Fahrenheit 451 By Ray Bradbury

Author Information Born in 1920 in Waukegan, Illinois Graduated from a Los Angeles high school in 1938 Did not attend college Became “student of life” Fulltime writer as of 1943 Has worked in film and television

Historical Context 1930s: Nazis burned books in Germany Newsreels appalled teenage Bradbury 1940s: House Un-American Activities Committee investigated movie industry WWII: Atomic bombs dropped by USA 1950s: Popularity of TV greatly increased 1953: Fahrenheit 451 published

Political Correctness Major Themes Censorship Entertainment Political Correctness Happiness

Censorship: Cut, Cut, Cut! Suppressing or limiting knowledge Who censors? The government? The people? Speech, Music, Books, Films, Television…

Entertainment: Sit Back and Relax Are we amusing ourselves to death? Can it be addicting Is it used as a distraction Is it imposed upon us? Do we seek it? Should it be limited? How?

Political Correctness: Watch Your Mouth! Used to describe language, ideas, or behaviors intended to avoid offending racial, cultural, or other identity groups (being “PC”) Connects to idea of censorship Where are the limitations?

Happiness: Don’t Worry, Be Happy Related to entertainment theme Do we just occupy our time with meaningless activities? What does this keep us from doing? How is happiness defined?

Main Characters Guy Montag – Mildred Montag – Captain Beatty - Protagonist 3rd generation fireman Looking for knowledge and truth Unhappy with society and wants to break free from oppression Mildred Montag – Guy’s wife Small minded, childish, selfish, and obsessed with watching television Perfect example of what people in this society are like Captain Beatty - Captain of Montag’s firehouse Well read but hates book and anyone who wants to/ does read them Perceptive, devious, cunning Clarisse – Neighbor of the Montag’s 17 years old Genuinely happy with her family, curious, intelligent, questioning An outcast because she likes to ask questions, examine nature, take walks

Main Characters Professor Faber – Granger – Retired English Professor Loves books and would like to own some Believes himself to be a coward because he never stood up to the censorship when it started First meets Montag 1 year before the beginning of the book Granger – Leader of the Book People: people who have escaped society in order to preserve literature Brave, intelligent Believes in the strength of the human spirit Mrs. Phelps and Mrs. Bowles – Friends of Mildred’s Perfect examples of society at large Stoneman and Black – Two firemen who work with Montag

Fahrenheit 451 Information Information necessary to understanding the novel: Firemen do not put out fires – they start them Firemen start fires – they are called to the homes of people who own and read books. For committing this heinous crime, their houses are burned and they are taken to jail. Houses are fireproof but belongings are not Firemen are told that this has always been the scope of their job. In fact, they are told that Benjamin Franklin was the first fireman and book burner.

How is the Story Told? Genre Science Fiction Dystopian Literature Bad place (Greek); Opposite of a perfect world (utopia) Utopia=play on Greek eutopia (good place) and outopia (no place); Perfect society Setting – sometime during the 21st century in an unknown city/country Narrator – 3rd person limited omniscient, essentially follows Montag’s point of view Organization – Novel is set-up in three sections: Book 1 – The Hearth and the Salamander Book 2 – The Sieve and the Sand Book 3 – Burning Bright

Key Terms Utopia – (n.) an ideal place Censorship – (v.) the practice of examining material in order to suppress or delete anything considered to be objectionable Phoenix – (n.) mythical bird said to burn itself only to rise from the ashes and live again Science Fiction – (n.)a work of fiction that tells a story usually set in the future where there are advancements in science or technology Imagery – (n.) description that appeals to one or more of the five senses