The universal theme of this novel is that creative outlets should not be censored. To censor a book is to take away people's free will and free thinking skills. Life would be boring if people were not allowed to try and change certain things. This censorship of books created a world where people never stopped to enjoy the life around them. There have been a few instances in history where this has happened. In World War II, people would burn books written my Jewish authors and books about Jewish culture. This was probably what inspired Bradbury to write this because he did not want history to repeat itself. This theme is important for any reader to know because no person should want to take away free thought.
A second universal theme in this novel is the creation of a utopia. The burning of the books in this novel showed that life in this era was trying to create a utopia sort of world. This is unattainable because there is no such thing as a perfect world because everyone has a different definition of perfect. A perfect world is only attainable unless you brainwash everyone, which was kind of done in this novel.This novel reminded me so much of George Orwell's 1984. Both novels contain levels of censorship related things and the creation of a perfect world that was not so perfect. They also had brainwashing mechanisms like the radio things in their ears in Fahrenheit 451 and the two minute hate in 1984. These two novels will probably be compared for a long time.
Another universal theme in this novel is do not be afraid to rebel, as long as it is for good reason. Montag rebels against his society because he sees how wrong it is to censor opinions and free thought so much! This theme is universal because it is important for everyone to know to stand up for their rights. If people do not stand up for their rights, then they will not get them. This is a greatly important theme.
Bradbury, Ray. Fahrenheit 451. New York: Ballantine, 1996. Print.
No comments:
Post a Comment