Theme of "power" over society

One of the main themes across all of the texts seems to involve the influence of power over our society and how this affects our every day lives. In each novel we have read thus far, we have been "warned" on what can and may already be happening in our society. For example, in Fahrenheit 451 there is no free-thinking, Culture Jam touched base on our disconnection with the world through technology, Feed labeled individuals as a consumer society where technology was their life in a sense, and Clockwork Orange expressed youth violence. All of the above themes are present in today's society whether we can see it or not, but what will happen in the future? Is there a solution?

In class today we were shown a very interesting video about what the world and society could be like in the future. I believe it is very possible that our society will one day no longer consist of free thinking individuals, but instead a bunch of robots with tracking devices so those in power can know our every move and hold all of the power. In my opinion this is society's way to escape the real issues. Instead of trying to tackle crime and violence we have created a short cut to deal with the real problems in our society. When in all reality no matter what is implanted or used to identify people, there will always be crime, so why not try to figure a way to resolve this issue.

I mean, I can definitely see the benefit of having a device under our skin; to find those who are missing, determine records and health, and other things. But where is the privacy? Where is our freedom anymore? If someone knows our every thought, desire, actions then how can we be free flowing individuals in society? I believe that those who are in power or want to be in power wish us all to be robotic and not have the opportunity to stick up for ourselves. Just like in Fahrenheit 451, their soceity was "wonderful" because everyone did as they were told and did not question why things were the way they were. In my opinion it is sad because our differences is what truly builds and strengthens a society.

“There is more than one way to burn a book"

In class today we were presented a list of books that were banned in schools and their libraries. It is obvious why some of these books were banned because of their title alone, but I feel that a lot of the books should not be on that list. I feel that some of the material in the books may be viewed as offensive and conflict with some of the belief's the parents want to instill in their children. Therefore, the politics in the school system make it almost impossible to NOT have a banned list. In my opinion, this is a sad but true reality. I feel that a lot of the books on the list are really interesting and should be explored, but I can see why they may not be appropriate for the entire population of a school.

As for the quote "there is more than one way to burn a book", I feel that in this society we value what society tells us to value. Our own opinions are then swayed in order to follow the norms and beliefs that are acceptable to society and flow with the hierarchy as a whole. Because society does not think something is acceptable others conform to this belief and are afraid to express their own personal views about the important topics and issues. I truly don't think books and poetry are valued in society anymore because our values have been changed to think that technology and electronics are what is the most important because that is the norm, which when you think about it is really sad.

Farenheit 451

So far I really like the book. The idea of a world where firemen actually start fires seems almost impossible. I couldn't even imagine a world where anyone was allowed to start fires. But I do wonder if it will ever come to this. I mean, are books threatening? I certainly know that "free-thinking" individuals are commonly seen as a threat, even in today's society, but will it come to eliminating books and these individuals all together? One of the topics we discussed in our group today was what we thought really happened to Clarisse. Quite honestly most of us agreed that her and her family were either killed or asked to leave because they "knew too much" or had their own point of view, which threatens the society they live in. And what would happen if more people thought like Clarisse and her family? Would being a fireman even be accepted?

As an in class writing assignment I decided to elaborate on question number one when asked to discuss the symbols used in the book. I thought some of the symbols were the books, which show the intimidation felt from the firemen and also the diminishing of free thinking, the firemen which expresses the power in society, and the dandelion which I feel is the scene where Montage truly questions his happiness with his life, and therefore creates questions with his employment and his marriage. Overall I am very pleased with this reading and I am eager to see what happens.