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Attention Span In Fahrenheit 451 By Ray Bradbury

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The Current State of Attention Span A book, “Fahrenheit 451” written in 1965 by Ray Bradbury is seen as a powerful message as to why society should value knowledge and not let censorship distract the world from it. The book also shares fears about how technology could override people's lives. How has technology affected attention span? Technology has had a major toll on the attention span of people. It has lowered the amount of time people are able to focus without distraction and created bad habits that also hurt the attention span of people.
Technology that has developed over the last century has affected people's attention span by having so many distractions available for people. “ ‘If we look at work in terms of switching projects, …show more content…

“Blood pressure rises. Heart rate speeds up. Psychological measures of stress also show negative outcomes, she said, such as more fatigue, more mistakes and less productivity: ‘The more people multitask, the more errors they make.’ ”(Mark). This piece of evidence shows that habits developed from screens are not beneficial. Multitasking has all negative effects on the human body and brain. It has affected attention span because the brain is not focusing on just one thing but then is constantly switching between whatever people are multitasking with. People also are less productive as a result of multitasking. When someone is less productive it means that they cannot focus for long periods of time. So while not only has technology been bad for attention span, it has also been bad for the everyday health of humans. A part of “Fahrenheit 451” that shows multitasking is, “Mildred watched the toast delivered to her plate. She had both ears plugged with electronic bees that were humming the hour away”(Bradbury 18). This quote shows how multitasking is a part of “Fahrenheit 451”. Mildred is making toast while listening to something. She is just living her life distracted with technology. While her brain jumps from one thing to the next. The fact that Mildred can’t even wait longer than 5 minutes for her toast to cook without distraction proves that technology has overrun her. Mildred also does support the idea that people who multitask are less productive because she doesn’t

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Alina Tugend, author of, “Multitasking Can Make You Lose … Um … Focus,” is an accredited author that is featured in multiple respected publications. This article was published in the New York Times in 2008. The article talks about multitasking and how most people think that is a great thing, but in reality it causes more problems that we know. Mrs. Tugend voices her opinion on how multitasking hurts more people that it helps. Her opinions are clearly voiced throughout this article that she does not think multitasking is a benefit for people.

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Fahrenheit 451 warns against the overuse of technology. A great example of overuse of technology is in a dystopian world like Fahrenheit 451. Let’s look at some examples. Mildred is one

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In this essay I will state my ideas and hope that one day in the future I to do not end up like Mildred. In the novel Fahrenheit 451 the people in Montag’s city are constantly bombarded by adds, TV, music , noise and all manners of distractions.

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In Fahrenheit 451 Mildred, who represents the masses, is a perfect example of overuse, and abuse of mass media and technology. She is constantly surrounded by t.v’s, the parlor, ignoring anything and everything that went on around her, and she can be compared to Katherine 1984 who in some ways was the same. Katherine in 1984 was also a representation of the masses, and she was constantly fed by the party through telescreens, which like the parlor in Fahrenheit 451 were everywhere and always on; the only difference is that the telescreens also had cameras to watch the people and to keep them

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Obsessed with television and valuing it above all else, which ultimately affects her personal life, particularly her marriage, this is the life of Mildred Montag in the book Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. She is depicted as a selfish and stupid individual who is more bonded to technology rather than her husband. Mildred is portrayed as a character who is deeply unhappy and unfulfilled despite living in a society that prioritizes only pleasure and entertainment. Mildred Montag symbolizes the state of unhappiness in Montag's society. Mildred forms more of an emotional connection with the TV walls than her husband.

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One of the major themes in Fahrenheit 451 is the idea of being truly happy with life vs being so distracted that you never worry about problems in life. Most of the characters in Fahrenheit 451 are not happy with their lives and are just distracted from their problems through constant use of technology, propaganda, and people’s behavior in society. Technology plays a vital role in this society in keeping people distracted. In some extreme instances it brainwashes people and plants false ideas in people’s minds. Mildred, Montag’s wife, is a prime of example of one of these brainwashed people.

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The only thing she cares about is technology and how it serves to entertain her and keep her happy. Mildred’s interest in human interaction begins to

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When Carr discusses how the internet has affected people close to him he discusses their experiences by saying, “The more they use the Web, the more they have to fight to stay focused on long pieces of writing”. This phenomenon is quite evident in "Fahrenheit 451" with Mildred, the programing she views has reduced her attention span to nearly nonexistent as she doesn’t fully comprehend what Montag says in their discussions. A con of the internet would have to be the fact that information is readily available, it allows us to consume lots of information in a shorter amount of time. In the past information took time to find and was mostly found in written books, "Fahrenheit 451" is a society in which this concept has been brought to an extreme. Print literature/any form of physical writing is extremely important according to Maryanne Wolf, an author referenced in the article, “The media or other technologies we use in learning and practicing the craft of reading play an important part in shaping the neural circuits inside our brains”.

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Love boosts self-confidence because we, emotional beings, then would want to become stronger in order to protect the ones we love. In the novel, Bradbury conveys love being powerful by writing, “ I don't want her back to this house” (148)! Bradbury expresses love by showing how much Will wants to protect Jim from the evilness of the circus. “This” shows how important Jim’s safety is to Will. “This” shows that Will is not referring the whole town, but Jim’s house specifically.

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Ray Bradbury’s novel ‘Fahrenheit 451’ warns of the dangers of technology and blind obedience through the character of Mildred Montag amongst others. Although Mildred is a minor character throughout the text, her image as the poster girl of the dystopian vision of the future Bradbury had created highlights that in a society where technology is all-powerful and all-consuming, true happiness is seldom found. Bradbury depicts characters who have an awareness of life outside of technology to be genuinely happier and more sincere, whereas those who have conformed to mores of society are consequently dissatisfied with life. Ultimately, it is Montag’s realisation that there is more to life than shallow conversations and parlour walls, and the happiness

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The definition of distraction can be identified as the extreme agitation of the mind or emotions. Throughout Fahrenheit 451, distraction has made its mark everywhere, capturing the attention of society. From the use of technology, people's minds are corroded by the entertainment systems. In the novel, the protagonist, Montag, has to face trials of conformity and distraction to gain freedom and knowledge. Along Montag's way, he bumps into a girl named Clarisse, who is quirky and knowledgeable.

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=w Edward Eller is an assistant professor at Northeast Louisiana University1. He creates the point in “An Overview of Fahrenheit 451” by highlighting how technology is uncontrollably taking over the world, and compares it to how Mildred is devoted to technology saying, “immerses herself in the media provided for her to consume. Whenever she is not at the TV, she plugs in her earphones, always soaking up the artificial stimulus and messages someone else feeds to her,” Not only is technology taking over the world, but it is also taking over people. Technology brainwashed Mildred and the lack of social skills she contains with others is completely appropriate in her society.

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In my references I stumble upon various results of experiments that authors mention in their work and those results stated some of the consequences the brain faces after multitasking. Eric Jaffe (2012) shows how our brains are being rewired when we multitask with technology and how it’s nowadays harder for us to finish one single task in a reasonable time. Another results from the investigations is that very time the brain is forced to multitask it uses a vast amount of his nutrients leaving the person exhausted and with no energy only after a short period of time. My sources reveal that multitasking in general is bad, but when combined with technology it becomes dangerous. It has been scientifically proven that multitasking leaves us stressed,

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In Fahrenheit 451, Mildred’s “deep” connection to the parlor and her refusal to turn it off affects her relationship with Montag because she spends more time communicating with technology than with her husband. During one of the few conversations between Montag and Mildred, Montag asks “‘Will you turn the parlor off?,’” to which Mildred responds, “‘That’s my family…’ ‘I’ll turn it down.’” (Bradbury 46). Mildred’s acknowledgment of the parlor as her family proves how technology has taken a more personal role in her life.

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I read multitasking can cause the heart to beat extremely fast and that cause a steady flow of stress hormones. Which can cause headaches, stomach trouble, and sleep problems. With the heart beating extremely fast, that can cause problems including back pain, heart disease, and depression. Multitasking should only be used on short term goals and activities; listening to music and running, because those thing goes together.

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