Maria+Picciotti+-+Fahrenheit+451

Independent Reading, MP 4
 * Fahrenheit 451***




 * Title:** Fahrenheit 451


 * Author:** Ray Bradbury


 * Publisher:** Ballantine Books, 1st Published: 1953


 * Fun Fact:** Paper automatically combusts at 451 degrees Fahrenheit.


 * Main Character:** Guy Montag- your everyday, average joe. He works as a firemen (to burn any buildings found with books) and slowly begins to grow skeptical of his occupation and what it really means. He is intelligent and on the cusp of solving a mystery that most never whose existence most never acknowledge. He is not overly sure of himself, and he is one to follow rules. He is a dynamic character, changing when he decides to fight for what he is slowly coming to believe, but in some ways static once it is revealed that he has been suspicious all along. It turns out the book you read about him stealing is hardly his first... [Physical Description: 30 years old, "fierce grin," "dark, shiny eyes." It is also noted that he is ditry with charcoal stains and wearing his work uniform, bearing the number "451."]


 * Setting:** Guy Montag's house, the fire station, undefined futuristic. The season is the Autumn and lots of trees and falling leaves are made mention of. Also note: in Guy Montag's house, the walls have these interactive screens which characters that are often referenced almost as family or friends.


 * How to Read Like a Professor:** The books in this novel really didn't have to be books to be effective. It was more that they represented the knowledge withheld from society. The book would retain the same meaning as long as some representation of information was being destroyed.


 * Connections:**


 * North Korea-** In Fahrenheit 451, all media is regulated and manipulated before the public is exposed to it. The government controls what everybody gets to know and what accounts of world history the population is allowed to be aware of. In Fahrenheit 451, the same thing is present. Firemen don't even know that their job was once used to stop fires instead of start them. Their history is lost in a giant, censoring plot. Just the same as in North Korea, the citizens are blissfully unaware except for a few who grow suspicious and risk everything for the truth, often times ending up silenced in one way or another.


 * The Holocaust-** The same kind of deal as with North Korea, both histories are supressed. To many people in the world, still today even, the Holocaust is one giant rumor, much the same way firemen who put out fires are rumored in Fahrenheit 451. Some victims may realize what is happening to them, but they are not powerful enough to stand for themselves or tell other people. Even if they do take a chance and share their story, they're crazy and no one believes them. They're just the crazy conspiracy theorists.


 * Recommend this Book?** Yes. This book was a page-turner. I couldn't set it down. I read it straight through in one sitting and it really raised questions in my mind and even made me analyze my own life wondering if I could be oblivious to any kind of censorship the way the people in this book were. DEFINITELY a quick, worth-while read!!