Similarities Between Fahrenheit 451 And The Truman Show

Do you ever feel like you're reliving the same boring day every day? Sometimes we get so comfortable with our typical daily routines that we may feel trapped, catching ourselves unintentionally doing the same thing every day. And while it may be easier to just go along with it, being free is an underrated option that most people ignore because they do not want to put in the effort to seek freedom. In the late 19th century American journalist, essayist, satirist, cultural critic, and scholar of American English Henry Louis Mencken often commented on the social scene. He believed that “the average man does not want to be free, he simply wants to be safe.” While both freedom and safety are crucial values, the desire for safety often takes a larger

The societies in Fahrenheit 451 and The Truman Show reflect this claim. The society in Fahrenheit 451 is a dystopian society where the government is in control to keep the people comfortable and safe. To accomplish this, they restricted things such as looking around, driving slowly, and books since they “show the pores in the face of life. The comfortable people want only wax moon faces, poreless, hairless, expressionless” (Bradbury 79). In this case, pores are compared to anything that may cause people to have conflicting opinions. Nobody wants pores because they bring discomfort and self-consciousness. People use makeup to look perfect and be happy with their bodies to hide from the truth. Society even goes out of its way to hide the truth from others. In The Truman Show, the citizens acted like the bus broke down to keep Truman from leaving the “perfect” society. This is because Truman was raised in the society that he was used to, which kept him and the people watching him from home comfortable. By Truman leaving with the bus, he would find out about the forged life he’s been living. Which would unexpectedly affect the viewers at home who were addicted to this show. The directors and actors in the show tried their best to keep him from being free because they were afraid that the outcome would cause a change in their

Taking risks can help people break free from their comfort zones and explore new paths whether it is internal freedom or literal physical freedom. This group of people is represented by Truman, Montag, and the prisoner that was let out in the “Allegory of the Cave”. Ultimately, what this fails to consider is that these risk-takers who seek freedom will face unknown consequences. And while people such as Truman did face a lot of consequences to gain their freedom, the majority of people were “in the habit of conferring honors among themselves”. As they would rather “entertain these false notions” and be safe than be free and “suffer sharp pain” after being “unable to see the realities of which in [their] former state” (Plato 3, 2). Especially since it is very difficult to adjust to a new environment after being raised in the same one your whole life. The average man would rather feel safe and secure while believing or following false ideas than go out of their way to find the truth since it can come with disappointment and