'The Sieve and the Sand" and "Burning Bright" were compelling and certainly necessary components of Fahrenheit 451. These two sections detail the motives and backgrounds of the characters and thicken the plot of the story; however, I still feel like I am flipping through a catalog of mankind's very best intellectually motivational quotes. The interactions between characters, dismal and confusing setting, and the melodramatic tone of Fahrenheit 451 made the book an inspiring yet awkward read for me.
The dialogue in Fahrenheit 451 seems only to serve as a catalyst for Bradbury's central theme: the importance of literary preservation in the face of a technologically driven world. Even though Bradbury's purpose is of utmost importance, his metaphorical immodesty makes me feel like I am being bombarded with symbolism. Montag and Faber talk about books only, and they seem to agree on a plan of action far too rapidly. The quick character interactions are most likely reflective of the fast-pace setting of Fahrenheit 451, but they still make the pace of the book uneven.
I understand that this is a dystopian novel; however, at times I feel like Bradbury is trying to depict a world reminiscent of the junkyard modern art often seen at quirky garage sales. Maybe that was what he was going for, and maybe it wasn't. The point is, I do not really know because the unfamiliar technology used throughout the book conjures incongruous images of what the setting resembles.
I enjoyed Fahrenheit 451, but the constant serious tone drained my attentiveness as a reader. Montag, Faber, and Beatty constantly rave about books: their allure, their threat to governmental control, and their flammability. (Of course, this book is about books, so I should have seen it coming).
I know that I have really brought the heat on Fahrenheit 451 by bringing it under the rapid fire of eleventh-grade literary analysis. The book is inspirational and Bradbury's prose is wildly poetic and emotional, but its bizarre and overplayed concepts and themes caused my enthusiasm for dystopian fiction "burn out."
What about "Dover Beach"?
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