Violence to the Society in Fahrenheit 451

Fahrenheit 451 is a novel written by Ray Bradbury. In Bradbury’s futuristic novel, violence is prevalently revealed in the society. Violence in society is aggression, cruelty, rough or injurious physical actions and treatment towards the citizens and civilization in the society, where everyone has the same theory and beliefs on the way one should act. In Fahrenheit 451, everyone is careless and relatively violent with the exception of Clarisse Maclellan who has an innocent love of people and nature.

Guy Montag, who is searching for himself and happiness, progresses into a very violent character throughout the novel. Fahrenheit 451 is violent for many reasons including the fact that fire itself is a very violent proposal to engage. The society in Fahrenheit 451 portrays ideas which would not be considered safe in today’s society, such as the “Mechanical Hound. ” The Mechanical Hound is a robot with eight legs and a lethal needle with which it injects morphine or procaine into its victim. The parlor walls, which almost everyone has in the society, also portray violence because the shows and programs they play are often violent.

Driving vehicles is not safe in the society, as people repeatedly get killed and hit by cars. Teenagers in Fahrenheit 451 are intrigued by the idea of violence, as are most adults. The way in which the society as well as the people act, violence is frequently relevant in Fahrenheit 451. In Fahrenheit 451, the parlor walls portray violent and negative ideas. Not only do the parlor walls portray violent and negative ideas, but they also instruct the citizens in the society, particularly teenagers how to act violently.

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The programs that the parlor walls engage in to occupy the citizens are typically based on violence. Mildred Montag as well as the parlor ladies are intrigued and get exceptionally eager when a violent clip is shown on their parlor walls. Since the society in Fahrenheit 451 is so careless of one another and especially children and teenagers, it is doubtful that the guardians care whether or not the children and teenagers are watching the violent programs, as long as they are happy and without stress. Children and teenagers learn from their guardians, but also from television.

Since the parlor walls are one of the only things that the society does for interest, it has a huge impact on their lives, and especially the way the citizens’ act. It is probable that this is why teenagers kill each other for the reason that murders are quite frequently advertised in a “positive” manner on the parlor walls. If the people see something on the parlor walls, it is highly likely that they will act upon what they see, which is mainly violence in the case of Fahrenheit 451. The fact that the parlor walls portray acts of violence may have an impact on the way the society drives.

The people in the society driving bring on destruction excessive speed, which causes many careless injuries and deaths. While watching the parlor walls: “A minute later three white cartoon 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 an arena, bashing and backing up and bashing each other again. Montag saw a number of bodies fly in the air. “Millie did you see that? ” “I saw it, I saw it! ” ” (Bradbury 94).

The laughter or Mille and the parlor ladies prove that they enjoy the idea of violence, and are amused from it. Often when you enjoy watching something, you enjoy living it as well. It is likely that because the people enjoy watching violence on the parlor walls, they enjoy living violently as well. Since the only thing they have ever experienced is careless, violent actions, this is what makes them happy as appose to peaceful settlements. Therefore violence is frequently prevalent and relevant to the society in Fahrenheit 451. Not only are the parlor walls violent, but the Mechanical Hound is violent.

The Mechanical Hound is trained to attack people who have books. The Hound is trained to severely injure, or kill anyone who has any source of a book. The Mechanical Hound can be compared to a dog in today’s society. In today’s society, a dog is quite often trained to be well behaved, and stable. In Fahrenheit 451, the Mechanical Hound is trained to do the opposite of what the typical dog is trained to do today. The Mechanical Hound is a violent threat to the society and nobody wants to have an encounter with it. Rather than solving issues and disagreements with a peaceful settlement, they are solved using the Mechanical Hound.

Unlike the firehouse dog in today’s society, the soulless, hollow enforcer Mechanical Hound does not rescue people, but does the opposite. The Mechanical Hound is violent because it goes against Guy Montag, who was once a guardian to the Hound. Although Montag had books, the Mechanical Hound was trained to go after any traitor, but in fact the Mechanical Hound was a traitor itself for going after one who was once its leader. The Mechanical Hound seems like a brilliant idea to the fireman in Fahrenheit 451 and because of its violent actions, it makes it much more significant to everyone, with the exception of thinkers, and book carriers.

At the firehouse, Montag is with the Hound: “Nights when things got dull, which was every night, the men slid down the brass poles, and set the ticking combinations of the olfactory system of the hound and let loose rats in the fire house areaway. Three seconds later the game was done, the rat caught half across the areaway, gripped in gentle paws while a four-inch hollow steel needle plunged down from the proboscis of the hound to inject massive jolts of morphine or procaine. ” (Bradbury 24-25). The fact that murdering an innocent creature with morphine and procaine is a game to the fireman proves that this society is very violent.

The firemen get enjoyment out of watching the Hounds cruel behavior to an innocent animal. In today’s society, typically someone’s idea of fun is not enjoying watching cruelty towards animals. The fact that the Mechanical Hound kills such a small creature is intimidating to the civilians in society because it can do a lot of harm. Thus the Mechanical Hound being a threat and a supremely dangerous creature in the Society, Fahrenheit 451 is violent novel. The idea of fire is frightening and intimidating. The reality of fire is dangerous and violent. Fahrenheit 451 is based on burning books, and fire.

The firemen in the novel are the opposite of fireman today. Rather than distinguishing a fire, they create them. Someone who creates fire, and enjoys fire is known as a pyromaniac. Pyromaniacs are violent, and people usually tend to stay away from them. In Fahrenheit 451, the author portrays fire as being a superior thing. Fire is a positive thing and solves problems in their society. Fire is violent because it can burn down anything within a minute. Once a fire it made, it will not stop until it is put out or is burns out itself which is why fire is so harmfully violent.

In Fahrenheit 451, not only does is encourage fire as being a positive thing, but it also encourages eliminating sources of education. Books are a high-quality foundation of education, and play a huge role in today’s society. In Fahrenheit 451, houses get burned down if the proprietor has a book. Fahrenheit 451 is encouraging the idea of education as being a bad thing. The society believes that the only appropriate way to get educated is through parlor walls, but that is only educating people with violence.

Late at night while the fireman start a fire: “The sight of it rushed the men down and out away from the house. Captain Beatty keeping his dignity, backed slowly through the front door, his pink face burnt and shiny from a thousand fires and night excitements. ‘God”, thought Montag, “how true. Always at night the alarm comes. Never by day. It is because the fire is prettier at night? More spectacle? A better show? ” ” (Bradbury 39). Words like, “pretty” and “beautiful” are used numerous times in Fahrenheit 451, often to describe fire and flames.

Violence and fire is not only everyone’s preferred past time, but to them it’s an amusing art. Fire is violent and dangerous and should not be described as pretty or beautiful, but only as violent and dangerous. For the fact that fire is viewed upon as superior, and education is being eliminated and burned, the society in Fahrenheit 451 is habitually violent. It is obvious that Fahrenheit 451 portrays nothing more but a violent theme and violent society. The fact being that the parlor walls represent such crudely and aggressive programs proves that Fahrenheit 451 is nothing more than a violent novel.

For the reason that the Mechanical Hound depicts such an intimidating creature which kills blameless civilians, Fahrenheit 451 is evidently interpreted as violent. Fire is described in such words that portray pleasure and bliss in Fahrenheit 451. In realism, fire is the opposite and should only be illustrated as dangerous as well as violent. It is unquestionable that violence is frequently relevant to the society in the novel, Fahrenheit 451. Work Cited Bradbury, Ray. Fahrenheit 451. New York: Ballantine Books, 1953.

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