Fahrenheit 451

I read Bradbury's book on two different levels. The first being the themes of communism and censorship. The other level being the tone in which he writes which reflects the primal instinct that we as individuals have that allow us to function in society and stay alive. Also, how he writes (he is a literary genius), one can decipher how the thought process works in a fight or flight situation. The book is fantastic. I found nothing boring about it. There is action always going on to where you look forward to turning the page. A must read for anyone with intelligence.

Having not have read it in high school, this year I felt compelled to read it because of a sudden interest in Ray Bradbury.I regret having waited so long to read.Bradbury introduces themes that are more relevant today than ever before.My recommendation is to buy or borrow and read this book ASAP.

I am sad to say I had not read this book till age 27. What was wrong with my high school? No Bell Jar, no 451?

*Anyway* fascinating read and crazy to think that books may be obsolete in the future, quite sad, since I'm an avid reader. The premise of the story is about a fireman who knows nothing else but his job and what life is like now, until he meets a young "strange" girl who discusses actual real life with him. After that, Montag starts to wonder things outside the realm of what he always knew and starts to question his job and the purpose of burning books. He ends up rebelling and fighting for the cause.

If you liked 1984, this book is similar is some aspects (to me at least). The sad bleak future that these authors dreamed up with the loss of individualism and the control of telescreens/televisions everywhere with lack of intellect.

Ray Bradbury's "Fahrenheit 451" is one of his finest works. It was first published in October of 1953, and then serialized in the March - May issues of Playboy magazine. The novel originally began as a short story "Bright Phoenix", though that was not published until 1963, and from there it was lengthened into the novelette "The Fireman" which was published in February of 1951 in "Galaxy Magazine". It is a novel of a dystopian society, and stands along with George Orwell's "1984" and Aldous Huxley's "Brave New World" as the best early examples of that type of work.

Though it is easy to find similarities between "Fahrenheit 451" and the other two books, there are some key differences between them. In the earlier two works, the State appears to be the controlling force. We see this in the education centers in "Brave New World" and every aspect of the society in "1984", but in this work the society seems to have evolved from this through a change in social norms. People are judged by the number of wall sized televisions they have; books and intellectuals are spurned and eventually considered harmful to society. One should be happy, so news of the war is all in the background, and even the attempted suicide, or someone's death are mentioned in only in passing quickly and then the focus is back on happier subjects. People spend more time being entertained by a program called "My Family" then they spend interacting with their actual family, and for some children are a nuisance, so they are either not had, or if one has them they are sent off and only seen for short periods.

One of the most effective parts of this short novel is the way he incorporates the feel of the society into his writing style. One of the key descriptions of the life which the hero, Fireman Guy Montag, is living is noise. He can't think, because of the noise of the televisions his wife has on, and it is apparent that he didn't even notice this until he met Clarisse McClellan, a free-spirited teenager who has moved in next door with her parents and her uncle. His conversations with her are different, they require thought, and there is time for him to think because they happen outside of the noise of life. This noise continues and gets worse when Clarisse disappears from his life, but she has helped bring forward his natural curiosity. The noise continues, and as Guy deals with his wife, her friends, his boss, the mechanical hound, the other firemen, the signs of war, an old professor acquaintance, etc. This noise is felt by the reader two, as Bradbury throws this mix together, though leaves it clear enough that the reader picks up on what is really going on.

This noise is there through the first two sections of the book, and into the third section where at last Guy is pushed over the edge and commits the most desperate of acts, and by doing so he frees his mind. From then on, Guy is able to focus on the situation at hand, his being hunted, his escape, and his desire to save the thoughts and words of the books he has been destroying for so many years. He is able to discuss and think about the war and about Clarisse, his wife Mildred, and his actions; even though those are mostly sad and disturbing thoughts. The reader also feels the noise pressure is lifted, though he is certainly in danger.

This is a tremendous book, though very short as far as novels go. It is not simply a rewrite of "Brave New World" or "1984". Those works were produced first, and those authors are often given more literary merit while Bradbury is too often thought of as a writer of speculative fiction. Those works teach us to be wary of the government becoming too powerful, while this work teaches us to be wary of our own laziness and the anti-intellectual movement of our society through entertainment such as television. This work also teaches us to be tolerant of those who are not like everyone else. This work was selected to receive the Retro Hugo in 2004 for novels written in the year 1953.

Good read!

The most amazing part of "Fahrenheit 451" is that it was first written in 1950. Wow! That blows me away, a futuristic book written 58 years ago that in many ways is was right on.

The characters and story are excellent. Some of the writing in the book, I found to be difficult to grasp. Alot of intense dialogue between the main characters, several times, I wasn't quite sure who was talking to who.

Overall, a very good book, I look forward to reading some of Ray Bradbury's other classics!