Ignorance In Fahrenheit 451 By Ray Bradbury

As Walter Cronkite once said, “Whatever the cost of our libraries, the price is cheap compared to that of an ignorant nation.” This quote significantly displays the value of intellect and its comparison to the cost of being ignorant. Modern day society is retreating from it’s intellectual path causing the humans of today to be ignorant and unenlightened. IN the book “Fahrenheit 451” by Ray Bradbury, the author exhibits the future in his lenses and portrays it with negativity. He gives a good representation of modern society and the path it is heading on. Although some may disagree that Ray Bradbury’s view of the future is a misrepresentation of today’s society, most believe it is a precise and accurate description given the relationships of
The media spreads false propaganda that alters the civilian’s perception of the actual truth in his or her society. This can be seen here, “Thank God for that. You can shut them, say, ‘Hold on a moment.’ You play God to it. But who has ever torn himself from the claw that encloses you when you drop a seed in a TV parlor? It grows you any shape it wishes! It is an environment as real as the world. It becomes and is the truth. Books can be beaten down with reason. But with all my knowledge and skepticism, I have never been able to argue with a one-hundred-piece symphony orchestra, full color, three dimensions, and I being in and part of those incredible parlors” (Bradbury 138). As seen in the quote the televisions surrounding their parlor create an environment that is supposed to resemble the real world. Also the quote states that this form of media distribution becomes one’s reality and the truth of his world. As seen in our world, major corporations buy media outlets in order to broadcast their message in an immense way. This information is used to change the minds of the society in a way that might corrupt or enlighten the society. It brainwashes the people minds into diffracting their path of original knowledge into what these corporations want. In the society Montag’s wife has been sucked by the media and has no control of her self thinking. The media being dispersed throughout the
They portray an egregious image of books that helps the society steer away from the abundance of intellect. In order to do so they base their information on miniscule facts and then are blown up to twist the truth on people. This can be seen here, “"Established, 1790, to burn English-influenced books in the Colonies. First Fireman: Benjamin Franklin." RULE 1. Answer the alarm swiftly. 2. Start the fire swiftly. 3. Burn everything. 4. Report back to firehouse immediately. 5. Stand alert for other alarms” (Bradbury 34-35). This quote fully depicts the situation described. Benjamin Franklin established the first firefighting service in order to protect his people. In order to do so he developed rules that would define his practice. These rules were set forth and implemented in every situation a fireman was needed. Benjamin Franklin was called upon to burn books from Britain. These truths were then the base for the reasoning behind the burning of the books for the government. As seen in our history the church during the Dark Ages, they developed a scheme that was called the Donation of Constantine. It allowed the Church to be on top of the King in the feudalist political system. Both of these rules, in the story and in real life, allowed for a more dictatorship society. Also nowadays the government uses force to enforce the law rather than fighting