Dystopias in literature and other media serve as impactful warnings about the state of our current life and the possible future. Two examples of this are in the book Fahrenheit 451 and the movie The Truman Show. Both works show the harmful effects of advancing technology and the antisocial tendencies of a growing society. The protagonists of these stories are very similar also. Guy Montag and Truman Burbank are the only observant people in societies where it is the norm to turn a blind eye to the evils surrounding them. Fahrenheit 451 and The Truman Show present like messages in very unlike universes while giving a thought-provoking glimpse into the future of humanity. Guy Montag’s life, job, and wife were perfectly fine. He truly took pleasure in burning houses that contained books; this was what the …show more content…
After his realization, Truman lives his life knowing he cannot be harmed. The entire ‘world’ revolves around him and none of the actors are allowed to hurt or physically stop him. The opposite is true for Montag; the entire world is gunning for him. Upon finding out that Montag has been reading, the government is determined to let him know that doing so was a mistake. This pressure and aspect of danger only serves to motivate Montag, pushing him to further investigate and learn. For Truman, however, it is his invincibility that pushing him to act on his findings about the world. Another difference between the plots of these works is the protagonists’ interaction with the antagonists. Truman personally communicates with his father in order to learn more about why he did what he had done. Though Montag did murder Beatty, the fire chief, there was never a direct conflict between him and the government, the overall enemy of the story. These minor differences ensure that the works are separate and enjoyable, while still presenting the same underlying dystopian
The passage above is talking about how a woman burnt herself to save her books. The passage suggests how people fight for what they want. When the author included this event, he was trying to show how Montag starts to change. Guy Montag begins to doubt his job, and believes that he is not doing the correct thing, he realizes he is causing harm. Montag didn't understand why someone would sacrifice their life for a book, but the only way to figure that out was to read. The author made Montag curious of the event, and that's how he introduced his passion to books.
In the beginning of Fahrenheit 451, Guy Montag is just an average citizen. He is a fireman who loves his job. Guy loved to burn books. He even states "It was a special pleasure to see things eaten, to see things bl...
In most stories we enjoy, may it be from childhood or something more recent there is many times a theme that shows a clear hero and a clear villain. But ordinarily this is not the case in real life, there are few times that this is quite that simple. There are many sides to each story, and sometimes people turn a blind eye to, or ignore the opposing side’s argument. But if we look at both sides of a situation in the stories we can more clearly understand what is going on, moreover the villains in the book or play would seem more real, instead of a horrible person being evil for no reason, these two people have their own agenda may it be a ruthless vengeance or misplaced trust.
Ray Bradbury's novel Fahrenheit 451 speculates on a future society in which there is no real knowledge, just a façade of lies because there are no testaments of truth, books. This book shares a plot much like that of the Warner Brothers' blockbuster, Matrix, in which the human race is kept in the shadow of the truth by being put into a virtual reality. In both stories a destroyed civilization is being suppressed by an evil leader. Also, in both of these works have an average man rise from the ashes of his previous life and become instruments in the changing of the way life is. Of course, no story would be complete without the tenacious leaders who push the chosen ones to become what they are. Morpheus is the leader of the light, as is Faber, Beatty is the evil which replicates himself onto others to keep them in ignorance, just like Agent Smith physically replicates himself. And the powerless which becomes powerful, the one, Neo is the mirror of Montag, the fireman.
Once Montag witnesses the unethical extent that the firemen would go through to destroy the existence of books, he realizes how corrupt and unjust the societal rules were. “He looked with dismay at the floor. ‘We burned an old woman with her books” (47).
The novel first introduces Guy Montag who is a fireman. He is not the average fireman though because instead of putting out fires he starts fires to burn books and the homes they are being hidden in. The novel introduces Montag as a happy man who loves his wife and his job. In Fahrenheit 451, Montag comes to the realization that he is not happy in his marriage or life in general after meeting Clarisse. Bradbury uses his words to describe Montag’s questions about life and his happiness. Bradbury has Montag questioning his beliefs about books and if they really are so hurtful. Montag said, “And I thought about books. And for the first time I realized that a man was behind each one of the books” (Bradbury 49). In the previous quote, Bradbury uses
Furthermore, Montag’s identity changes with the burning of the old woman which shook him to the core causing him to steal the Bible. However, Montag relays his curiosity, he has found with books to his wife, Mildred, “You weren't there, you didn't see," he said. "There must be something in books, things we can't imagine, to make a woman stay in a burning house; there must be something there. You don't stay for nothing” (Bradbury 48). In fact, this was the first instance Montag realizes that the burning of books such as Whitman, Faulkner and Millay is wrong, but also showcases how curiosity has killed the liking of his job. Curiosity has killed Montag’s relationship with himself. Although, Montag changes as a person, one of the most drastic relationship changes came from Montag and Beatty. In previous sections, Beatty is described to have been curious about the books when he was younger just like Montag now. Furthermore, these two seem to form a bound right away, however; this bond is broken when Beatty betrays Montag by bringing Montag back to his home to light it on fire. Instead, Montag kills Beatty with the
The Hunger Games and Fahrenheit 451 are both great examples of dystopian fiction. A dystopia is a fictional world that takes place in the future that is supposed to be perceived as a perfect society, but it’s actually the opposite. Other things that a dystopian society might display are citizens both living in a dehumanized state and feeling like they’re constantly watched by a higher power. Dystopias are places where society is backwards or unfair, and they are usually are controlled by the government, technology, or a particular religion. The Hunger Games and Fahrenheit 451 are both in the dystopian fiction genre because the societies within them show the traits of a dystopia. Both of them also have characters that go against the flow of the normal world.
“Behind his mask of conformity, Montag gradually undergoes a change of values. Montag realized his life had been meaningless without books” (Liukkonen). In the beginning of the novel, Montag said, “It was a pleasure to burn. It was a special pleasure to see things eaten, to see things blackened and changed” (Bradbury 3). For most of his life, Montag conformed just like the other members of society. He set things on fire because it was his job and did not question whether or not it was the right thing to do. Throughout the story, however, he grew to find and voice his own opinions and resisted the conformity that his society stressed. When Montag had to decide whether or not to burn Beatty to death, he proved himself by not giving in to what was expected. He killed the captain of the police department, which was an entirely defiant act (Bradbury
The book Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury illustrates a dystopia of what Bradbury believes might eventually happen to society. This is extensively referenced to in Captain Beatty’s monologue lecture to Guy Montag explaining how Bradbury’s dystopia came to be, and why books are no longer necessary to that society and therefore were completely removed and made illegal. Ray Bradbury’s main fears in the evolution of society can be broken down into three ideas; loss of individuality, overuse of technology, and the quickening of daily life. If society goes on as it is, Bradbury is afraid that media will be more brief, people will become less individual, life will be more fast paced, minorities will have too much voice, and technology will become unnaturally prominent everyday life.
Nearly two and a half centuries ago, the American Revolutionary war was waged over an idea that is still even contested about in today's society. That provocative idea is called freedom. It sparked the colonial revolt in the thirteen colonies and it split the the United States in two during the American Civil War. As well as being involved with war, the idea of free will has also been at the center of the entertainment business, especially with these titles: The Truman Show and the novel 1984. Both of these titles are centered around the concept of freedom, except each has a different outcome. In The Truman Show, the protagonist (Jim Carrey) is able to make his own choice to obtain free will. However, in the book 1984, the protagonist is unable
Guy Montag is a fireman who is greatly influenced in Ray Bradbury's novel, Fahrenheit 451. The job of a fireman in this futuristic society is to burn down houses with books in them. Montag has always enjoyed his job, that is until Clarisse McClellan comes along. Clarisse is seventeen and crazy. At least, this is what her uncle, whom she gets many of her ideas about the world from, describes her as. Clarisse and Montag befriend each other quickly, and Clarisse's impact on Montag is enormous. Clarisse comes into Montag's life, and immediately begins to question his relationship with his wife, his career, and his happiness. Also, Clarisse shows Montag how to appreciate the simple things in life. She teaches him to care about other people and their feelings. By the end of the novel, we can see that Montag is forever changed by Clarisse.
When Montag meets Clarisse, his neighbor, he starts to notice that there is more to life than burning books. Montag states, “Last night I thought about all the kerosene I have used in the past ten years. And I thought about books. And for the first time I realized that a man was behind each one of those books” (Bradbury 49). It begins to bother Montag that all he has done for the past years is burn books. He starts to rethink his whole life, and how he has been living it. Montag goes on to say, “It took some men a lifetime maybe to put some of his thoughts down, looking around at the world and life and then I come along in two minutes and boom! It is all over” (Bradbury 49) Before, Montag never cares about what he has been doing to the books, but when he begins to ignore the distractions and really think about life he starts to notice that he has been destroying some other mans work. Montag begins to think more of the world
Fahrenheit 451 is a science fiction book that still reflects to our current world. Bradbury does a nice job predicting what the world would be like in the future; the future for his time period and for ours as well. The society Bradbury describes is, in many ways, like the one we are living in now.
As has been noted, Bradbury and Orwell effectively send their warnings to their readers through the use of a dehumanized setting and the theme of manipulation and lies. Despite recognizing the atrocities prevalent in society, neither Montag nor Winston is able to make a large impact on society. At the end of Fahrenheit 451, Montag escapes the city to join a secret civilization living in the woods. The city is destroyed and Montag heads into an uncertain future. On the contrary, Winston is caught by the regime. They torture him and transform him so that he becomes an ardent supporter of them. Despite these different endings, both authors, through merely ink and paper, warned of, and could have helped prevented a world filled filled with hate, ignorance, and misery.