Preview

Intellectual Freedom and Independent Thought in Fahrenheit 451

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1548 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Intellectual Freedom and Independent Thought in Fahrenheit 451
Intellectual Freedom and Independent Thought. Two very important things, but yet, depending on the society, not so much. In Fahrenheit 451, the people in the society did not have much intellectual freedom. Independent thought is something that no one, no should ever be deprived of, and yet, in this society, they were. There were simple things that were taught and simple things that the society lived by. People could not think what they wanted to think, say what they wanted to say, read what they wanted to read, or believe what they wanted to believe. They thought, said, read, and believed what the government thought was okay to think, say, read, and believe.
Think what you want to Think, Read what you want to Read, Say what you want to Say, Believe what you want to Believe. –Anonymous
Think like a man of action, act like a man of thought. – Henry L. Berguson
Life was simple in the society. Think about what is happening in the society, but don’t think about it too hard. Think about it just enough to where you know whether something good or bad happened. They could think about the future or what was going on at work. You couldn’t think about the past. There was no need for the past. They had no knowledge of the past. You couldn’t think about whether or not something was wrong or right other than the reason given by the government. There was no need to dig too deep into it. You couldn’t think about why. You couldn’t think about why things happened or why life went the way it did. There was nowhere near enough freedom to think what you want to think.
Life is good in our society today. We can think about what is happening in life and we can think about it as much as we want. We can come up with our own minds about what we think happened. We can listen to the government’s opinion, but we can also believe our own theories and our own conclusions. We can think about the past as much as we want to. We can think what books tell us and what our history

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    F451

    • 712 Words
    • 3 Pages

    In the novel Fahrenheit 451, the author Ray Bradbury uses a large amount of figurative language ranging from metaphors, similes, imagery, allusions and so forth to express his ideal focus and tone. The tone in particular expresses the sort of gloomy, melancholy, ignorant world in which the people of Fahrenheit 451 live. And though there are many identifiable themes such as censorship due to the government, advancing technology, etcetera, weaved throughout the book, the overall theme expressed in the pages is the separation between those who were ignorant opposed to those who were knowledgeable, for to be knowledgeable is to have access to everything, whereas to be ignorant, is to have access to nothing.…

    • 712 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    To some people knowledge is what powers society to new heights, to others however knowledge is just another word in the english language. There is a distinct difference between these two types of people making it so easy to compare and contrast them in many aspects. Fahrenheit 451 shows these two people in the world at an ongoing battle between each other which sets it up for quite the conflict. In Fahrenheit 451 Bradbury conveys that knowledge supersedes ignorance through Clarisse changing Montag, Montag getting Mrs Bowles out of his house, and showing the effects of television to society in negative ways.…

    • 892 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Fahrenheit 451 is a dystopian novel written by Ray Bradbury, published in 1953. The story depicts a futuristic American world, where all books and literature are forbidden. It is the job of the “Firemen” to burn all prohibited books and literature. The novel was inspired by similar times in history when the reading and publishing of specific types of literature, were also controlled. In the novel, it is apparent that the management of political power affects the actions, the minds, and the feelings of groups and of individuals in society. First, the actions, the minds, and the feelings of the people in the community will be greatly influenced by the propaganda and information let out by the government and political leaders. Fear greatly…

    • 875 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Fahrenheit 451 was a futuristic novel written by Ray Bradbury in the 1950s. In this new society the government rules and citizens are expected to obey the rules. Guy Montag, the main character, is your average man: a firefighter who is living happily, or so he thought, with his wife, Mildred, and follows the rules set in place by the government. He was average until a girl, Clarisse, helped him understand the value of knowledge therefore, allowing him to see the truth of society. The characters of Mildred and Clarisse serve as foils to one another in Bradbury’s novel thus symbolizing the dark and isolated aspects of the dystopian society, via Mildred, versus the light and incorporated aspects of society via Clarisse both sparking a sense of curiosity in Montag.…

    • 849 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Fahrenheit 451 shows us how censorship can go too far. In this novel, it is in the future where books, whether for knowledge or entertainment have been banned by the government. The government uses censorship of these mediums to control the public by limiting what kind of input the community has. This theme is shown by the settings, the characters, and with symbols.…

    • 534 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    However Fahrenheit 451 is a society you don’t want to live in. Books are illegal in there society. Fireman who are nothing like modern day fireman, burns yours houses because there could be hidden books. In modern day society you can have your books out in the open, reading whatever you want. Clearly, the novel is a dystopian society compared to the modern day society which…

    • 346 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    In Fahrenheit 451, Bradbury explores how a lack of knowledge can serve as a source of evil. To begin with, the dangers of suppression of ideas are starkly represented when a woman dies at the hands of firefighters order to protect her books.…

    • 317 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Dystopian Society

    • 544 Words
    • 3 Pages

    The novel, Fahrenheit 451, is a tale about a young man's adventure when his eyes finally open up and learns how to differentiate the good from the corruption and the deception spoon fed to him by his upper leaders. Though convinced that society is wonderful and prosperous through the usage of brainwashing, the presence of human misery can be felt from…

    • 544 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    In both these book independent thought is seen as a crime. In Fahrenheit 451 books are banned from the public and in the book 1984 they bann diaries and history books from the public. Another example can be the Hunger Games, in both of these books the children are forced to comply with the government. In the hunger games children are forced to tribute themselves and fight in the hunger games for their lives and in 1984 they are enlisted into the “Junior Spies” they are persuaded and encouraged to spy on their…

    • 1165 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Lets think about a Friday we are having SSR in class and we just went to the library and checked out books now we are back in our classroom reading. Next thing you know Mr. Felten and the police walk in and start taking books from us and arresting you for picking out those books. There is nothing you can do they rip the books out of your hands to take them to the back parking lot and burn them. They then handcuff you and read you your rights and how you are found in possession of banned books and now you will be spending a few days in lockup. You think this is crazy, but our society is not far from the society of Fahrenheit 451. Taking away our freedom of speech and our freedom to learn will bring our society to a halt and dependent on the government. There are four main reasons that the right of free speech and your right to think freely is so important. One free speech allows the truth to come out and surface to the top. Two a free society is more dynamic, making it possible for new inventions and ideas to come to light. Three free speech is a social good and allows one to become more knowledgeable and more fully rounded as a…

    • 778 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Once again, the television rules the society in the world of Fahrenheit 451, meaning that the television tells them what to think. No one in that society thinks, acts, or does anything on their own. Everyone is brainwashed. They are guided by a television telling them how to live their life. They have no agency whatsoever and don't even have control over their own mind. “If you hide your ignorance, no one will hit you and you'll never learn.” Mildred is clearly ignorant about the real meaning of books and can't act for herself. The world of Fahrenheit 451 is corrupted of knowledge and that is affecting their lives in a negative way. “Stuff your eyes with wonder, he said, live as if you’d drop dead in ten seconds. See the world. It’s more fantastic than any dream made or paid for in factories.” The people in Fahrenheit 451 aren't taking advantage of the wonders of the world because they are being told how to feel and what to do.…

    • 929 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Censorship was very commonly used by the government in Fahrenheit 451, although censorship can be used for good, they clearly used it wrongly for their own agenda. In order to do actions that do not benefit others, you must make sure no one is aware of If or how your action is damaging them; Censorship is commonly used to do this. The government would not allow people to read by censoring all books so that people could not develop an educated attack, because when people think for themselves they can band together and stop what you're doing. The government would also target people who thought for themselves and use them as expendables, as someone whom they can kill off to work towards their agenda, thus they are censoring the only form of free thinking. Another way that the government hid information is by using propaganda, propaganda is presenting your ideas in a way in which makes the negatives inapparent or you are manipulating the truth to your advantage. Propaganda, just like censorship, is commonly used for good but is very easily misused. Censorship in fact is part of propaganda, in which you are hiding some of the truth from your audience. The government hid the eye opening enlightenment reading brings and the importance of opinion, this extreme of a totalitarian government is the perfect example of propaganda used for evil.…

    • 232 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Why is it necessary for people to ask questions and think for themselves? Is it important to read books? Should human beings take the time to enjoy the simple things in life? These very questions are outlined in the novel Fahrenheit 451. In Fahrenheit 451, no one is allowed to ask questions and are only given answers, life goes by so fast that people aren’t allowed to stop and learn on their own time, and books are so sacred, yet so dangerous, they must be kept hidden.…

    • 560 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Freedom is a huge necessity in our civilization and society. Freedom is something we all need. Stories “Fahrenheit 451” , “Allegory of the cave”, and “2081 Harrison bergeron” all highlight the fact that our freedom is something we all need in order to grow as a person or society. Freedoms impact on humanity is that without it, our civilization and society will no longer grow.…

    • 284 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    “Life may change, but it may fly not; hope may vanish, but can die not, truth be veiled, but still it burneth, love repulsed, but it returneth.” Shelley…

    • 762 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays