Political Revolution And Rebellion In Fahrenheit 451, By Ray Bradbury

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In the very controversial and eloquently written novel “Fahrenheit 451” by Ray Bradbury there are some underlying themes of political revolution and rebellion. In an extremely critical, yet judgmental letter titled “You Have Insulted Me” by Kurt Vonnegut Jr to the chairman of a schoolboard responsible for banning a novel. Both “Fahrenheit 451’ and “Slaughterhouse-Five” have received harsh criticism and sanctions from both educators and others in positions of power that feel threatened by the diction inside of the books. The powerful figures use their power to oppress the masses with the use censorship or the act of prohibiting the ownership of use of the novel. The book and the letter both plead to for a change of mind in both the people and the powerful individuals in order to stop ignorance and to progress education among the masses. Bradbury’s way for pleading was to have the main character of his book to stand up to authority, run, and then make a return in hopes of saving the day. Vonnegut’s way of standing up was to criticize and plead while appealing to them with a patriotic message. …show more content…

This courage of the few, such as characters like Guy Montag or Clarrise McClellan, fights to protect the future of the many in a revolt against the authoritative power. In the text one of the outcasts of society says to Montag “You did what you had to do” (154.) This just further echoes the point that the few with risk everything just so that the many will survive. Another place where the revolutionary ideal is used by the few who wish to protect the many and what they believe is right and it says “But that’s the wonderful thing about man; he never gets so discouraged or disgusted that he gives up”(155). This should go to show how far a few individuals are willing to go in order to save the future for the many in a