1. An Introduction to Fahrenheit 451. -- “The temperature at which
An Introduction to Fahrenheit “The temperature at which book paper catches fire and burns…”
By Ray Bradbury

2. Books / Reading / Education leads to power.
Agree or Disagree
Books / Reading / Education leads to power.
Explain your position.

3. Agree or Disagree
The government should make its citizens aware of absolutely everything that they’re doing / planning / discussing.
Explain your position.

4. There are times when too much knowledge is harmful / dangerous.
Agree or Disagree
There are times when too much knowledge is harmful / dangerous.
Explain your position.

5. Agree or Disagree
Ignorance is Bliss.
Explain your position.

6. Citizens should obey their government.
Agree or Disagree
Citizens should obey their government.
Explain your position.

7. Utopian Literature Dystopian Literature
Literature that describes an imaginary ideal world.
Coined by Thomas More
Pun on the Greek eutopia “good place” and outopia “no place”
Literature that describes an imaginary world that is highly unpleasant (opposite of utopian).
Greek term for “bad place”
Fahrenheit 451 is a dystopian novel.

8. Setting, historical context
Fahrenheit 451 (1953) is set in a future, American society
events of the 1950’s greatly influenced the story’s plot.
WWII recently ended
Atomic bombs - Nagasaki and Hiroshima
Cold War - fear of communism and nuclear warfare reflected in many aspects of Western culture.

9. American 1950s (when F451 was written)
Booming economy = opportunity, disposable income
60% of Americans were considered “middle class”= consumerism (encourages the acquisition of goods and services in ever- increasing amounts)
Electronics industry became 5th largest industry post-war.
“Baby Boom” = influx of babies born in the US = return of stable home life (nuclear family, home ownership…)

10. Television was both popular and controversial
Prime Time shows presented a standardized view of the white suburban middle class nuclear family
Mom at home, dad at the office, happy kids, no serious problems
Avoided controversy and prevalent social issues
Race inequality, gender inequality, poverty…
TV had a heavy influence on American viewers

11. In the futuristic world of Fahrenheit 451, everything is fireproofed
In the 1950s the use of asbestos, a mixture of minerals used to make noncombustible materials, became extremely popular.
Fun Fact: the first 200 copies of Fahrenheit 451 were bound in a fireproof material.

12. What is Censorship? Why are Books Banned?

13. Censor- (n) an official who examines material that is about to be released, such as books, movies, news, and art, and suppresses any parts that are considered obscene, politically unacceptable, or a threat to security
Censor- (v) examine (a book, movie, etc.) officially and suppress unacceptable parts of it
Restriction-when a book is kept from a certain audience based on the objections of a person or group.
Banned –when a book completely removed from an institution because of the objections of a person or group.
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

15. WWII Germany, thousands of books that were unapproved by the Nazi party were burned.
Communist Russia and China, which rose after the war, have also banned books due to perceived threat to Communism.
Dictatorships that survived the war, such as the Soviet Union and Spain, also banned and burned books. The authors of these works were also persecuted.
Book Burning

16. Interview with Ray Bradbury
451/media/
Interview with Ray Bradbury

17. Ray Bradbury and Book Burning
“Do not insult me with the beheadings, finger-choppings, or the lung-deflations you plan for my works. I need my head to shake or nod, my hand to wave or make into a fist, my lungs to shout or whisper with. I will not go gently onto a shelf, degutted, to become a non-book.”
Ray Bradbury and Book Burning