FAHRENHEIT 451 RAY BRADBURY

GENRE – SCIENCE FICTION A genre of literature that deals with the combination of scientific knowledge and imagination.

GENRE: DYSTOPIAN LITERATURE A futuristic, imagined universe in which oppressive societal control and the illusion of a perfect society are maintained through corporate, bureaucratic, technological, moral, and totalitarian control.

DYSTOPIAN GENRE (CONTINUED) Through an exaggerated “worst case” scenario, dystopias make a criticism about a current trend, societal norm, or political system.

TRAITS OF A DYSTOPIAN PROTAGONIST Often feels trapped and is struggling to escape Questions the existing social and political systems Believes or feels that something is terribly wrong with the society in which he or she lives Helps the audience recognize the negative aspects of the dystopian society through his or her perspective

CHARACTERISTICS OF A DYSTOPIAN SOCIETY Propaganda is used to control the citizens Information, independent thought, and freedom are restricted. A figurehead or concept is worshipped by the citizens. Citizens are perceived to be under constant surveillance. Citizens have fear of the outside world. The natural world is banished and distrusted. Citizens conform to uniform expectations. Individuality is outlawed. The society is an illusion of a perfect utopian world.

TYPES OF DYSTOPIAN CONTROLS Corporate Bureaucratic Technological Philosophical /Religious

One or more large corporations control society through products, advertising, and/or the media Society is controlled by mindless bureaucracy through a tangle of red tape, relentless regulations, and incompetent government officials. CORPORATE - BUREAUCRATIC

Society is controlled by technology – through computers, robots, and/or scientific means. Society is controlled by ideologies (or beliefs) that are often enforced through a dictatorship. TECHNOLOGICAL - PHILOSOPHICAL/RELIGIOUS

CAN YOU THINK OF ANY EXAMPLES OF DYSTOPIAS?

WHAT IS SOCIAL CRITICISM?  Social criticism analyzes (problematic) social structures, and aims at practical solutions by specific measures, radical reform, or even revolutionary change.  Think of a social criticism as a piece of literature that criticizes society.

ALLUSION A brief and indirect reference to a person, place, thing, or idea of historical, religious, cultural, or literary significance

IRONY (THIS SHOULD BE A REVIEW…) Dramatic – the audience or reader knows more about a character’s situation than the character does Situational – an event in a story that does not happen the way the audience or the reader predicts Verbal – when a speaker says something that is different from what he or she means; sarcasm

OTHER LITERARY DEVICES YOU WILL SEE… Conflict Theme Symbol Allusion Foreshadowing Flashback Personification These should all be a review!

WHO IS RAY BRADBURY? Born in 1920 in Illinois Graduated high school in 1938 and his formal education ended there Became a full time writer in 1943 after selling newspapers on an LA corner for 5 years. His first published success were The Martian Chronicles.

FAHRENHEIT 451 Published in 1953 It is a social criticism set in a futuristic society where censorship and ignorance runs rampant. It was an immediate success, which also made it immediately banned in some places.

HISTORICAL CONTEXT Written between , Bradbury was inspired in events that came after World War II. Book Burnings and Censorship in Nazi Germany play a prominent role in Fahrenheit 451.

HISTORICAL CONTEXT (CONTINUED) McCarthyism in the 1950s The U.S. Government blacklisted actors, artists, filmmakers, writers, and university professors that were rumored to be Communists. These people were blacklisted because of the influence that they had over members of society.

THE FIRST TV BROADCAST The sentencing of the Rosenbergs Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were sentenced to death for giving information about atomic weapons to the Russians.

HISTORICAL CONTEXT A rise in television sales spiked in the 1950s, which started a decline in reading. Bradbury writes about all information being delivered via short sound bytes.

BRADBURY’S PREDICTIONS In Fahrenheit 451, Bradbury tries to prevent the decline of society by designing inventions. He predicts: Seashell radios TVs the size of Parlor Walls Population Explosion A reliance on technology to mediate all social experience

WHAT ELSE WAS BRADBURY RIGHT ABOUT? A rise in violence (especially gun violence) A growing illiteracy rate The use of televised surveillance footage for many purposes.

FAHRENHEIT 451 Was the product of what Ray Bradbury saw as a world going crazy. He saw a lot of changes in a short amount of time, and this novel is a cautionary tale of what can happen if a government has too much power. Things to consider:  What can go wrong when a government has too much power?  What is the downside to censorship?  If a society does not read and educate, how can that lead to its downfall?