Rating: 
Summary: ¿The Burning of Individuality¿
Review: Firemen no longer save lives. Instead they burn books and the people who harbor them. Censorship is the way of life in the science fiction world of Fahrenheit 451. Conforming with government, destroying individuality, and asking no questions are the rules of Guy Montag's world. Set in the twenty-first century, Ray Bradbury's novel tells the tale of the fireman who begins to question the rights and wrongs of his life. In this world books promote thinking and wondering and acting. Compliance is necessary for the government to ignore its people and watch over its "thirty-second" wars. The government wants assimilation and ignorance of differences. So modern technology produces television that is interactive and family rooms are replaced with television parlors - four walls of larger than life TV screens. The firemen hunt out owners of books and burn them, their homes and their books to the ground. "It was a pleasure to burn," is the opening line of the story. In the beginning burning books is a source of joy, an excitement programmed into Montag by his world. Then he meets a girl whose family raised her with an encouragement of challenging what she is told. Montag is amazed, almost scared of the idea of questioning life. She begins to question him too. "'Do you ever read any of the books you burn?' 'Is it true that long ago firemen put out fires instead of going to start them?' and the worst of all, 'Are you happy?'" And there begins Montag's conflict with the government and with himself. When he reads a line of a book he realizes that there is no turning back. He can't be who he was before. And maybe he doesn't want to be. The book is set up as a narrative of one man's experience in trying to rebel against a world that has almost complete control. It is written partly as a typical novel and partly as a sequence of Montag's thoughts. The plot is hard to follow in places and often confusing but the idea behind the story is important enough to make reading the book worthwhile. Bradbury attempts to warn us of what the future may hold that we might prevent the beginning of a world of tyranny. He tells us to remember and cherish the attributes that make us who we are. He teaches us to be an individual and challenge the world around us. Although I did not enjoy the novel, because of the confusion, its message is very important if I want a world where what I think and say is important. A world in where I am a person with rights and opinions that are as valued as any other person's. I do want that world.
Rating: 
Summary: A horrifying look at Censoria
Review: Ray Bradbury has taken an issue so overlooked even today, to have written something about the topic of censorship in the 1950s was quite a daring act. Ray Bradbury did it well enough, and with his ficticious novel Fahrenheit 451 he explores the horrible underbelly of education and society, and forces the reader to re-examine the values of our society. In the novel, the main character (protaganist) Guy Montag, is a fireman, but not what you'd expect, his job is to burn books and the houses that contain them, but then he meets a young woman named Clarisse who teaches him the wonderful truth of books, and a place where imagination and thinking are praised. Montag become obsessive with the idea of obtaining books, knowing that they must be wonderful treasures, so great, that people would give up their lives for them. Soon, like most things in life Clarisse fades away, but so does the thin strand that was Montag's grip on life. He seems to spin out of control, the books that he once destroyed now seemed to be destroying him, becoming his every obsession. Montag finds himself becoming afraid of everyone and everything, and he feels alone, unable to be helped. Fahrenheit 451 is a fabulous book dealing with an issue that still badgers people today even in the 21st century: censorship. This book takes an immediate look at the history of censorship, and sets forth startling revelations as to what will become of mankind if we take away the creative process, the independent, thinking spirit of man and gives a warning that must not be ignored. Fahrenheit 451 is an absolutely essential read.
Rating:
Summary: Read it as a child - it opened up the entire genre to me.
Review: Striking, scary, almost here. Yes, I think most people who love books, value free thought and expression, and worry about our personal freedoms being taken away one by one (which they are, folks) can identify with this story. Guy Montag wakes up one day to realize that all the material possessions of his life, indeed, his whole way of life is empty and meaningless. In Montag's world, the powers that be want everyone to be lulled into a state of false security. No one is allowed to stir the pot (remind anyone of the recent political conventions where anyone who protested anything was beaten and arrested?). Yes, anyone who can't see the symbolism so blatantly laid out before them is probably on a school board somewhere and wants to ban this book anyway. I read this book when I was about 12 years old, and I understood the implications at that young age. I think I read To Kill a Mokingbird the same year. When I moved to California in 1984, One of the North County School boards had banned To Kill a Mokingbird and it was quite a fight that took place. I re-read this book at that time, and every few years since. It's message is timeless, and if anyone has seen the advertisements for the Flat TVs that you hang on a wall, you may get a bit frightened by Bradbury's vision of the future. Fahrenheit 451 is the temperature at which books burn, by the way. This should be standard reading for everyone.
Rating: 
Summary: A bit on the dull side
Review: Bradbury has set forth some interesting ideas and prophecies in this book but as far as entertaining and suspensful goes I would give it about an "F" grade. It squeeks two stars.
Rating:
Summary: One of the Greatest Works of Fiction of the 20th Century
Review: It is a crime that the literary world views SF as nothing more than a second class citizen. This book is, without a doubt, one of the greatest works of fiction of the 20th Century. Because, however, it is also a classic of SF it is not considered to be noteworthy in that regard. Bradbury's prose can be compared to a surrealist painting. While the plot may seem straight forward, there is so much else to be seen and to know within the story. Definately, this is a book that any self respecting SF fan should be able to say that they have read.
Rating:
Summary: Scary. . .
Review: The book is not a standard SF and it is not meant to be. The idea is VERY plausible. Written 50 years ago, the idea of TV being a national obsession was ludicrous. Who knew? The white clown is very similar to the extremely violent shows that we let be on TV. And the books. . .the censorship. This is what will happen if we let censorship go any farther. And the scene where the women are discussing their children, absolutly scary. Good book. Read it.
Rating:
Summary: Unforgettable
Review: This is a profound book indeed, and I don't know how I can hope to do it justice. I think in many ways, Ray Bradbury is after us to think about happiness, and when we are better off being unhappy. This comes up several times -- the twisted, tragically fallen Fire Captain Beatty calls his firemen "The Happiness Boys" because they make melancholy and thoughtfulness more difficult, by burning literature. Later, when the hero -- Montag, the book-burning fireman who begins to question his job -- confronts his wife's friends, he tries as hard as possible to make them UNhappy about their boring lives, in the hope that it will wake them up to the world around them... The very first sentence of the book states "It was a pleasure to burn", referring to Montag before he begins to wake up, and become an unhappy, sympathetic human being... Bradbury is getting at some important things here, such as how we can be most peaceful inside when we are questioning, when we are not happy. Older readers might want to think about reading John Milton's "L'Allegro" and "Il Penseroso" to flesh out their own personal response to this book. I think younger readers, who could be reading this for school, might be interested in renting the movie "Logan's Run". Both stories are about future societies, where order and happiness are maintained by weeding out anyone who seems capable of independent thought. In this story, that means burning all books. In "Logan's Run", it means simply killing anyone who starts to get too old, who might start to have a little perspective. In both stories, the main character is a member of the elite, with a personal, professional stake in maintaining order, who suddenly begins to question the whole system, and ends up siding with his "enemies", the thoughtful people. At any rate, this is really quite a tremendous book, and I hope a lot of people read it.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent intellectual read
Review: It is almost uncanny that Bradbury depicted this as the exaggerated furture for books. Certainly this is not an action packed blood bath but it is excting. He shows all to well how books full of literary beauty will be removed from view in public schools, libraries, etc. If you want to read a classic book this is just what you are looking for. It is set in the future where media dominates the earth and reading is believed to be a rash on society. As you read through and discover how well he depicted what is happening you will be vastly impressed how right he is. This is a must read book for those who want a good read and for literary knowedge. Despite all this, the reason I didn't give it five stars is because I do like action and this lacks some of what it could have.
Rating: 
Summary: Book burning, Boss burning, burning questions...
Review: I remember a talk given by Bruno Bettelheim in which he said that in a modern mass-society, the constant fascination with speed and movement betrays the inner emptiness of "a hollow man": "Instead of asking where we are [inwardly], we just jump into the car and say 'Let's get going'." Nietzsche always reserved his strongest diatribes for "the rule of men who are the mass". 'Fahrenheit 451' caricatures and develops these ideas to their extreme, if not logical, conclusion.. The plot is generated by the awakening of conscience in a (heretofore enthusiastic) mechanical servant of a soulless, grassroots, Orwellian government. Guy Montag, the protagonist, starts questioning the very official premises upon which his culture is founded: constant non-stop mindless entertainment, endemic disrespect for life, lots of motion and very little introspection. Books are found to be antagonist to this futuristic world premise, which is more or less an unholy mixture of Montel Williams and Barney, and so "firemen" BURN books, whenever and wherever they can be ferreted out. A national life of quiet desperation is presented here. Bradbury divined back in the fifties that the little "-isms" rife in the US would begin to dominate the cultural scene, as we have now already witnessed. This book explores the moral and social implications, admittedly in an extreme form, of our present Zeitgeist. The novelty of the book keeps one fascinated to the end. Not a great book, to my mind, but one I enjoyed reading and would certainly recommend to others. Very much a "finger-on-the-pulse" book. Reading time: ~ 10 hours.
Rating: 
Summary: Unacceptable!
Review: This summer we read this book. I hated this book for several reasons. First of all, the story was way too jumpy. It started slow, and then randomly got fast. It had absolutly no suspense to it. I found myself forcing myself to read! I couldn't relate to any of the characters! For instance, some of the characters were too boring. Maybe if I read this book in this book in ten years I would have a different opinion. Another reason why I didn't like this book, is because the characters weren't seen enough. They were all just thrown in at different times. You didn't feel like you got to know them very well and I hate that. I would not recommend this book. I think that Ray Bradbury needs to rethink his book ideas! I do not want to be critical of Ray Bradbury, but really I couldn't stand this book. It had no meaning to me. It also, had a poor plot and setting. For instance, it was plotted in the future yet it was no different than today. I don't plan on reading anymore or Ray Bradbury's books!
|
