Summer Reading Essay
Over time things change in ways no one would have expected them to. In the novels 1984 by George Orwell and Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, significant symbols develop into different things along the course of the books. Both novels are relatively similar and consist of the same theme; the destruction of society due to government power. Even though the authors styles differ, each novel contains different symbols that evolve overtime.
Both Fahrenheit 451 and 1984 contain extremely important symbols that change overtime. In Fahrenheit 451, the fire is one many symbols that change over the course of the novel. “Is it true that long ago firemen put out fires instead of going to start them” (Bradbury 8). At the beginning of the novel, fire represents destruction. The government uses firemen to start fires on the homes of those who disobey the law, rather than put out fires for the safety of the citizens. By the end of the novel, the meaning of the fire changes. “The small motion, the white and red color, a strange fire
…show more content…
because it meant a different thing to him. It was not burning. It was warming” (Bradbury 145). At first, the fire was known for the destruction it did to those who didn’t obey the law. However as soon as Montag saw the fire warming people rather than harming things, the whole meaning of the fire changed. This shows that the meaning of fire in Fahrenheit 451 did in fact change. Orwell includes various symbols that change overtime in 1984 as well.
However, both authors portray the symbols in a different way. “The paperweight was the room he was in, and the coral was Julia’s life and his own, fixed in a sort of eternity at the heart of the crystal” (Orwell 147). The paperweight symbolizes the relationship of Julia and Winston. As soon as the paperweight breaks, the reader can infer what is to come. Orwell tells the reader what the symbol represents right away. He also compares the relationship to various parts of the paperweight. Bradbury explains his symbols in a different way. “He had never thought in his life that it could give as well as take. Even its smell was different” (Bradbury 146). Bradbury lets the reader infer the meaning of the symbolism along the course of the novel rather than explain it right. Although both authors have different styles, each novel contains symbols that evolve
overtime. Both authors have different writing styles. However, both novels contain symbols that change over the course of the book. Just like in reality, overtime things change and develop a new meaning.
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.
The novels Night and Fahrenheit 451 both carry messages about how society can be corrupted or destroyed. In the novel Night, the Jews do not listen to warnings about the incoming Germans, and most of them die in the Holocaust as a result, while in Fahrenheit 451, the citizens of that society have blind trust in authority and ignorance which eventually, at the end of the book, leads to the destruction of the society. Even though both books are written about different topics and of different times, they both share common messages about how to avoid the corruption and eventual destruction of a society.
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.
To say this novel is even remotely similar to anything being read in my high school classes would be an outright lie. The philosophical themes of existential dread, nihilism, absurdism and general apathy are unlike those found in any novel. Thus, it is fortunately unlike a great number of books and ripe for comparisons. “Fahrenheit 451” and “Huckleberry Finn” come to mind, as those books have plots centered around active rebellious tendencies and great adventures. In the book “Fahrenheit 451” the protagonist Guy Montag, when presented with great danger, makes an incredible escape in order to pursue his life and his curiosity. In stark contrast to Guy Montag’s exciting escape from his inanimate doom, the narrator (his name is Meursault, left out in some translations) accepts his death sentence as an implication of the inevitable. He does not know whether his is guilty or not of his crime, only that he has been sentenced to the guillotine and that an attempt to prolong his existence is
Fire is very common in basic human life and has many purposes. With its many uses, fire’s symbolic meaning is open to various interpretations. In regards to Fahrenheit 451 fire can symbolize knowledge, destruction, and also rebirth. Ray Bradbury illustrates correctly the ambiguity of fire’s metaphors through Montag. As Montag gains new perspectives on fire readers are shown that fire is a very prominent symbol with multiple meanings.
In both our society and Fahrenheit 451’s society, firemen keep people safe, but the way our firefighters keep us safe and the way the firefighters in Fahrenheit 451 keep us safe is quite different. To start off firemen in our society put out fires and save lives, where as the firemen in Fahrenheit 451 start fires and will burn anyone who gets in their way (Bradbury 36). Since firefighters in our society save lives and put out fires they are very respected and loved. It’s exactly the opposite for the firefighters in Fahrenheit 451 they are hated
During the course of the semester, I covered many topics during this class. These topics consist of; The Great Gatsby, The topic of Rationalism, Romanticism/transcendentalism, The crucible, and Fahrenheit 451. In this assignment, I was asked to summarise each topic with a single thing I could use to describe the meaning of the topic. I chose to summarise each topic in terms of a single quote. I chose quotes because of the open-mindedness of quotes. Everyone sees quotes differently, and they have different meanings for everyone. They are often used to express opinions, or public knowledge led to educate and inspire others.
Several conflicting frames of mind have played defining roles in shaping humanity throughout the twentieth century. Philosophical optimism of a bright future held by humanity in general was taken advantage of by the promise of a better life through sacrifice of individuality to the state. In the books Brave New World, 1984, and Fahrenheit 451 clear opposition to these subtle entrapments was voiced in similarly convincing ways. They first all established, to varying degrees of balance, the atmosphere and seductiveness of the “utopia” and the fear of the consequences of acting in the non-prescribed way through character development. A single character is alienated because of their inability to conform – often in protest to the forced conditions of happiness and well being. Their struggle is to hide this fact from the state’s relentless supervision of (supposedly) everything. This leads them to eventually come into conflict with some hand of the state which serves as the authors voice presenting the reader with the ‘absurdity’ of the principles on which the society is based. The similar fear of the state’s abuse of power and technology at the expense of human individuality present within these novels speaks to the relevance of these novels within their historical context and their usefulness for awakening people to the horrendous consequences of their ignorance.
There are many similarities and differences between WWII Germany and fahrenheit 451. The book burnings in nazi Germany and in fahrenheit 451 is crazy similar. They both have crazy leaders With all the similarities theirs burning books and limiting knowledge in an advanced society there government wants to control knowledge so they stay in power and there’s not a smart enough to overthrow the government. they burn books is a similarity they also outlaw books. But just as there are similarities in this book and in nazi germany there are differences. Like they don’t burn down the houses they just burn the books in germany. People weren't allowed to have or read books and if they did have books they would have to be burned by firemen.Rumors of
It is only once in a while a book comes along so great in its message, so frightening in its inferred meaning’s of fire as in Fahrenheit 451. Fire which is used as a symbol of chaos, destruction, and death can also lead to knowledge. Fire has 3 different meanings. Fire represents change which is shown through Montag’s symbolic change from using fire to burn knowledge into using fire to help him find knowledge; fire can represent knowledge as demonstrated through Faber, and fire can represent rebirth of knowledge as shown through the phoenix.
The first role that fire plays in Fahrenheit 451 is apparent from the very beginning of Bradbury's novel. "IT WAS A PLEASURE TO BURN. It was a pleasure to see things eaten, to see things blackened and changed" (3). In these first two sentences, Bradbury creates a sense of curiosity and irony because in the story, change is something controlled and unwanted by the government and society, so it is very unlikely that anything in Guy Montag's society could be changed. The burning described at this point represents the constructive energy that later leads to catastrophe. A clear picture of firemen is first seen when the narrator says, "With his symbolic helmet numbered 451 on his stolid head, and his eyes all orange flame with the thought of what came next, he flicked the igniter and the house jumped up in a gorging fire that burned the evening sky red and yellow and black" (3). Fahrenheit 451 is the temperature at which books burn and is symbolically written on the firemen’s helmets, tanks, and in the firestation.
When one first examines these two stories, they see a dehumanized society which is one way Orwell and Bradbury present their warnings about society. Both authors show this through lack of positive emotions, particularly love. In Fahrenheit 451, a teenager named Clarisse McClellan rubs a dandelion under Montag’s chin. Since the dandelion doesn’t rub off, she says Montag isn’t in love. He originally denies this, for he has a wife name Mildred, but later he realizes “That awful flower the other day, the dandelion! It had summed up everything” (Bradbury 41). Montag has reached the conclusion that he doesn’t love Mildred, his own wife! This epitomizes the dehumanized society of Fahrenheit 451, a society in which there are no strong emotions. Emotions are part of what defines being human. W...
In F 451 they used fire to destroy and it was to be feared. They used the fire to burn the books and the houses and in some cases the people. When describing the first burning of the story he says "books died on the porch and the lawn of the house" Bradbury uses fire to show death; the death of books (Bradbury 3). This shows that Bradbury views fire as destructive and in a way evil. Also in the end the town was bombed and burned to the ground so in this case fire was used to obliterate and cause mass destruction as well as in a way cleanse. However, in LOF the kids used the fire to signal for help. Ralph shows this when he says "we've got to have special people for looking after the fire. Any day there may be a ship out there" (Golding 43). The fire symbolized hope for rescue and hope for their lives. And in the end though Jack was using it to burn the whole island down the fire saved them. A naval officer saw it and came out to save them. The officer said "we saw your smoke" showing that it was the fire that saved them (Golding 201). So Golding sees fire as something to bring life and hope. So these two authors have very different opinions on what fire symbolizes and what it
In 1984, Orwell makes excellent use of symbolism to further enhance the novel's theme and to reveal character. He wrote 1984 as a political message to warn future generations about the dangers of totalitarian societies. He relays this message through various themes and characters, in turn utilizes powerful symbols to give them further significance. His symbolism is very vast but it can be classified into three categories: characters, places and objects.
Similarly, in Brave New World characters are encouraged to take a drug called ‘’soma’’ which enhances feelings of happiness and eradicates “negative” emotions, therefore, takes away any conflicts or stress characters may feel. I believe ‘’soma’’ is an apparatus to control society as it diminishes individuality which prevents characters from expressing their own personal thoughts and their accurate perception of reality. This makes society easier to control and produces the World State controller’s perfect members for civilisation, who are unable to elaborate their thoughts and be independent but remain pro World State. Like in 1984 , Brave New World removes those who do not fit in society and rebel against the World State such as the character John “the savage” who escapes the Savage