Importance Of Ignorance In Fahrenheit 451

Words are powerful; they can bring out the harsh reality of things. In Fahrenheit 451, books were burned for that reason--the words written inside them made people unhappy, so they burned them. Reading causes you to think deeply, creating another reason for their incineration. For the society in this novel, ignorance is bliss. The knowledge that they didn’t have created meaningless daily routines that held no true significance, other than the fact that they were alive. If the people had been allowed to read books and absorb the knowledge inside of them, they would have understood many things that went on in their lives; but because they weren’t permitted to do so, their society became repressive. The way that their society existed was only

Knowledge that could have been used to improve their society and to shape them as individuals, was instead burned so that people would remain ignorant. “He stood breathing, and the more he breathed the land in, the more he was filled up with all the details of the land. He was not empty. There was more than enough here to fill him. There would always be more than enough” (Bradbury 144). This quote demonstrates how powerful knowledge and comprehension truly is. When Montag had been on the train on his way to Faber’s house, he had been trying to memorize the Bible. However, he was unable to due to all the distractions that his mind was forced to block out. Afterwards, Montag realized (when he was away from all the diversions) that the more he focused on what was around him, the more he would be able to comprehend it. The features of his surroundings showed him that the knowledge he gained would be enough to complete him. As shown beautifully by Montag’s realization at the end of the story, knowledge shapes us to be who we are as specific individuals. For example, somebody could be especially gifted at a certain sport, or a video game, and that’s because of the knowledge that they have on this subject, which makes up part of themselves. Without knowledge, we could, eventually, and perhaps inevitably, become like the society in Ray Bradbury’s novel, Fahrenheit 451. Plotless, inconsequential, and