Happiness In Fahrenheit 451, By Ray Bradbury

Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury is a story set in the dystopian future where books are banned, and the government controls everything that the public can see, hear, and even think. The story goes through several themes such as censorship, conformity, knowledge, but with a deeper meaning of happiness. The residents in this book are stuck under the rule of meaningless entertainment and are severely disconnected from each other, All the while the government suppresses personal thought and freedom. However, through Montag and his viewpoint of the world and interactions with others, the novel suggests that true happiness can come from relationships and the pursuit of knowledge. Showing a new idea of happiness coming from individuality, values, and

Such as when Montag would fill his life with technology such as his seashell radio and “parlor walls.” This is until he realizes he is missing his true happiness when saying “We have everything we need to be happy, but we are not happy. Something’s missing” (Bradbury 78). This theme is also prevalent in our modern society, where many people fill their lives with the wrong things. People often turn to material possessions, social status, momentary pleasures, instead of growing strong relations and pursuing their personal passions and living a life with a true purpose. For example, social media has become popular for people to highlight their personal lives and seek validation from others. However, this causes a deeper sense of emptiness and even disconnection, as when people begin to compare themselves and their lives to others, they start to feel inadequate. “Findings showed that more frequent upward comparisons reduced positive feelings, leading social media users to feel worse about themselves” (Johnson 32). This shows that when people try to fill the void in their lives with empty momentary happiness, such as social media, technology, or anything like that, it ends up damaging them even more. Fahrenheit 451 even warns of this and the dangers of seeking happiness in the wrong places and brings up the fact that true happiness cannot be found in these