critical essay on fahrenheit 451

• Fahrenheit 451

Ray Bradbury

• Literature Notes
• Ray Bradbury's Fiction
• Book Summary
• About Fahrenheit 451
• Character List
• Summary and Analysis
• Character Analysis
• Captain Beatty
• Clarisse McClellan
• Professor Faber
• Mildred Montag
• The Mechanical Hound
• Character Map
• Ray Bradbury Biography
• Critical Essays
• Dystopian Fiction and Fahrenheit 451
• The Issue of Censorship and Fahrenheit 451
• Comparison of the Book and Film Versions of Fahrenheit 451
• Full Glossary for Fahrenheit 451
• Essay Questions
• Practice Projects
• Cite this Literature Note

Critical Essays Ray Bradbury's Fiction

Introduction

Calling Ray Bradbury a "science fiction author" (which is an inaccurate label) is commonplace. In fact, to pigeonhole his writings as "science fiction" obscures rather than clarifies Bradbury's work. The reader may find it useful to take a brief overview of Bradbury's fiction in order to sort out the various types of fiction that he writes, as well as consider various ways of understanding his work, rather that lumping it fallaciously into the narrow category of science fiction.

Beyond Science Fiction

The perceptive critic Peter Nicholls, writing in the Science Fiction Encyclopedia (Doubleday, 1979), is reluctant to place Bradbury's work in the science fiction genre. On the contrary, he finds Bradbury's themes "traditionally American" and says that Bradbury's choosing "to render them [his themes] on several important occasions in sf [science fiction] imagery does not make RB [Ray Bradbury] a sf writer, even though his early years were devoted to the form." Nicholls concludes that Bradbury is, in fact, a "whimsical fantasist in an older tradition."

Humanist Gilbert Highet, in his "Introduction" to The Vintage Bradbury (Vintage, 1965), agrees with Nicholls. He finds Bradbury to have such illustrious European predecessors as Villiers de l'Isle-Adam (1840-1889), E.T.A. Hoffman (1776-1822), H.G. Wells (1866-1946), and (Joseph) Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936). Early American fantasists include Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849), Ambrose Bierce (1842-1914), H.P. Lovecraft (1890-1937), and Charles G. Finney (1905-1984). In fact, Finney's Circus of Dr. Lao (1935) was a major influence on Bradbury's works. Note, too, that the only science fiction writers whom Bradbury consistently mentions are those whom he considers his "teachers' — Leigh Brackett and Henry Kuttner.

The literary critic and writer J.B. Priestley has observed that despite the fact that Bradbury is often identified as a science fiction writer, Bradbury "is concerned not with gadgets but with men's feelings. He creates imaginatively, and it may be assumed that he's not merely turning out stuff for a new and flourishing [science fiction] market but is trying to express some of his own deepest feelings." Priestley goes on to suggest that behind all of Bradbury's tales are "deep feelings of anxiety, fear, and guilt."

Bradbury's characters are earnest in their quest for a way in which they can effectively deal with the problem of evil. They are hungry to know who they are and how they can achieve their full potential, and yet, simultaneously, these same brave human beings are terribly afraid of growing old and dying.

As a result of the themes with which Bradbury consistently works, his texts often take on a strongly evangelical tone, because he always insists that the only hope for the world lies within the individual. "I realize very late in life now that I could have made a fine priest or minister," confesses Bradbury. The truth of this claim lies in Bradbury's exposing humanity for what it is while offering moral encouragement by showing humans what they can be. That is, Bradbury attempts to present humankind with a vision of the best possible of all worlds — a utopia. And for Bradbury, this utopia is attainable. Furthermore, Bradbury's philosophical idealism insists that once humans discover and attain this utopia within themselves, their universe accordingly improves. However, before humankind can achieve Bradbury's utopia, it must first conquer, or at least learn to cope adequately, with the evil that confronts it at every hour with feelings of loneliness and unfulfillment. This "evil" is usually the inability of humans to know themselves fully, the fear of growing old, and the fear of death.

Use of Imagery

The focus on death is threaded throughout Bradbury's writings, and alongside death is Bradbury's deep interest in the themes of deceit, dissatisfaction with the self, the reality of evil and how to contend with it, and the attainment of self-knowledge. As one may expect, these concepts are embodied in traditional images: ravine imagery, mirror imagery, water imagery, carnival imagery, sun and fire imagery, and the opposition of light and dark, good and evil.

In particular, both the physical and psychological aspects of death and dying are examined through Bradbury's use of ravine imagery. A ravine (defined as a long, deep hollow in the earth's surface, especially one worn by the action of a stream) is used to show that like life, many of the things that exist on this Earth change. Bradbury believes that if we can face and understand our own individual, ultimate deaths, then we can appreciate ourselves and our lives to a fuller degree. He believes that it's necessary to "meet and know and chew and swallow death as a writer and as a reader" and to exorcise it from the subconscious so that we will not have to think about it all the time. Only then can we continue with our real business — which is living.

Frequently, Bradbury also uses imagery associated with masks. Masks, of course, are often associated with deceit, deception, and games. To put on a mask is to be able to mimic, but if we put on a mask, we permit ourselves to disguise our feelings. Therefore, in Bradbury's works, a mask is always an attractive but a dangerous element.

Mirror imagery in Bradbury's stories frequently illustrates the theme of dissatisfaction with ourselves. In some instances, too, Bradbury employs mirror imagery as an emblem of reality, depicting our fascination with what mirrors tell us about ourselves. However, mention of this mirror imagery is not complete without also mentioning the antithesis of reality — that is, fantasy. Bradbury's mirror also allows us to envision ourselves in all the splendor that we wish to see ourselves as well as how we wish to be seen by others. Also inherent in any analysis of mirror imagery is Bradbury's conservative view that we are only who we are, and any attempt at altering ourselves can lead only to disaster.

Bradbury's carnival imagery is a vivid device that he often uses to effectively focus on the presence of evil as a real force in the world. A study of his carnival imagery reveals his belief that the potential for evil exists in a dormant form in each of us. That is, Bradbury believes that unless we keep that which is good within us in fit condition by actively exercising it, we will lose our ability to combat evil, thus allowing evil to grow and become powerful.

The battle between good and evil appears in several images contained in Bradbury's works. One such image is the sun, which functions symbolically as a source of life and also as a symbol for the wholeness of humankind. Very simply, for Bradbury, light is good and dark is evil.

However, a number of Bradbury's stories go a step further, using sun imagery as a symbol for God and the promise of immortality. Similarly, Bradbury's fire imagery focuses on the theme of the victory of good over evil. Appropriately, Bradbury's fire imagery and his sun imagery function hand-in-hand, because one can symbolically consider fire as the sun's earthly representative. The works that deal most specifically with fire imagery contain Bradbury's most important social commentaries concerning the condition of the world as he sees it. His most intense pleas in favor of the arts and humanities, as opposed to sterile technology, occur in stories that use sun and fire imagery.

Another image that Bradbury often uses to show the possibilities for overcoming evil in the world is the smile. Smiles and laughter, according to Bradbury, derive their power from their forefather — love. Bradbury believes that love is the strongest and most humanizing force that man possesses.

Our knowledge of death as a part of life, our learning to make the best of who and what we are, our acceptance of evil as well as good in the world, and our battle to arrest evil are the discoveries that give us a broader insight into ourselves.

Bradbury also presents this self-knowledge in his stories through the use of water imagery. Bradbury uses water imagery in the traditional sense — that is, to suggest the life source itself and the transition of the life cycle from one phase to another. Water imagery also depicts the theme of rebirth, regeneration, and purification, which Bradbury also uses throughout his writings. He incorporates the rebirth image into his "celebrate life" theme. Bradbury urges us to enjoy being alive in spite of life's difficulties, rather than finding life drudgery because of its difficulties.

Bradbury has high hopes for the future of man and man's acquisition of the most fulfilling life possible (a utopia). He shows his readers a utopian world that can result if they heed his advice, and he describes the horrors that can ensue if certain contemporary tendencies (for example, greed, dependence upon technology, governmental control) aren't stopped. Bradbury always suggests that Earth can be the best possible of all worlds, and he also suggests that humankind, when it has come to grips with itself, can make the world a place in which we can all be as free and as happy as we have ever dreamed.

Previous Comparison of the Book and Film Versions of Fahrenheit 451

Next Full Glossary for Fahrenheit 451

“Fahrenheit 451” by Ray Bradbury Sample Essay

Introduction, fahrenheit 451: book review, analysis of fahrenheit 451’s main themes, works cited.

Part of the most captivating plots ever written fall in the fiction category. Novels have come to represent the very best of man’s imagination. Though most of their content is fictional, books’ storylines closely reflect the life people lead on the Earth. They seek to portray the good and the bad of the human race within various contexts as the setting permits. One of these books is “Fahrenheit 451”, a 1953 novel written by Ray Bradbury. This essay is an analysis of “Fahrenheit 451”, an example of science-fiction masterpiece. The themes, messages, characters, topics, and settings of the novel are explored in the below sections of the paper.

In Fahrenheit 451, a riveting story unfolds through the book’s storyline featuring a fictional future society, probably the American one, where reading is outlawed, and a ban on reading is imposed. Authorities affect the ban through burning books carried out by firemen.

When reading the novel, it is easy to agree that reading culture and freedom of expression of one’s thoughts through reading and writing is under threat of media such as television. Above all, the book reveals that people have become their worst enemies concerning reading and censorship and that the culture of ignorance and carelessness is taking its roots. There is an acute loss of intellectual thought in society.

Reading Fahrenheit 451’s provides a perfect revelation of a confused society at war with itself. Guy Montag comes home to find his wife overdosed and a new neighbor who reminds him of the unfulfilling life he leads. Despite participating in books burning, Montag is still not sure why he burns books, as evidenced by his stealing of one of the suicidal woman’s books.

Montag has a pile of books collected from the victims of book burning carried out by firemen. An argument with his wife about what to do with the stolen books opens Montag’s eyes, and he realizes his disgust for society. Montag realizes society’s pretense of happiness when he reads a poem from one of the stolen books, which makes one of his wife’s friends cry despite maintaining a “happy” life picture throughout her life (Bradbury 23).

The madness of the society’s onslaught on itself reaches the epitome when Beatty, Montag’s chief at work, orders him to burn his house. Probably from all the events, a dispute develops between Montag and the Beatty, the chief fireman. A war situation breaks out, and incineration of cities in the country takes place, a clear reflection of the permeation of confusion in society.

This section of the essay analyzes Fahrenheit 451’s themes. This kind of analysis gives the reader the perfect view of the explicit machinations of the state in promoting censorship and the flow of information. It is easy for a reader to see the blatant indictment of censorship as supported by the state. The firemen are on the government payroll, and their work is to impose a ban on books.

Through the book, the current situation in the world concerning censorship comes out. It is easy for any reader to find the current world situation concerning censorship and media gagging through a subtle and close reflection of what the book causes. But even more impressive is the precise reflection of the effects of television on society, especially concerning reading the literature.

One of the exciting insinuations in the book is the portrayal of people as their enemies. There is a blatant disregard of each other among human beings, the culture of alienation mainly fronted by the media.

In Fahrenheit 451, Mildred, Montag’s wife, is a clear representation of the current world, which is likely to turn into in the future thanks to the media. Mildred and her friends spend most of their time watching television walls in the “parlor,” intentionally ignoring the problems around them till the issues get out of control. There is the only preoccupation for them, which is the program schedule.

Clarisse helps Montag realize that what he is doing is wrong. Within that context, her character represents the voices of the reason that still exist in the chaotic world, the voices that still question the goings-on in the society despite the different obstacles that exist (Bradbury 47).

Fahrenheit 451 is every reader’s book with very infectious quoted and thought-provoking imagery, which explicitly puts the role entertainment, especially television, lack of concern for each other, and the casual attitude which has come to characterize the modern world.

The fact that the events occur in America, though fictional, is a stark reminder that repression is through book burning and is a serious event that can take place even in the most advanced society. Any reader will find it very interesting, primarily through the discovery that most of the hatred in the book comes from people themselves.

How does Fahrenheit 451 end? In summary, the novel’s finale is hopeful. The city has been destroyed by bombs, but the books continue to live in in the “book people”.

As shown in this essay, Fahrenheit 451 is an example of masterpiece in its genre. The novel is analyzed by the scholars in numerous research papers and book reviews. Fahrenheit 451 gives any reader an opportunity to experience firsthand a 1950’s prediction of the world in the 21st century.

People have become slaves to their television sets and the Internet, people don’t bother to ask the root cause of all the crises and armed conflicts that have become characteristic of the 21st century, there is an avid promotion of violence which children access through video games; the drug problems are spiraling out of control.

Reading the book provides a deeper understanding of Montag, the main character, and how he represents the average person in the world today. Books burning and city incineration is a symbolic representation of the problems that bedevil the world mainly through entertainment enslavement.

In a nutshell, the book acts as an eye-opener and helps in comparing the current society to the Montag’s society, where TV reigns as a supreme authority. Additionally, life is fast, and all people tend to think they are happy, while in the real sense, they are not. The real picture of what people are going through comes out through the suicide attempts. It is, therefore, easy to recommend Fahrenheit 451 as the book with the true reflection of the society people live in nowadays.

Bradbury, Ray. Fahrenheit 451 . New York: Simon & Schuster, 2011. Print.

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Fahrenheit 451

Ray bradbury, ask litcharts ai: the answer to your questions.

Welcome to the LitCharts study guide on Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 . Created by the original team behind SparkNotes, LitCharts are the world's best literature guides.

Fahrenheit 451: Introduction

Fahrenheit 451: plot summary, fahrenheit 451: detailed summary & analysis, fahrenheit 451: themes, fahrenheit 451: quotes, fahrenheit 451: characters, fahrenheit 451: symbols, fahrenheit 451: theme wheel, brief biography of ray bradbury.

Historical Context of Fahrenheit 451

Other books related to fahrenheit 451.

• Full Title: Fahrenheit 451
• When Written: 1947–1953
• Where Written: The United States
• When Published: 1953
• Literary Period: Modern American
• Genre: Dystopian novel
• Setting: An unnamed city in America in the future
• Climax: Montag's escape from the Mechanical Hound; the bombing of the city
• Antagonist: Captain Beatty; the Mechanical Hound
• Point of View: Third person

Extra Credit for Fahrenheit 451

Fahrenheit on film: Fahrenheit 451 was made into a movie by acclaimed French director Francois Truffaut in 1966. A new filmed version has been in the works for over a decade. Ray Bradbury reportedly took offense at the title of Michael Moore's controversial documentary, Fahrenheit 9/11 , though apparently not for political reasons.

Fahrenheit 451 Ray Bradbury

Fahrenheit 451 literature essays are academic essays for citation. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury.

Fahrenheit 451 Material

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Fahrenheit 451 Essays

Guided by the phoenix: symbolism in bradbury's fahrenheit 451 dasha smirnova 8th grade, fahrenheit 451.

It was a pleasure to burn. Yet the ice in Montag’s heart was the only reason he set the books to flames: the feeling of emptiness, of no meaning in life. They all went away as the paper burned to dirt black ashes and a beautiful puff of smoke...

Character Analysis: Fahrenheit 451 Michael Wainwright

Set in a world without literary wisdom, Fahrenheit 451 by legendary science-fiction author Ray Bradbury is the story of those who would dare to break free from the chains of censorship and intellectual repression. Against a climate of intense...

The Theme of Self-Destruction in Ray Bradbury's 'Fahrenheit 451' Daniel James Wood

A wife overdoses on medication, much to the distress of her husband; a woman watches as the room in which she stands is doused in kerosene before she takes it upon herself to strike the first match; a Fire Captain hands a flame-thrower to one of...

American Paradigms in Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 Hadas Elber

Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 invokes two paradigms of America: the paradigm of America in the 1950s, and the Puritan paradigm of America. This paper will discuss the way these paradigms manifest themselves in the text, the relation between them,...

Fahrenheit 451 Through the Lens of "We Wear the Mask" and "Barn Burning" Anonymous 9th Grade

Ray Bradbury’s novel Fahrenheit 451 explores the idea of a person living a tedious, restrictive life while trying to fool himself into believing in a sense of happiness. Similarly, Paul Laurence Dunbar’s poem, “We Wear the Mask,” proposes the idea...

Influences Behind Brave New World and Fahrenheit 451 Michael Wainwright

To many modern readers, the science-fiction genre is a genre built upon utopic visions of peace and intellectual advancement, of idealistic worlds where logic always triumphs over primal instinct. Although the hopeful scientific novel is not...

Montag’s Transformation: The Influence of Subordinate Characters Anonymous 9th Grade

At the beginning of the novel Fahrenheit 451 , Guy Montag is a fireman, a man who burns books, who doesn’t truly acknowledge how much he destroys. He seems to be content to burning things, finding pleasure in seeing houses in flames, smiling...

More Dangerous than a Speeding Bullet Duncan McLarty 10th Grade

Do you remember how your parents would always say too much television will "turn your brain to mush?" This just so happens to be the case in Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 , which poses an eerily similar problem. This novel is about a society caught...

Interpreting Allusions in Fahrenheit 451 Morgan Dobbins 10th Grade

In Fahrenheit 451 , Ray Bradbury presents a recurring theme that individual activism can fight government oppression. An allusion is a literary device in which the writer refers to another work or author, and Bradbury relies on this to show...

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Imagine if all those fortune tellers and palm readers are right and their “predictions” hold meaning. Think of how much that would change our world today. Everyone would be given an opportunity to change the negative aspects of their futures....

Frowning at Conformity: Bradbury’s Growing Disillusionment in Freedom of Expression during the Cold War Dezhen Kong 11th Grade

After World War II, United States was growing in prosperity as a seeming winner of the war; yet, growing alongside of it, was an omnipresent fear and tension about technology and ideology---the summation of the oncoming Cold War. As a young writer...

Fahrenheit 451: Contrasts Between the Novel and Movie Anonymous 11th Grade

In Ray Bradbury’s novel Fahrenheit 451, protagonist Guy Montag questions the rules and teachings of the society in which he lives. Throughout the story, his view of life and books changes. There are numerous differences between the novel...

Home — Essay Samples — Literature — Fahrenheit 451 — Ray Bradbury’s “Fahrenheit 451”: Literary Analysis

Ray Bradbury's "Fahrenheit 451": Literary Analysis

• Categories: Dystopia Fahrenheit 451 Ray Bradbury

About this sample

Words: 1020 |

Updated: 6 November, 2023

Words: 1020 | Pages: 2 | 6 min read

"In Ray Bradbury's 'Fahrenheit 451,' the author employs a combination of literary devices, including personification, metaphors, and repetition, to convey a central theme: the idea that ignorance is embraced as bliss in a society that shields itself from the harsh realities of the world. This theme is exemplified by the way people in this dystopian society prefer to remain ignorant and disconnected from the discomforting aspects of reality, opting for a shallow and simplistic existence.

Through personification, Bradbury reveals society's desire for perfection and happiness over the truth. The use of metaphors, comparing people to delicate flowers, emphasizes how they strive to live in a world solely focused on superficial beauty, avoiding the nourishing experiences and knowledge that could lead to personal growth. The metaphor of 'growing on good rain and black loam' underscores the idea that to thrive, individuals need to embrace the complexities of life and acquire knowledge, much like how plants require fertile soil and water.

Additionally, Bradbury's use of repetition, particularly in the negative connotations associated with literature, serves to highlight society's aversion to knowledge. The repetition of terms like 'poetry and tears,' 'suicide and crying,' and 'poetry and sickness' reinforces how most people perceive books and knowledge as sources of pain and emotional turmoil.

Video Version

“Fahrenheit 451” Essay: Hook Examples

• An Eerie Prediction: In the age of digital information and censorship debates, Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451 seems more prophetic than ever. Join me on a journey through the chilling world of this dystopian classic.
• An Unforgettable Opening Line: “It was a pleasure to burn.” These words ignite the narrative of Fahrenheit 451, but what lies beneath the surface of this provocative statement? Let’s delve into the depths of fire and censorship.
• An Exploration of Themes: In Bradbury’s novel, we encounter themes of censorship, conformity, and the power of literature. Join me as we dissect these themes and uncover the layers of meaning hidden within the pages of Fahrenheit 451.
• A Warning from the Past: Fahrenheit 451 was written in the 1950s, but its message about the dangers of intellectual suppression remains timeless. Discover how this cautionary tale still resonates in our information-saturated society.
• An Intriguing Quote: “We need not to be let alone. We need to be really bothered once in a while.” Ray Bradbury’s words beckon us to examine the role of discomfort and dissent in Fahrenheit 451’s narrative, prompting us to explore the consequences of a society obsessed with comfort and conformity.

Works Cited

• Bradbury, R. (2012). Fahrenheit 451. Simon and Schuster.
• Bloom, H. (Ed.). (2010). Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451. Infobase Publishing.
• Cadden, M. (1995). Science fiction and the mass cultural genre system. Science-Fiction Studies, 22(3), 317-328.
• Coale, S. (2004). “Out of Bounds and Out of Control”: Reading Race, Space, and Class in Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451. Science Fiction Studies, 31(3), 349-367.
• Hiner, S. E. (2003). The perfectibility of man and society in Fahrenheit 451. The Midwest Quarterly, 45(2), 282-296.
• Isaacs, L. D. (2002). Ray Bradbury. Salem Press.
• Jaffa, H. V. (2003). Fahrenheit 451: Misinterpreting a classic. Academic Questions, 16(3), 16-21.
• Larrick, N. (1967). The all-white world of children’s books. The Saturday Review, 50(42), 63-65.
• Schaub, J. F. (2011). The mind’s I: Fantasies and reflections on self and soul. University of Notre Dame Press.
• Simkin, J. (2018). Social criticism in Fahrenheit 451 and 1984. The Explicator, 76(4), 225-230.

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Why ‘Fahrenheit 451’ Is the Book for Our Social Media Age

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By Ramin Bahrani

• May 10, 2018

No books were harmed in the making of this motion picture . There will be no such disclaimer at the end of my new film, because we burned a lot of books. We designed powerful, kerosene-spitting flamethrowers and torched books — en masse. This was not easy for me to do. I was taught at a very young age to read and respect books. Even setting a teacup on a book was considered a sin. In my parents’ household, Hafez’s book of Persian poetry, “The Divan,” was revered like a religious text.

But now I was making a film adaptation of Ray Bradbury’s seminal novel, “Fahrenheit 451,” which presents a future America where books are outlawed and firemen burn them. The protagonist, a fireman named Guy Montag, begins to doubt his actions and turns against his mentor, Captain Beatty. When I set out to adapt the novel early in 2016, I was faced with a big question: Do people still care about physical books?

I asked an 82-year-old friend for advice. “Go ahead and burn books,” he said. “They mean nothing to me. I can read anything on my tablet, from the ‘Epic of Gilgamesh’ to Jo Nesbo, and I can read them in bed, on a plane or next to the ocean, because it’s all in the cloud, safe from your firemen’s torches.”

If he felt this way, what would teenagers think? Bradbury’s novel is a classic taught in high schools across America. But the more I thought about it, the more relevant the novel seemed. For Bradbury, books were repositories of knowledge and ideas. He feared a future in which those things would be endangered, and now that future was here: The internet and new social-media platforms — and their potential threat to serious thought — would be at the heart of my adaptation.

I had never adapted a book, let alone one so important. Altering a work so brilliant and beloved always upsets some fans. I knew Bradbury had supported François Truffaut’s 1966 film adaptation. More important, Bradbury himself had reimagined “Fahrenheit 451,” first as a stage play and then as a musical, changing many elements, including letting Montag’s neighbor Clarisse McClellan live. (In the novel, she dies early on.) With Bradbury as my guide, and a vow to stay true to his ideas, I began working on the script.

“Fahrenheit 451” was written in the early 1950s, not long after Nazis burned books and, eventually, human beings. America was living under a cloud of fear created by the House Un-American Activities Committee and McCarthyism, which brought political repression, blacklists and censorship of literature and art. These anxieties permeate the novel.

But Bradbury’s key inspiration was the invasion of seven-inch black-and-white televisions into people’s homes. Bradbury was no Luddite. He wrote screenplays, including one for an adaptation of “Moby-Dick.” He also wrote 65 episodes of a television series, “The Ray Bradbury Theater.” But in “Fahrenheit 451” Bradbury was warning us about the threat of mass media to reading, about the bombardment of digital sensations that could substitute for critical thinking.

In the novel, he imagined a world where people are entertained day and night by staring at giant wall screens in their homes. They interact with their “friends” through these screens, listening to them via “Seashells” — Bradbury’s version of Apple’s wireless AirPods — inserted in their ears. In this world, people would be crammed “full of noncombustible data” — words to popular songs, the names of state capitals, the amount of “corn Iowa grew last year.” They will “feel they’re thinking,” Bradbury wrote, “and they’ll be happy, because facts of that sort don’t change.”

Bradbury was worried about the advent of Reader’s Digest. Today we have Wikipedia and tweets. He worried that people would read only headlines. Today it seems that half the words online have been replaced with emojis. The more we erode language, the more we erode complex thought and the easier we are to control.

Bradbury feared memory loss. Today we have designated Google and our social-media accounts as the guardians of our memories, emotions, dreams and facts. As tech companies consolidate power, imagine how easy it could be to rewrite Benjamin Franklin’s Wiki entry to match what the firemen in Bradbury’s novel learn about the history of the fire department: “Established, 1790, to burn English-influenced books in the Colonies. First Fireman: Benjamin Franklin.” In his way, Bradbury predicted the rise of “alternative facts” and an era of “post-truth.”

As the virtual world becomes more dominant, owning books becomes an act of rebellion. When a printed book is in your possession, no one can track, alter or hack it. The characters in my film have never seen a book. When they first encounter a library, the books are like water in a vast digital desert. Seeing, touching and smelling a book is as alien to the firemen as milking a cow by hand would be for most of us. The firemen are transfixed by the books — but they still have to burn them.

Burning books in the film posed a legal challenge. The cover art of most books is protected by copyright, and in most cases we were unable to obtain permission to display it — let alone burn it on camera. So the art directors for my film designed countless original book covers that we could burn.

The question was: Which books? There were always more I wanted to burn than we had time to film. I knew I wanted to include some of my favorites, like “Crime and Punishment,” “Song of Solomon” and the works of Franz Kafka. But we had to burn more than just fiction. Herodotus’ “Histories” — history itself — was incinerated. Pages of Emily Dickinson, Tagore and Ferdowsi’s poetry crumbled into black ash. Hegel, Plato and Grace Lee Boggs’s philosophy were set on fire. The firemen discriminate against no one: Texts in Chinese, Hindi, Persian and Spanish all burned. A Mozart score, an Edvard Munch painting, magazines, newspapers, photographs of Sitting Bull, Frederick Douglass and the 1969 moon landing went up in smoke.

Even the most fanatic firemen would have a hard time burning all the copies of a best seller like “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.” After J. K. Rowling spoke out against Donald Trump on Twitter, people tweeted that they were planning to burn their Harry Potter books. So we followed suit. Famously banned books had to go: “The Autobiography of Malcolm X,” “Lolita,” “Leaves of Grass” and “The Communist Manifesto.” While we were shooting the film, “To Kill a Mockingbird,” a frequent target of censorship, was once again banned in some schools, so into the flames it went. For some authors, having a book burned in the film was a badge of honor. Werner Herzog and Hamid Dabashi generously donated their work to be burned alongside the best and the worst of literature. If we save “Wise Blood” then we must preserve “Mein Kampf” as well.

Watching the books burn was an otherworldly experience. The hiss of incinerating pages sounded like the final gasps of hundreds of dying souls. The more we burned, the more hypnotic it became — a mesmerizing spectacle of pages curling and embers dancing into the void.

Bradbury believed that we wanted the world to become this way. That we asked for the firemen to burn books. That we wanted entertainment to replace reading and thinking. That we voted for political and economic systems to keep us happy rather than thoughtfully informed. He would say that we chose to give up our privacy and freedom to tech companies. That we decided to entrust our cultural heritage and knowledge to digital archives. The greatest army of firemen will be irrelevant in the digital world. They will be as powerless as spitting babies next to whoever controls a consolidated internet. How could they stop one person, hiding in his parents’ basement with a laptop, from hacking into thousands of years of humanity’s collective history, literature and culture, and then rewriting all of it … or just hitting delete?

And who would notice?

Ramin Bahrani is a writer, director and Guggenheim fellowship recipient whose films include “Chop Shop” and “99 Homes.” His adaptation of “Fahrenheit 451” will air on HBO on May 19.

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