7. Fahrenheit 451 - Ray Bradbury
Fahrenheit 451 is based in a dystopian America where books are illegal and firemen, rather than putting out fires, are employed to find and burn any that remain. We follow the story of Guy Montag, a fireman who starts to become disillusioned with his life after witnessing a woman burn herself alive rather than give up her books. He starts hoarding books, and then finds himself on a slippery slope as his highly depressed wife discovers his secret. Fahrenheit 451 stands alongside Brave New World and 1984 in its exploration of the governmentally enforced idea of "ignorance is bliss". The masses are encouraged to not pursue knowledge, but to be neutralised by stodgy media. Guy's wife, Millie, is addicted to sleeping pills and watching vacuous soaps which keep her shallow and unquestioning of the life that has been enforced up everyone. As the novel progresses, Guy finds this frightening as he realises how much there is that needs to be questioned. Fahrenheit 451 is usually attributed the as the classic novel that explores the movement of censorship particularly as it was written during the McCarthy era where state-censorship was becoming a real cause for concern. The burning of books is the burning of illicit information that could incite rebellion and so the public are encouraged to watch mindless stories that keep them calm, that suppress individualism. Think about it next time the temptation to watch the film, rather than read the book, arises.