Fahrenheit 451
by Ray Bradbury
Created 3/03 Joycce Bonomo
Background & Setting
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Fahrenheit 451 is set in an American city sometime
in the future.
Bradbury created this story in the 1950s when the
world was…recovering from World War II which
ended when the United States dropped the first
atomic bombs on the cities of Hiroshima and
Nagasaki, Japan.
Background & Setting
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During the 1950’s, Americans still remembered
Hitler’s Nazi regime burning books that the
German government proclaimed were
unacceptable.
Background & Setting
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As the wartime images faded, America began to
change…
By the mid 1950’s, nearly 60% of all Americans
were members of the “middle class.”
For the first time in nearly 30 years, people had
money to buy unnecessary products like
televisions and automobiles.
Background & Setting
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Television began to have a monumental impact
in American homes, as well as, on people’s
lives…
…many people feared the consequences.
Background & Setting
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You should also note….
In the future world of 451, homes and clothes
are “completely fireproofed.”
When Bradbury was writing the novel, the
production and use of ASBESTOS—a general
term for any of several minerals used to make
noncombustible fabrics—was on the rise.
Background & Setting
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Utopian literature describes an ideal world. The
word means “good place.”
Dystopian literature paints the opposite of an
ideal world. Dystopia means “bad place.”
Most critics agree that Fahrenheit 451 is a
dystopian novel.
Themes in
Fahrenheit 451
by Ray Bradbury
Created 3/03 Joycce Bonomo
Censorship
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In the world of 451, books are burned because they
trigger thought and discontent, two things which are
unwelcome in this “happiness oriented” society.
The censorship originated from the people. They were
unhappy so the government acted to remove the
sources of their unhappiness: things like books which
made them think.
The Role of Entertainment
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Entertainment is like a drug or addiction, as a
means for the individual to avoid thinking.
Beatty, the fire chief lectures Montag on this
subject: “More sports for everyone, group
spirit, fun and you don’t have to think, eh?
More cartoon, more pictures, the mind drinks
less and less,”
Political Correctness
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One of the key reasons books are banned in 451
is that books offend minorities.
Minorities are defined as ANY group with a
common link of some kind.
Therefore, virtually anything can be considered
offensive to someone.
Real Happiness vs. The Illusion of
What is the difference?
 Faber, Montag’s friend, lists three things people
need to be happy.
Quality information with depth
Leisure time to digest the info and think
The right to carry out actions based on
what we learned from the first two.
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Cleansing quality of “Fire”
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Beatty discusses that the real beauty of fire is
“that it destroys responsibilities and
consequences.”
Control is maintained by eliminating all things
by fire…knowledge, ideas, history, and time.
Relationships and Love
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Does love exist in this happiness and fun
society?
Love between parents and their children?
Love between Montag and his wife, Mildred?
Self-love?
Assignment
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As a reader, look for evidence of these themes
as they are presented in the novel.
Be prepared to use these themes in class
discussion, Socratic seminars, and potential
essays.