...includes Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, directed by John Ford.
2007 seems a particularly fitting year to read Bradbury's work of science fiction, written in 1953. Fahrenheit 451 warns of a future filled with non-readers and non-thinkers.
Thematically, we decided that it covers:
Conformity vs. individuality
Freedom of speech vs. the consequences of losing it
The importance of remembering and understanding history
Machines as helpers/hindrances to humans
Here are some questions we explored:
Freedom of speech vs. the consequences of losing it
The importance of remembering and understanding history
Machines as helpers/hindrances to humans
Here are some questions we explored:
How different is our society from theirs? Are there current dangers we can associate with going along with the government without questioning?
Why would such a society make “being a pedestrian” a crime?
How does the lead character, Montag, change from a robot to a person who wants to save the world from ignorance? He learns to think for himself. He starts going crazy when he meets Clarisse ("clarity") because she opens his mind to questions.
How does the lead character, Montag, change from a robot to a person who wants to save the world from ignorance? He learns to think for himself. He starts going crazy when he meets Clarisse ("clarity") because she opens his mind to questions.
In fact, Montag changes his attitude 180 degrees from the opening of the novel. Instead of burning books and the knowledge they contain, he becomes their arch-protector.
What is the job of firemen in this society and how are they “custodians of peace of mind?”
Does Montag gain any benefits from books (considering they cause him to lose his wife, job and home, to kill a man, and to become a nomad)?
Since the government is opposed to readers, thinkers, walkers, and slow drivers, why does it allow the procession of men along the railroad tracks?
Will the books these people carry inside themselves make a difference?
Why would mirrors be important in the new society?
The Phoenix rising from the ashes – how does that symbol relate to this story?
Why does he “become” the book of Ecclesiastes? Perhaps because of these lines: “And on either side of the river was there a tree of life, which bore twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month; And the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations."
Bradbury thought burning books was similar to censoring or even condensing books. Why?
What is the job of firemen in this society and how are they “custodians of peace of mind?”
Does Montag gain any benefits from books (considering they cause him to lose his wife, job and home, to kill a man, and to become a nomad)?
Since the government is opposed to readers, thinkers, walkers, and slow drivers, why does it allow the procession of men along the railroad tracks?
Will the books these people carry inside themselves make a difference?
Why would mirrors be important in the new society?
The Phoenix rising from the ashes – how does that symbol relate to this story?
Why does he “become” the book of Ecclesiastes? Perhaps because of these lines: “And on either side of the river was there a tree of life, which bore twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month; And the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations."
Bradbury thought burning books was similar to censoring or even condensing books. Why?
We are also doing artwork and an essay to compare the meaning of "hero" in Bradbury's work and Ford's film. More to come!
In The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, Tom Donophon is the hero because he tells Rance what really happened so Rance doesn't have all this guilt flying around in his head. And he also lets Rance have Hallie, the lady that he, Tom, wanted for a long time because he knows she is probably better off with Rance, the literate lawyer. Hallie wants to know how to read and write and she worries about Rance more. I don't agree with the essayist that she loves Tom Donophon and not Rance. She is strong and true to herself so I think she loves them both.
"When the legend becomes fact, print the legend."
