Similarities Between Little Brother And Fahrenheit 451

While the current government in the United States is a democracy, Doctorow’s Little Brother and Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451 convey the possibility that it will not last forever. Both novels are dystopias, therefore they share several elements such as the surveillance of citizens and an emphasis on conformity, nevertheless, they vary in other forms. Little Brother focuses on a teenager named Marcus Yallow in San Francisco, and his life following a terror attack on the Bay Bridge. Fahrenheit 451 follows the journey of Guy Montag, an individual, as in Little Brother, and how he discovers life outside of an oppressive society instituted by the government. While Little Brother focuses on privacy versus safety, Fahrenheit 451 covers individuality and

The government in Little Brother is fixated on preventing an additional terror attack from happening. After an attack on the Bay Bridge, the government is anxious about the possibility of a second attack. This creates paranoia, which causes the government to begin to infiltrate people's daily lives, eliminating privacy, consequently, forming a totalitarian government. Fahrenheit 451 begins with a totalitarian government in place, however it later explains how the government became totalitarian. According to one of the characters in the book, there were too many differing opinions in the United States, which were causing conflict amongst different groups of people. No one wanted for there to be constant conflicts amongst people in their society, thus the citizens began to eliminate the source of conflict. Anything that could influence someone's opinion become obsolete, which created a society of people who thought and acted completely alike, as well as eliminated conflict. However, by trying to eliminate a civil war, they became a totalitarian

In Little Brother the government mainly uses fear and force. They exaggerate the effects of the terror attack, compel people to believe that there is the possibility of another attack in the near future. This causes them to fear for their lives and follow the government's rules. Also, anyone who has heard of what has been going on in San Francisco that has been concealed, for instance torturing possible terrorists, which the government defines as anyone with abnormal daily patterns, is afraid of the punishment the government can inflict. In Fahrenheit 451 the government maintains control through oppression. They do not allow books, to prevent people from reading something that could make them feel negatively towards the government. They also do not teach children any subjects that require them to actively think, in order to prevent them from becoming capable enough to overthrow the government, also, if they discover someone has possibly shifted against the government, that person abruptly disappears from society. Spies are also a component in each of the novels. Both governments encourage people to act as spies to help them keep order, although the potential infractions the government wants its citizens to look for