The Exigent Duality
Farenheit 451 - 16:06 CST, 1/01/19 (Sniper)
When people name classic dystopian novels which "predicted the future", they usually list "1984" or "Animal Farm". But what about Ray Bradbury's "Farenheit 451"? It's a far more accurate depiction of contemporary life than either of those other two works.


Page 31. Bradbury describes how the "internet" has replaced genuine human connection with some kind of wax museum-equivalent:

"Well, wasn't there a wall between him and Mildred, when you came down to it? Literally not just one wall but, so far, three! And expensive, too! And the uncles, the aunts, the cousins, the nieces, the nephews, that lived in those walls, the gibbering pack of tree-apes that said nothing, nothing, nothing and said it loud, loud, loud. He had taken to calling them relatives from the very first... No matter when he came in, the walls were always talking to Mildred."



Page 42. Bradbury relays that "entertainment" will become ADHD-festering drivel. Compare this to the below:

"The door to the parlor opened, and Mildred stood there looking in at them, looking at Beatty and then at Montag. Behind her the walls of the room were flooded with green and yellow and orange fireworks sizzling and bursting to some music composed almost completely of trap drums, tom-toms, and cymbals."



In the same section, Bradbury gives us "Fortnite" and "Pornhub":

"But the public, knowing what it wanted, spinning happily, let the comic books survive. And the three-dimensional sex magazines, of course... Today, thanks to them, you can stay happy all the time, you are allowed to read comics, the good old confessions, or trade journals."



Bradbury then explains how the risk of "offending" identity groups will, over time, remove all substance from art, until nothing is left:

"The bigger your market, Montag, the less you handle controversy, remember that! All the minor minor minorities with their navels to be kept clean... Magazines became a nice blend of vanilla tapioca... You must understand that our civilization is so vast that we can't have our minorities upset and stirred. Ask yourself, What do we want in this country, above all? People want to be happy, isn't that right? ...Colored people don't like 'Little Black Sambo'. Burn it. White people don't feel good about 'Uncle Tom's Cabin'. Burn it. Someone's written a book on tobacco and cancer of the lungs? The cigarette people are weeping? Burn the book."



Page 44: Bradbury nails modern "education": the purpose of public "schools", why Left-wing politicians keep pushing for "free" pre-school, and how modern universities work:

"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... Luckily, queer ones like her don't happen often. We know how to nip most of them in the bud, early... 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... Give people contests they win by remembering the words to more popular songs or the names of state capitals or how much corn Iowa grew last year. Cram them full of noncombustible data, chock them so damned full of 'facts' that they feel stuffed, but absolutely 'brilliant' with information."



Page 70. Bradbury gives us the equivalent of real-life "tweets" for why women voted for "Beto O'Rourke" over "Ted Cruz":

"I voted last election, same as everyone, and I laid it on the line for President Noble. I think he's one of the nicest looking men ever to become president."
"Oh, but the man they ran against him!"
"He wasn't much, was he? Kind of small and homely and he didn't shave too close or comb his hair very well."
"No wonder the landslide was for Winston Noble. Even their names helped. Compare Winston Noble to Hubert Hoag for ten seconds and you can almost figure the results."



I could go on and on, but I think I've proven my point; this is one serially-overlooked novel!