Before World War I, the literary term known as the Utopia emerged. Many people believed that society would be happier if the individual made sacrifices for the “common good”. However, the war changed all of that. Society began to fear governments in which everyone was the same and was ruled by a dictator. Thus, the genre of the dystopian novel emerged. “Dystopian novels show that any attempt at establishing utopia will only make matters much worse.” (Dietz, 1996) Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury and 1984 by George Orwell are considered classic examples of this genre by such critics as Frank Dietz, Beaird Glover, and Donald Watt. These distinct novels both warn against utopia through the portrayal of the protagonist begins as part of a society in which the individual is non-existent, come into contact with influences that cause their rebellions, and eventually come into contact with some upper hand of the government.
Bradbury’s dystopia is an unnamed futuristic city sometime in the 24th century. Although many things in today’s world, like houses, cars, and plants, are in this world, there are also many scientific creations. These include fireproof houses, wallscreens, and the Mechanical Hound. Television is totally inter
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His job is to rewrite the past so that The Party appears to be omnipotent. One day coming home from work, Clarisse asks Montag, “Are you happy?” (Bradbury, 1953) With that one question, Clarisse pushes Montag onto the road towards becoming a human again. In addition, she has to take pills to give her sensations that simple human interaction can supply. In almost every scene, the telescreen is watching the citizens, giving war news, airing political speeches, or broadcasting messages from Big Brother. Similarly, Montag’s only source of real pleasure is to see things burn. Julia is that spark that Winston needs. His wife sits at home everyday glaring blindly at the wallscreen. 122)
Doors are programmed to announce visitors before they even arrive. They both have the same foundation – utopia and mankind can and will never co-exist. Faber argues that the television is the root of all problems.
In contrast, Orwell’s dystopia is a far more dilapidated one. Thus, if books are removed, then so would the conflicts that come along with them. Unlike Bradbury’s dystopia, Orwell’s is extremely disparate from today’s world. 150)
Ironically, although Montag’s second teacher, Beatty, intends to “bring Montag back into conformity with the system, he drives Montag father away” (Eller, 1997). ” (Orwell, 1949) Similar to Fahrenheit 451, televisions, or in this case, “telescreens” are very prevalent.
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