Summary:
Explores the different types of love manifested in the futuristic society created in Ray Bradbury's novel, Fahrenheit 451.
"All you need is love." The Beetles said it best. And that rings true today, yet the sad truth is that some societies are lacking love of any kind, such as the society portrayed in Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit451. That 'futuristic' world has no love between families, no love for other people; they don't even appreciate their own lives! These people take so many things for granted it sickens me. It's absolutely unfathomable to me how cruel and unfeeling they are. Only those brave people like Clarisse and Faber were able to resist the fast-paced, quick fix life that was swirling and dragging around them. Let us hope that we are able to resist the centrifuge, and take them as our models.
The families in Farenheit 451 are pathetic. First, look at the relationship between the Montags. Millie is such a zombie and an automaton. She never turns off the parlor with her 'family' whom she cares more for then her husband. On the rare occasion that the parlor is off, her seashells are in. Millie has degenerated into nothing but a low, vile creature that seeks no human love or affection, only instant, empty gratification. Children are not wanted, and when they are conceived are often times aborted. On the off chance that a child is actually allowed into the world, they are immediately shipped off to school. Mildred's friends share pretty much a consensus view of the ordeals of bearing and rearing children. "I plunk the children in school nine days out of ten. I put up with them when they come home three times a month; its not bad at all. You heave them into the parlor and turn the switch. It's like washing clothes: stuff the laundry in and slam the lid...They'd just as soon kick as kiss me, thank God I can kick back!"(p.96) This is absolutely disturbing; I thank God that our society hasn't gotten this bad...yet.
Mutual respect and love is unheard of. People find the most sadistic things to be the most entertaining. Like Millie's favorite TV show, The White Clown. The entire premise behind the show is watching people get hacked to pieces. ."..Three White Clowns chopped off each other's limbs to the accompaniment of immense incoming tides of laughter. Two minutes more and the room whipped out of town to the jet cars wildly circling in an arena, bashing and backing up and bashing each other again." (p.94). Also sickening is how people are taught to let out aggression. Rather than finding some healthy outlet, such as writing, they were sent to Fun Parks, where they could bash and break things. Or, they could take their cars out into the country and run over small animals. If that isn't warped and sick, I don't know what is. Why in the world would someone feel the need to take all his or her anger on an inanimate object, or worse, a helpless animal? Just another example of how a love-deprived society functions.
Suicide was a scarily common occurrence. So common, in fact, that when a suicide was attempted, a crew of two men and a machine were dispatched to the site to clean them out. Or, as the technician says, they've "Got to clean 'em out both ways...No use cleaning the stomach if you don't get the blood. Leave that stuff in the blood and it hits the brain just like a mallet, bang, a couple thousand times and the brain just gives up, just quits"(p.15) No one respected themselves enough to try to live a happy, fulfilling life. What drove the people in this society was the complete bleakness of their lives. They had nothing to look forward to, no loving spouse, no warm family. All they had was the false affection that was offered by their 'family' in the parlor.
Love is patient; love is kind, love does not judge. None of those exactly describe any of the feelings portrayed by the majority in Ray Bradbury's Farenheit451, do they? No, of course not. And what a pity it is, too. No one was in love!!! No one was mourned. Lives were petty, and unimportant. If only more of the people would show others the love and respect they deserve. If only more of them were like Clarisse and Faber, what a different world it could have been. But I'm thankful it wasn't, for the scenario portrayed allowed us to question the depths of our lives and our actions, and to realize the importance of love.
This is the complete article, containing 751 words
(approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page).
