Censorship In Fahrenheit 451

Why did you choose this book and what were your initial thoughts when choosing this book?

I choose this book because I feel as though censorship of media and news is a continuing problem in our society. With allegations of “fake news” left and right, politicians spreading propaganda for votes, and the internet providing exposure to more opinions than one would be exposed to in everyday life, it’s important to regularly evaluate the weight and validity of what you’re reading. The theme of censorship in Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451 is one deeply entwined in our modern society, even if I don’t agree with Bradbury’s message, as I will discuss further. When I first started this book, I thought I’d be getting an insightful, if perhaps aged, look

The main character, Montag, lacks a firm sense of self. He is used to being told what to think by mentors and authority figures, and when faced with a decision he must make on his own, he becomes uncomfortable. Throughout the book, Montag learns to think for himself, eventually throwing away the life he once knew in order to protect his own values. Ignorance also plays a huge part in the plot, as the members of this society have been forced into ignorance due to the burning of books (and subsequent loss of knowledge.) Montag’s search for knowledge goes against the ignorant society, and he is shunned because of

I’ve gotten this sense of him from his short stories, which I’d read before this book, but Farenheit 451 confirmed my suspicions. It’s a true enough statement to say that the censorship of art for people’s comfort isn’t necessary, especially when that art has something important to show. Vladimir Nabokov’s Lolita was banned in many countries for its themes of pedophilia and incest, but the bans were quickly lifted once readers realized the book was meant to show how easily pedophiles could earn sympathy from an audience and blame their crimes on their victims. But this is not the case with Bradbury; his works received criticism for being misogynistic and racist, and there was no underlying purpose to his thinly-veiled