video games vs documentaries), but kept the theme. In 70 years, we might think about two new opposing forms of media. After all, I listened to the book with my earshells in.
I really don't believe that the theme is that books are good and TV is bad, I don't even believe that it is saying that escaping from life is a bad thing. I read this entire book feeling like he was saying that it is a bad thing for people to be anti-intellectual. The unwillingness to deal with any contradiction, the need to be told constantly what was happening and what to do. People didn't want the difficulty of books that may be wrong. They didn't want to think critically. Eventually, that led to removing themselves from reality because reality is difficult and hard, but the main reason for that removal was anti-intellectualism and the unwillingness to deal with anything more deep than a silly, vapid soap opera.
In other words, it felt more like Idiocracy than a Brave New World. Please be gentle about the use of those two in the same sentence.
I'm late to reading many classics and after reading the preview of Fahrenheit 451 on Amazon last night I decided to go to my library today and see if they had it. After going to where I expected it to be and not finding it I looked it up on the computer to find that their copy was in young adult.
All I know of the book is the synopsis, what I've read so far and hearing it mentioned over the years but I never really had the impression that the book was targeting a younger audience. Of course this is not to say that young adults can't or shouldn't read it but for its home in my library to be young adult seemed odd to me so I thought I would hear what you fine folks thought.
I look forward to reading more of the book, I like the writing style and it certainly has my interest so far!
I enjoyed this book so much. I'm getting into dystopian novels since I read Animal Farm (which is a great book too) and I learned of the classic dystopian universes like 1984 and Brave New World. But I was more interested in starting by Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. Because I found the story to be quite interesting and the depicted future in it to be quite plausible to happen. The idea of firemen starting fires instead of putting them out sounded quite original for me and terrified me in a way. I also loved how Montag's character develops from a non-hesitant man who mindlessly follows his superiors' orders, to a man who questions everything in a few days and starts to reconsider all his actions, dreaming of a more open-minded society. Clarisse McClellan played an important part in his development because she is the one who started Montag's questioning with that simple question "Are you happy?" And he found her to be quite intriguing yet the most interesting person he's ever met due to her non-conformity. I just loved their relationship even though Clarisse shortly appears in the beginning of the novel. I was so sad when she died run over by a car... I wished she would have stayed longer into the plot but I guess it had to be done, so Montag would really realise his misery and unhappiness. There's also Mildred... I disliked her a lot. She was so oblivious and easily manipulated by the TVs. She seemed to prefer her seashells and "family" to her own husband and I was like "how could he have married such a bland woman??". She was the embodiment of this society's product individual and while I hated her I found that to be very interesting. She might even have tried to commit suicide with her pills more than once and this tiny detail may give more depth to her character, like she tries to run away from her problems and search comfort with TVs and seashells. Beatty was a very complex character, because even though he claims to hate books and enjoys burning libraries and houses that hide them, he read a lot of them back in the time and even quotes them at times. That's why I didn't find him to be just a villain, maybe deep down he wished that society didn't ban literature as a whole but in order to survive and not suffer from alienation he chose to submit himself to the system. Unlike what Montag chose to do, save culture and protect literature. What makes it even more sad in my opinion is that right after burning Beatty and thus killing him, Montag thinks he
... keep reading on reddit ➡I didn't particularly "love" this book, but I did really like it. A lot of the things were really intriguing to me in the story. The part where Mildred is talking to her friends about how they just stick their children in front of the TV to avoid trouble makes it hard to believe this was written back in the 1950's. And I was really interested in Beatty's speech about how books became illegal.
However I still do have my critiques; the way it's written sometimes makes hard to for me to remember certain details that may be important, and it feels like there are things in the story that don't have any relevance to the overall outcome.
Overall, I give this book 8 out of 10.
What's your opinion though.
Am extras, acum cativa ani buni, niste fraze din aceasta carte si mi-am adus aminte de ele. As vrea sa le impartasesc cu voi, desi poate multi deja le stiti. Asa ca, aici e primul set de fraze extrase (mai e inca unul).
"O ora de televiziune, o ora de baschet, de baseball sau de alergari, o lectie de istorie sau de desen - la care copiem ceva -, pe urma alte sporturi. Asta-i scoala. Si stii, cei mai multi elevi nu pun niciodata intrebari; stam si inghitim numai raspunsuri, o avalansa de raspunsuri [...] Ajungem atat de sleiti la capatul fiecarei zile, ca nu mai suntem in stare de nimic altceva decat sa mergem la culcare sau in vreun parc de distractii"
"Gandeste-te la omul secolului al nouasprezecelea, cu caii, cainii si carutele lor domoale. Pe urma, in secolul douazecilea, ritmul vietii a devenit tot mai accelerat, iar cartile tot mai scurte, mai condensate.[...]Clasicii erau inghesuiti in emisiuni radiofonice de cate cinsprezece minute, apoi comprimati si mai mult, cat sa umple o rubrica literara de doua minute sau varati intr-un dictionar, sub forma unui rezumat de zece-douasprzece randuri [...] Asadar, nu stiau (oamenii) despre Hamlet decat ceea ce se spunea intr-un rezumat de-o pagina, intr-o carte care pretindea: "Acum puteti, in sfarsit, citi toti clasicii! Nu va lasati mai prejos decat vecinii vostri!" Pricepi? De la gradinita la universitate, iar de la universitate inapoi la gradinita, asta a fost nivelul intelectual al oamenilor timp de 5 secole sau chiar mai mult."
"Durata studiilor din ce in ce mai redusa, disciplina slabita, filozofia, istoria si studiul limbiilor abandonate, limba engleza si ortografia ei neglijate treptat, iar in cele din urma complet ignorate.Viata e scurta. Inainte de toate conteaza slujba, iar dupa slujba distractiile sunt destule! Ce rost are sa inveti altceva decat sa apesi pe butoane, sa tragi de manete si sa fixezi suruburile in piulite?"
"- Cat mai multe sporturi pentru toata lumea, sporturile ii fac pe oameni mai sociabili, sunt distractive si nu cer niciun efort de gandire, nu-i asa? Organizeaza, organizeaza si super-organizeaza super-super-super sporturi. Cat mai multe carti cu poze, cat mai multe filme! Si din ce in ce mai putina hrana pentru minte. Nerabdare generala. Soselele din ce in ce mai ticsite de multimi indreptandu-se undeva, nicaieri. Refugiati ai beniznei. Orase transformate in moteluri, oameni vagabonzi cutreierand din loc in loc, urmand fluxul si refluxul, traind in noaptea asta in camera
... keep reading on reddit ➡Something that has really jolted me is the realization that how similar our world is dystopia Bradbury has created, it's almost prophetic. We don't have firemen burning books sure, but don't we all spend so much of our leisure time simply scrolling down a screen, with no apparent motivation, without encountering anything that requires even a bit of contemplation? It's almost nightmarish.
I didn't like the ending much, also, was a bit hard to get in the sort of internal monologue-esque language that was used at times. But this vision of a dystopia of people becoming so manipulatable merely by corporations and governments hijacking their leisure time and converting them into miserable, pathetic, docile consumers is definitely something that has given me a lot to think about and is going to affect the way I live my everyday life a lot.
Dear fellow reddit Folio Fans:
Last week I shared my first attempt at a Folio Society video here, hoping for views sure, but really asking for feedback. I was encouraged and humbled from the words left by this fine community about that first video. My intention was to give the under-served older Folio editions a little more love, and started with To Kill a Mockingbird. However, this week I did Fahrenheit 451. As this is a more recent release, I’m sure many here already have it, or have taken a tour of the volume from the large number of Internet videos on this particular title. I plan to get back to the older stuff next week with a look at I, Claudius.
When it comes to this second video, again I’d like to ask - if indeed you have both the time and the desire – for your time and feedback. There are a few technical wrinkles I’m still trying to iron out, but I hope to continue making adjustments and improve as I go, and there is no better way to get there than with the help of actual Folio lovers. Thank you again for your time, and all the best!
As the title suggests. I enjoyed it, but less so than some of the other books on my list, and I was wondering if a lot of people had to read it for school and also included it? Is there a list of a few books to avoid?
This is surely one of those books that I can give a 5-star rating.
I like how this book tackles an interesting concept of censorship where all the books are burned with fire and the firemen are those who do not extinguish the fire but start it. Unbelievable!
The story was short and incredibly intriguing thanks to the writing style of Ray Bradbury. Now I understand why people keep this with another dystopian classic masterpiece 1984 by George Orwell. Books are to be preserved not to be burned and buried.
The story is an excellent example of a society where there is no free speech and no control over one's life. Time and again multiple people would go against it and eventually this type of system would always be destroyed. Don't you think?
Edit: WOAH! It has been 4 hours and already a lot of interesting thoughts has flowed in. You guys are awesome!
Aici gasiti I: https://www.reddit.com/r/Romania/comments/ryxuy4/i_fahrenheit_451_scrisa_in_1953/
"- Dar toti pe care-i cunosc zbiara sau topaie ca niste apucati si se bat intre ei.Ai bagat de seama cat de brutali au
devenit oamenii unii cu altii?
- Vorbesti ca un om foarte batran.
- Cateodata chiar sunt antica. Mi-e frica de copii de varsta mea: se omoara intre ei. Oare asa a fost intotdeauna? Unchiul
meu spune ca nu. Sase dintre colegii meiau fost impuscati numai in ultimul an. Alti zece au murit in accidente de automobil
(cursele cu masini ce goneau cu 180km/h erau distractia principala in cartea lui Bradbury si la care copii aveau acces usor)"
"- Uneori ma furisez si trag cu urechea prin statiile de metrou sau pe langa automatele cu racoritoare. Si stii ce se intampla"
- Ce anume?
- Oamenii nu vorbesc despre nimic.
- Nu se poate!
- Nu vorbesc despre nimic. Pomonesc doar de masini, de haine sau piscine si spun: ce grozav! Atat tot. Dar toti au acelasi limbaj stereotip, nimeni nu spunde ceva deosebit. Iar in cafenele, mai tot timpul si-l petrec punand tonomatul cu glume sa debiteze aceleasi bancuri sau zgaindu-se la peretele muzical, pe care curg intr-una imagini colorate abstractioniste, fara nici o noima."
"Cat despre muzee, ce sa mai vorbim! Ai intrat vreodata intr-un muzeu? Totul este pictura abstracta, altceva nu gasesti acolo. Unchiul meu spune ca altadata era cu totul altfel. Pe vremuri, pictura avea un cate'un talc, ba chiar infatisa oameni"
"Fapt este ca treaba n-a mers prea bine pana nu s-a perfectionat fotografia, pe urma cinematograful - cam pe la inceputul secolului al douazecilea. Pe urma radioul si televiziunea. Si productia in serie. Ei, si lucrurile produse in serie au devenit mai simple. Odinioara, cartile ii interesau doar
pe cativa oameni, risipiti ici, colo. Dar dupa aceea lumea s-a umplut de ochi, de coate, de guri. Populatia a crescut de doua, de trei, de partu ori. Filmele si radioul, revistele si cartile au devenit toate o apa si un pamant, un fel de coca facuta dupa aceeasi reteta, esti atent?"
"Rezumate rezumate. Rezumate rezumate in rezumat. Politica? O coloana, doua fraze si un titlu. Mainile agile ale editorilor, ale gazetarilor si ale comentatorilor de radio invartesc repede-repede pompa centrifuga ca sa elimine din mintea oamenilor orice gand inutil, parazitar"
"Ore libere, da. Dar timp de gand
... keep reading on reddit ➡Granger stood looking back with Montag. “Everyone must leave something behind when he dies, my grandfather said. A child or a book or a painting or a house or a wall built or a pair of shoes made. Or a garden planted. Something your hand touched some way so your soul has somewhere to go when you die, and when people look at that tree or that flower you planted, you're there. It doesn't matter what you do, he said, so long as you change something from the way it was before you touched it into something that's like you after you take your hands away. The difference between the man who just cuts lawns and a real gardener is in the touching, he said. The lawn-cutter might just as well not have been there at all; the gardener will be there a lifetime.”
The above is one of my most favorite prose ever written in fiction. Its from Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury.
I simply love the way Bradbury writes. His language for me is like honeyed velvet. Though flows gently, strikes my heart in a fierce manner.
Secondly, I loved the piece of wisdom he sprinkled all over the novel. Its not just the story but the quotes, the dialogues, all of them were quite profound for me. Being an avid reader, whatever he said about book hit close to home.
I have been reading a lot of the classics lately and this is the latest one I have been reading. Great book so far, and one that feels extremely relevant today with some of the current political issues we are facing. Obviously Ray Bradbury felt the same way when he wrote the book but I am wondering if anyone else has recently read it and feels the same way or if anyone read it at any other point in time and had the same feeling of “wow, it is weird that I am reading this now because it seems like we are heading in this direction” or didn’t at the time but now feels that way.
We just finished reading the novel as a class and are finishing up a project. But it turns out I need one more day before the trimester finishes up. And I'd love to read a short story.
So is there a good short story that ties in well with it?
I know this book is incredibly famous, and I know it’s a bit of an allegorical book, but even with parables you do get swept up into the characters and the storyline - in the moment perhaps even more than the actual takeaway the author is trying to get across. And it felt like the ending was just cut right in the center of the storyline. Which it was. I know the moral, I understand what Bradbury wanted to convey, but I want to know what happened in the end to Montag and Faber and what they ended up doing. I’m sure there’s fanfiction out there, and some theorize Faber died, but I just!! Want to know!! What the next radical steps Montag took were. What did he learn about himself. Who else did he meet. It’s driving me nuts! I left this intentionally vague in case someone is reading it and accidentally clicked on this post and didn’t want spoilers.
Like I feel like these books were pretty advanced for a 16-17 year old.
But none of that books seem to match brave new world for me, maybe I should try another type of books, any recommendations😅
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