For the entry of my choice, I'm going to connect the books "The Giver" by Lois Lowry and "Fahrenheit 451" since they have both similar themes.
First, I'll tell you about the book "The Giver." "The Giver" is about a boy named Jonas in a "utopian-based" community. Everyone is completly equal, including their hair, outfit, their opportunity of jobs and etc. There's no color, there's no creativity and there's no lust. The young ones go to a school, until their twelfth year. Their jobs are chosen by the elders, depending on their special talents. On Jonas's job ceremony, he gets chosen to be the Receiver, who receives memories about the past from the Giver. Jonas finds out and experiences memories from the past. He realizes choices, colors, feelings brings meaning into life. He becomes different from everybody from the community. He begins to feel different feelings, see colors, and etc. Also, he realizes anyone who is imperfect in his community has to be put to death. He realizes the community he's in is a dystopia. He escapes to a different world, where it is normal. He realizes life is better with feelings, some pain, warmth, family, color, and meaning.
Just like "The Giver," "Fahrenheit 451" has secrets kept in the community. Books are kept away from the people. Sure, people might be happy without books, since there would be no arguments, and stress from books. People have no feelings like The Giver. Montag is curious just as Jonas. Similarily, Montag wants to escape from the world. He runs away from the Mechanical Hounds because he read books to find the meaning of life. These two characters wanted to find the meaning of existence and life. Also, these two books portrayed a community of a utopian concept turned into a dystopia. There are many similarities between the two books.
If you did not like Fahrenheit 451, The Giver is much better. It is easier to read, and I think it has an interesting story line also. Also, although the mood is serious, it is not as serious as Fahrenheit 451.
Thursday, April 3, 2008
_entry of my choice
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Memorable Passage
This passage was interesting to me:
"Now let's take up the minorities in our civilization, shall we? Bigger the population, the more minorities. Don't step on the toes of the dog lovers, the cat lovers, doctors, lawyers, merchants, chiefs, Mormons, Baptists, Unitarians, second-generation Chinese, Swedes, Italians, Germans, Texans, Brooklynites, Irishmen, people from Oregon or Mexico. The people in this book, thie play, this TV serial are not meant to represent any actual painters, cartographers, mechanics anywhere. The bigger your market, Montag, The less you handle controversy, remember that! All the minor minor minorities with their navels to be kept clean. Authors, full of evil thoughts, lock up your typewriters. They did. Magazines became a nice blend of vanilla tapioca. Books, so the damned snobbish critics said, were dishwater. No wonder books stopped selling, the critics said, But the public, knowing what it wanted, spinning happily, let the comic books survive. And the three-dimensional sex magazines, of course, There you have it, Montag. It didn't come from the Government down. There was no dictum, no declaration, no censorship, to start with, no! Technology, mass exploitation, and minority pressure carried the trick, thank God. Today, thanks to them, you can stay happy all the time, you are allowed to read comics, the good old confessions, or trade journals."
This was when Beatty was talking to Montag, about how evil writers and books were. It's interesting how evil dictatorship can be, ignoring the minorities. This reminds me of North Korea, where foreign medias are banned. I heard that people who are caught with foreign media are sent to jail.... (Correct me if I'm wrong!) I don't think books make you unhappy. Sure, textsbooks can make the students stressed out. But, having knowledge is important. I believe it can make you happy, through expressing your knowledge to the world. With knowledge, you can discover the horrible, unhappy things in the world like poverty, human trafficking, and etc. People can help each other through the use of knowledge. Like LASA trips, helping and caring others make happiness! Reading unnecessary comic books, inapropriate magazines just bring no point in life. It makes the brain think weirdly. I don't think the world would function properly. People won't think of others that need help out there in the world.
Theme of Fahrenheit 451
Setting of Fahrenheit 451
Characters of Fahrenheit 451.
Clarisse is a protagonist in the story also. She is a weird girl, who loves talking, especially about life, literature, nature, and etc, while others in the world don't. She talks to Montag, and draws curiosity to Montag. I guess she would be considered normal in our world, since it's not like people don't have emotions in this world.
Mildred is Montag's wife. She is just as strange as the others in the story's world. She has no emotions, knowledge about the past, and she doesn't read. She becomes an antagonist in the book. She is a tv addict. I don't understand why Montag would marry her. He says he's in love, but I don't think he really was. She is a very sad person, because she commits suicide.
Beatty is the antagonist in the book. Beatty is a firemen also. He gives a speech about the history of the firemen. He says books are weapons, and it brings unhappiness. I think the character was complicated in a way. I thought he was a sad character also because he didn't want to face any sadness in the world. I thought he was selfish also. He can read well but he doesn't let others read. He uses robotic dogs to search for Montag, when Montag gets into trouble. I really did not like Beatty in the book. He seems so stupid because he thinks books are bad!
Professor Faber is the protagonist in the book. He used to be an English professor. He feels bad that he would not speak out to the world that the cause of the stupidness in the world is because books are banned. He really loves books, and he also influences Montag to be interested in literature. He helps out Montag. I think I would feel the same way as Professor Faber. I would be too afraid to speak out because it would be dangerous for me. I can possibly die!
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
Mood of Fahrenheit 451
Also, the mood of this book is very odd and it's full of curiosity and mystery. For instance, in the world of Fahrenheit 451, people weren't allowed to have books. Firemens had to burn them!
Also, people did not have any emotions. They were practically all robotic! However, Montag met this seventeen year old girl, which made him curious about the world. What makes the mood strange is that people don't remember the days back then where they had literature and etc. It was really strange, and it made me realize how bad this society was! There's barely comedy and joy in this book. However, I really loved this book!