Yes, I am still here. In fact, not only am I still here, but I have been voraciously reading. Fun books, interesting books, historical books, Christian teaching books, the Bible and more. Since I put down Ann's book, I have probably picked up another 8 or 10 bundles of words, paragraphs, thoughts, paper and glue. And the one I picked up yesterday has quickened my pulse and set my mind to processing. Another book worth bloggin about, so I thought it was high time to do just that and sort out my thoughts.
What is the book, you ask? It is call Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, partially published in 1950 and published in its current format in 1953... NOTE THE DATES... the 1950's. The days when I Love Lucy and The Ed Sullivan Show and Dragnet topped the ratings programs.
In that "American as Apple Pie" culture, Bradbury imagined a world where books were prohibited and burned when found. A world where the ultimate pursuit was "happiness", even if only achieved through deadening the senses to anything less than "pleasant."
There are several exerpts I want to ruminate on, but for tonight this one is all I have time for:
The protagonist, Guy Montag, is talking with his fire chief (incidently the job of firemen in this world is to start fires, not put them out) and his chief is trying to explain to him how they are altering society and why they are altering society. Particularly why books, specifically books that spur CRITICAL THINKING, are bad ideas:
He starts by saying, "You can't rid yourself of all the odd ducks (read critical/ logical thinkers) in just a few years. The home environment can undo a lot you try to do at school. That's why we've lowered the kindergarten age year after year until now we're almost snatching them from the cradle."
BRADBURY WROTE THAT 60+ YEARS AGO... And where are we now? The US government is funding Headstart Progams and numerous daycare programs. Where will it lead?
The chief continues less than a paragraph later:
What is the book, you ask? It is call Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, partially published in 1950 and published in its current format in 1953... NOTE THE DATES... the 1950's. The days when I Love Lucy and The Ed Sullivan Show and Dragnet topped the ratings programs.
In that "American as Apple Pie" culture, Bradbury imagined a world where books were prohibited and burned when found. A world where the ultimate pursuit was "happiness", even if only achieved through deadening the senses to anything less than "pleasant."
There are several exerpts I want to ruminate on, but for tonight this one is all I have time for:
The protagonist, Guy Montag, is talking with his fire chief (incidently the job of firemen in this world is to start fires, not put them out) and his chief is trying to explain to him how they are altering society and why they are altering society. Particularly why books, specifically books that spur CRITICAL THINKING, are bad ideas:
He starts by saying, "You can't rid yourself of all the odd ducks (read critical/ logical thinkers) in just a few years. The home environment can undo a lot you try to do at school. That's why we've lowered the kindergarten age year after year until now we're almost snatching them from the cradle."
BRADBURY WROTE THAT 60+ YEARS AGO... And where are we now? The US government is funding Headstart Progams and numerous daycare programs. Where will it lead?
The chief continues less than a paragraph later:
"Luckily, queer ones [the odd ducks] don't happen often. We know how to nip most of them in the bud, early. You can't build a house without nails and wood. If you don't want a house built, hide the nails and wood. If you don't want a man unhappy politically, don't give him two sides to a question to worry him; give him one. Better yet, give him none. Let him forget there is such a thing as war. If the government is inefficient, top-heavy, and tax-mad, better it be all those than that people worry over it. Peace, Montag. Give the people contests they win by remembering the words to more popular songs (anyone remember the show Don't Forget the Lyrics?)or the names of state capitals or how much corn Iowa grew last year. (Hhhmm. Sounds eerily like the show Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader?) CRAM THEM FULL OF NONCOMBUSTIBLE DATA, CHOCK THEM SO DAMNED FULL OF 'FACTS' THEY FEEL STUFFED, BUT ABSOLUTELY 'BRILLIANT' WITH INFORMATION. THEN THEY'LL FEEL THEY ARE THINKING, THEY'LL GET A SENSE OF MOTION WITHOUT MOVING. AND THEY'LL BE HAPPY BECAUSE FACTS OF THAT SORT DON'T CHANGE [ANYTHING]."
Ray, what reflection did you see in society three generations ago that you predicted such an awful and accurate reality?
Friends, go pick up a copy of Fahrenheit 451, take a few hours to read it, and join me in a few weeks of digesting it.
Ray, what reflection did you see in society three generations ago that you predicted such an awful and accurate reality?
Friends, go pick up a copy of Fahrenheit 451, take a few hours to read it, and join me in a few weeks of digesting it.
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