One of the good things about books is that there are so
many of
them and that there will always be a gem out there to discover, no
matter who you are or how much you read.
Fahrenheit 451 is one of the diamonds I’ve recently unearthed.
I saw the film of this a very long time ago and it made
a strong
impression, but I’d forgotten much of the plot and was left with a
series of powerful images, mainly of burning.
The book’s tremendous on so many levels. Most importantly
for
me, it was engaging and dramatic from the beginning and the
unfolding of
the story was perfectly paced and gripping enough
when it needed to be.
Montag is Fahrenheit 451. He’s a fireman. A book
burner. He’s
identical to all the other firemen he works with and he’s coming
to
something akin to a mid-life crisis.
He meets a young girl who helps to open his eyes. She’s
special.
She isn’t like most of the human race in this place because she
appreciates conversation and nature and feelings. She’s also, I
think,
attractive enough to play hell with Montag’s desires. She acts
as a mirror to
his own life – a stale, loveless survival where things
come too easily and where
TV and ‘products’ act like anaesthetics
against the human condition.
Montag has had enough of things, but has no idea why or
what he’d
like to replace them with.
As he explores his thoughts and feelings, he encounters
or come up
against a variety of characters. For example, Faber’s a book lover
and his boss is an all-knowing weapon of society. His own wife and
the community
she lives in is dominated by wall-to-wall televisions
and small talk.
There’s also a bizarre war on the horizon. It happens
away from the
citizens, but they know it’s coming. It’s a hugely disturbing
element to the book, the cold and sinister inevitability of this
conflict, I
guess brought more to the fore with talk of attacking and
killing Syrians who
are also attacking and killing Syrians. It's easy
to feel alienated from such huge decisions as this. Here, I'd like to
say I don't want the Western powers to intervene with our bombs
and are glad the British parliament kept the bombings at bay for
now. Chilling.
I’m sure there are a huge variety of ways that one
might unpick the
various aspects of this book.
My take is that it got me thinking about the
communication age of
computers and apps. I suspect I let too much of my time be
absorbed in these things and have to remember that on my doorstep
there is one
of the most beautiful coastlines in the world and that I
have a wonderful family
around me who mostly benefit from
attention.
More unnervingly, I’ve recently found myself making
mistakes
with something in life and momentarily reassuring myself that it’s
OK
because I can press the undo button. That’s a bizarre feeling
when it happens
while you’re putting furniture together or have just
smashed a vase or similar.
It’s interesting to see that some of the ideas of the
story have been
surpassed in terms of technology and yet the book suggests
there’s
more to come in terms of the way society evolves.
My other take was to remember just how well a story can
be
written. This one unfolds superbly and finishes with a dramatic
flourish
when things reach an inevitable crunch point.
I really enjoyed it and would highly recommend it to
you if you
haven’t paid a visit before.
This is one of my favorite books, I first read it in school when I was younger and have gotten into the habit of reading it again every so often.
ReplyDeleteIt's a good warning of what a slippery slope things like censorship and lack of true awareness can be, and of course it's a really gripping story that's beautifully written. Ray Bradbury was a fantastic writer.