Blog 1: Theme

*What is the major theme of this novel? Why is this theme important to a teenager living in 2008?

The major theme of this book is that letter and literature is a very important tool and power for development of individuals and human society as a whole, and therefore should be kept maintained in the world. Using an imaginary story, the author attempts to signal the danger of abandoning literature in modern society as technology such as media replaces literature.

From the beginning of the human history, people have been using letters and literature to record their history, communicate each other, distribute knowledge, and more. By reading books, people can obtain knowledge, explore different world, where they have never been exposed to and become creative. In this book, ‘Fahrenheit 451,’ although literature is replaced by the media and people are brainwashed that literature is futile, literature cannot disappear from the world because the human nature of curiosity cannot be destroyed. In the novel, the obligation of the firemen is to burn books, whereas it used to be turning off fire. In addition, some controllers had created an idea that books are like pests and poison meaning that books are useless and harmful. As a result, people are not allowed to own or read literature. Instead of reading books, people in this novel watch and listen to the media all day long. Since the information they earn from the media is limited to the facts, they have less chances to develop thinking and imagination. However, Guy Montag, the protagonist of the story, begins to ask questions about his identity and literature. He is a firemen but he happens to encounter characters like Clarisse, Old Woman, and Faber, which triggers him to wonder about the truth about the world and literature. As he continues to wonder and query, his curiosity makes him different from others. Unlike others, he thinks deeply and explores himself to literature by stealing and reading books, which is an illegal action. His continuous curiosity eventually results in the realization of the truth of literature. He figures out that literature is not a useless and harmful thing, but a useful and beneficial thing that helps humans to become knowledgeable, contemplate, be more creative, and consequently develop the world better.

The theme of this book delivers important message to a teenager living in 2008, because the phenomenon of replacing literature by media shown in this book is also happening in these days. In Fahrenheit 451, a certain controller plants a concept that literature is bad and people absorb into the media. Similarly, many teenageers at present stay away from literature but become close to media, on a voluntary fashion. Nowaday, it is hard to see teenagers reading books for their leisure. A great example is playing games. Many teenagers play internet games or video games whenever they have free time. Games are addicting, and books can be addicting as well. However, think about the consequences of playing games and reading books. If one plays games, he or she does not earn much out of it other than instant enjoyment. On the other hand, if one reads books, he or she not only gains knowledge, but also has a chance to develop creativity and imagination. The teenagers right now are the future of the society, and if teenagers continue not to read, the future will be dark. In order to face a bright future, the teenagers right now should develop their thinking, imagination, and creativity. Therefore, the theme of the books leaves a strong message to teenagers that they should read books.