Fahrenheit 451

Why teach Fahrenheit 451?

In his introduction to Fahrenheit 451, Neil Gaiman, another science fiction writer, says:

“Fahrenheit 451 is speculative fiction. It’s an “If this goes on…” story. Ray Bradbury was writing about his present, which is our past. He was warning us about things; some of those things are obvious, and some of them, half a century later, are harder to see.

Listen.

If someone tells you what story is about, they’re probably right.

If they tell you that is all the story is about, they are very definitely wrong.”^{^[1]}

Ray Bradbury wrote a short story, The Fireman, and subsequently Fahrenheit 451 in response to the rise of television. He feared that as even radio declined, books would fade away completely. He had also written a short story, The Pedestrian, about a world where no one walks.

Neither of Bradbury’s fears have come to pass. He was making observations about the 1950s, but in the process, he’s given us a lens through which we can examine our present, too. The history of book burning and cultural destruction through to modern destruction of books and cultural artifacts; the self-censorship of university students; and the process of social change are all touched on in this study guide.

^{^[1]} Gaiman, Neil (2013) “Introduction”, in Fahrenheit 451 (2013 [1951]) Simon & Schuster Special Sales Edition. pp. xii