Fahrenheit 451 Paper
This 2-3 page paper (rough draft) will be due on Tuesday, May 29th!
YOU WILL NEED TO USE 3 QUOTATIONS CITED!
*NOTE: This is the day after Memorial Day; plan ahead!
Due to time restraints, there will be no late papers accepted! I will return these papers to
you by the 31st of May, so that by June 5th we will be done with the final draft.
You may write on a topic of your choosing having to do with any of the major themes of
Fahrenheit 451, such as: the “dumbing down” of society, conformity vs.
individuality, freedom of speech and the consequences of losing it (censorship), the
importance of remembering and understanding history, machines as helpers to
humans, machines as hindrances or enemies
Some paper topics that you may choose from are:
-A major theme of the book is that technology can isolate people and inhibit the sharing of
thoughts, ideas and emotions. Current technology (such as MP3 players, computers, answering
machines, automated telemarketers, cell phones, and the Internet) has a far reaching impact of
society.
Select one technological invention that you feel has isolated people and broken down the natural
sharing of thoughts and ideas. In a paper, discuss its impact on society making sure to answer the
following questions:
-How has the invention changed interpersonal relationships?
-What has the invention replaced? For better or for worse?
-Why do we need to learn to control technology?
-What would Bradbury think about it?
-What message did you get from this book? For whom was the novel written? What point was the
author making about dystopian societies? Do you think the author was successful in getting the
message across? Why? What were the good and bad points about this novel? How realistic is this
novel so far as its use of the dystopian concept? Make any additional comments you'd like
reflecting your reaction to the novel as a whole and its relationship to both our society today and a
dystopia.
-Research the history of book burning. When and where may the practice have started? What
famous incidents have involved book burning? Why were books burned instead of simply torn up
or thrown away? Use these historical instances to show why Bradbury wrote Fahrenheit 451. Use
specific instances from the book and show where the ideas came from.
-Ray Bradbury predicted many of the technologies that are in use today. Identify some of the
futuristic technologies that he used in the book(Air Propelled Train, Salamander, Mechanical
Hound, Parlour Wall, Electric-Eyed Snake. Spot-Wave Converter, Big Flue, Seashell Radio,
Thimble Radios)and describe their use, identify whether the technology is now currently possible,
and describe how it is used in our present society. Compare and contrast the author’s predictions
with the actual use of these technologies. Has our present society solved any of the issues that
Bradbury predicted these technologies would create, or was Bradbury right?