Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury is a dystopian novel written in 1953 that somehow becomes increasingly poignant as it ages. It is known as a book about book burning because the protagonist is a "fireman" who burns down houses when a citizen is found to be harboring illegal books.
What makes Fahrenheit 451 different than other novels in this genre is that the society Bradbury describes was actually created by the people, not an evil government. The protagonist meets a former professor, Faber, who becomes a guide of sorts on his journey from ignorance to knowledge. Faber's description of society's downfall includes:
- People stopped reading because they preferred television.
- Parents stopped parenting.
- Schools stopped teaching critical thinking.
- Universities closed because students stopped enrolling.
- Religion became obsolete.
- War continued because people stopped paying attention.
What is really unusual and unexpected in this book-about-book-burning, is that Bradbury actually asserts that books themselves are not sacred objects that need to be protected. It is the ideas in books that the government is afraid of.
No, no, it's not books at all you're looking for! Take it where you can find it, in old phonograph records, old motion pictures, and in old friends; look for it in nature and look for it in yourself. Books were only one type of receptacle where we stored a lot of things we were afraid we might forget. There is nothing magical in them at all. The magic is only in what books say, how they stitched the patches of the universe together into one garment for us (Part II).
Faber goes on to explain that in addition to ideas, people must also have time to think about what they learn; and they must have the freedom to act upon those ideas. This is why the First Amendment is the most important part of the Constitution, and why the United States has been such a successful democracy for nearly 250 years. It's also the best way for students learn critical thinking: give them information, let them think about it, and then require them to do something with it (solve a problem, create a product, write an essay).
At Read Think Make I hope to share what I'm reading, my thoughts on those ideas, and my plans to make--make a change, make a difference, or maybe just make something cool. Thank you for joining me!
At Read Think Make I hope to share what I'm reading, my thoughts on those ideas, and my plans to make--make a change, make a difference, or maybe just make something cool. Thank you for joining me!