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Are The Similarities Between By The Waters Of Babylon And Fahrenheit 451

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How closely related can two stories written decades apart really be? “Fahrenheit 451” written by Ray Bradbury in 1951 and “By the Waters of Babylon” by Stephan Benet written in 1937 both have heaps of information on the topic of nuclear annihilation. “Fahrenheit 451” and “By the Waters of Babylon” correlate but still deviate with remarkable characters, brilliant themes, and detailed literary elements. The characters in “Fahrenheit 451” relate to those in “By the Water of Babylon” But they still have their own unique qualities. The two main characters are Montag and John. Montag is the main character in Bradbury's novel and John is the main character in Benet’s. Both of these characters share a corresponding goal. The goal is to venture on …show more content…

The themes within both stories are centered around knowledge and the amount we intake as a society at a given time. The main reason the societies failed in both stories had to do with them intaking a dangerous amount of knowledge at once. The society in “Fahrenheit 451” took in great amounts of knowledge all at the same time and they became vastly technologically advanced to the point where robots were doing simple jobs for them. When this occurs the people within the society stop thinking for themselves and let the computers do it for them in turn making them “brain dead.” Mildred is an excellent example of this. Mildred becomes so attached to technology that she spends all her time with her “T.V. Family.” Both selections have a background theme that revolves around religion. Revelations is used in Bradbury’s novel which refers to a tree of life. The tree of life is used to represent the rebirth of the society. The title, “By the Waters of Babylon is an allusion to Psalms. In Psalm King Nebuchadnezzar II destroys the city which is parallel to the people destroying their own society in Benet’s …show more content…

Bradbury’s novel showcases a society that is highly technologically advanced. The advancements include massive wall televisions, small ear pieces, and cars that travel at monumental speeds. The technology in this story was not even invented when the book was written yet it is shockingly related to the technology one might have in the 21st century. On the other hand Benet’s novel has a society with a primal and almost prehistoric aspect to it. There are positions listed in the novel such as hunter and priest which are more associated with earlier times. Another detail that relates the two stories together is the topic of nuclear weapons which did not even exist till the 1950s. Both stories are inferred to have used nuclear weapons to annihilate the

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The main characters in both literary piece must overcome challenges by using their knowledge. They must conquest what is getting in their way by using their intelligence; whether it may be Gods trying to delay his journey back home or defying society and trying to create diversity. Another way these books were similar was that both of the main character’s mentors were very smart and use their knowledge to help them. In the Odyssey, Athena helps Odysseus when he most needs her. In Fahrenheit 451, Faber helps out Guy when he is struggling with reading and his stress.

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Throughout the existence of literature, there have been numerous pieces that portrays life in a dystopian American. In the narrative, "By the Water of Babylon", Stephen Vincent Benet tells the story of a young priest 's journey to gather metal in a post-apocalyptic New York City. In contrast, the Pulizter Prize winning novel, The Road, Cormac McCarthy displays the hardships faced by a middle-aged man and his adolescent son as they travel south through an ash covered wasteland that were once the Appalachian Mountains. Even though these pieces of fiction are seperated by decades of various turmoil, the authors accomplish numerous comparisons and contrasts that exemplify a post-apocalyptic America.

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People like Mildred don 't know they are happy or what they are missing in the world because they are too focused on technology. Technology has gotten out of hand in this society and it has completely taken over their lives. Most people in the 451 society live in a fantasy and don 't focus on what 's important in life. Reality vs. fantasy is a huge message in this book, and it can be explored so much more. Symbols in Fahrenheit 451 are everywhere in the story.

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Fahrenheit 451 Biblical Allusions Essay The Biblical allusion presented in the novel Fahrenheit 451 help give the story complexity and a deeper, more vivid meaning. Ray Bradbury constantly infuses his stories with references from the Bible and we see that clearly throughout this novel. Utilizing allusions gives a more profound significance than what is seen on the surface. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury uses Biblical allusions such as the river with the Tree of Life, the Tower of Babel, and the book of Ecclesiastes, to invoke emotions and help paint a clearer picture of the feelings in that specific scene.

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756 Words | 4 Pages

Ray Bradbury 's novel Fahrenheit 451 delineates a society where books and quality information are censored while useless media is consumed daily by the citizens. Through the use of the character Mildred as a foil to contrast the distinct coming of age journey of the protagonist Guy Montag, Bradbury highlights the dangers of ignorance in a totalitarian society as well as the importance of critical thinking. From the beginning of the story, the author automatically epitomizes Mildred as a direct embodiment of the rest of the society: she overdoses, consumes a vast amount of mindless television, and is oblivious to the despotic and manipulative government. Bradbury utilizes Mildred as a symbol of ignorance to emphasize how a population will be devoid of the ability to think critically while living in a totalitarian society. Before Montag meets Clarisse, he is

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Introduction At first glance, Ray Bradbury’s novel Fahrenheit 451 and Matthew Arnold’s poem Dover Beach may not have anything in common however the inclusion of Dover Beach in Fahrenheit 451 begs to differ. Both were written during a period of change. Arnold wrote Dover Beach during the Industrial Revolution and Bradbury wrote Fahrenheit 451 shortly after World War 2. Although Dover Beach was written a century earlier, they both consider the problems within society; the effects of an ever changing world. The two bring forth their similarities through addressing the issues of loss of faith, sadness and loss of humanity.

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“But they were men who built the city, not gods or demons. They were men. I remember the dead man’s face. They were men who were here before us. We must build again”-Stephen Benet.

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Purposefully bland characters like Mildred Montag make a divining effigy of the way Americans live in present day. Censorship and oppression come to play in Bradbury’s novel, which brings to mind modern

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Both “By the Waters of Babylon” by Stephen Vincent Benet and Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury are different tales, by different authors, of different genres, but they share a lot more than they seem. While there are some differences between the characters of the book, Guy Montag and John, are apparent on their journey to Enlightenment, the similarities are stunning. In both stories each journey are very similar yet very different, from the figure that sets them on their journey to even the journey itself, and finally how they share their new-found knowledge with those around them. While their plots share some differences in some parts and similarities the similarities can be obvious and not as obvious.

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The Powerful Ruined Trends often develop and vanish in this existing society. Human interaction with these trends can affect them positively or negatively, resulting in remembrance or oblivion. When exploring “Ozymandias” by Percy Bysshe Shelley and “By the Waters of Babylon” by Stephen Vincent Benét, curiosity engulfs one’s mind. The transparent yet essential themes are complementary, but also deliver divergent meanings culminating a forgotten trend; everything doesn’t last forever.

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The excerpt “By the waters of Babylon” is about a young boy, named John, who is turning into man. For him to turn him into a man, he has to could go on a journey anywhere he pleases except to the east and the Place of the Gods. John defines his father who told him not to go there and John goes there in the end. The Place of Gods we later found out is like New York and that this story is set place in the future. John calls the people who used to live there as gods except they were just like John and John later figures that out.

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Similarities and differences between 1984 and Fahrenheit 451 Individualism and the realization of one’s inner thoughts are the most important things someone can possess. In 1984 and Fahrenheit 451 there are a lot of similarities and differences. The biggest similarity between the books is that they both take place in a dystopian society where the government has total control of the people. However there are many other similarities such as the main characters, desensitized natures, and no privacy. The biggest difference between the books are the endings and how the government regulates the ideas and thoughts of their people.

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Comparison and analysis of Fahrenheit 451 and Minority Report “Fahrenheit 451” and “Minority Report” are exceptional well written stories established on the idea of a dystopian society that places people into a mold and does not encourage self-expression. The main storyline for both stories is the protagonist commences to dig deeper into a stringent and well organized society, and the directors of the government do not approve of them snooping into their formal functions and affairs. As soon as they start to reveal glitches or problems associated with the system, then they become a threat and the people controlling the society or program begin to worry about their true intentions. While comparing the two stories and societies, it is necessary to be kept in mind that the two were written around the

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804 Words | 4 Pages

The differences and similarities between the book’s society and our modern day society really bulged out at me while I was reading the book ‘Fahrenheit 451’. In Fahrenheit 451, books are banned. And instead of having firemen that put out fire, the firemen start the fire to burn down books and houses. There are many differences and similarities between our modern day society and the the society in the book ‘Fahrenheit 451’. Such as our Government, Technology, and Behavior.

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510 Words | 3 Pages

In Fahrenheit 451, there are many obvious differences in the dystopian society that the novel takes place in, and our present day society. However, there are also many overlooked similarities in the societies. Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451 is both different, and alike our modern day societies. Initially, the America that the novel takes place in is much more of an authoritarian society then present day America.

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