Mirrors play a big part throughout the book Farenheit 451, however most of them are metaphorical. Throughout his essay, ""To build a mirror factory": the mirror and self-examination in Ray Bradbury's "Farenheit 451."" Rafeeq O. McGiveron looks at all the metaphorical mirrors that Montag encounters throughout the book. My question is, what can these mirrors show us about our society compared to the society of F451?
The first encounter that Montag has with a mirror is the one in the firehouse, where he passes by it and winks, like he usually does. McGiveron said, "[...] the situation, the surroundings, and even the mirror itself are all too familiar, and he does not see himself as he really is. Instead of recognizing the destructiveness of his book burning profession, his gaze is merely one of self satisfaction." It seems like everyone in the society of F451 have these little gestures of self satisifcation. The people of their society don't think much, if at all, about what they are doing, or why they are doing it, they simply follow the mold. Most of the people in F451 don't look at themselves as they really are, they put on a mask to fool everyone so that it looks like they have it all together. Instead of trying to see themselves in the mirror, they try to format their mask to be what the society expects them to be until, "[...] the individual ceases to be himself; he adopts entirely th ekind personality offered to him by cultural patterns; and he therefore becomes exactly as all others are and as they expect him to be." (Fromm). How are we like that? I think that we tend to put on a mask under a lot of situations. We're expected to feel certain ways in certain situations - we have a "rulebook" of what we're expected to be, and I think that the majority of people put on various masks to abide by the rules in that rulebook.
The next mirror that Montag encounters is Clarisse. Even from her basic description, we can see that she is very mirror-like. She is described to have eyes that reflect Montag back to himself, and her face is mirror-like as well. However, she is a mirror in more than just the appearence, the way she speaks to Montag is very mirror-like. Like McGiveron stated, "For the most part, Clarisse does not interpret or offer suggestions; she merely draws Montag's attention to the facts he should already understand, but does not." Everyone else that Montag encounters seems to have an opinion on the way that society is being run, whether it is the Faber approach that society needs to be reformed, or the Mildred/Beaty approach that society is perfect the way it is. Clarisse simply reflects the facts, and forces Montag to look at who he really is underneith the mask that he wears. She doesn't suggest ways to change it, she just shows in to him, helping him understand the facts that he should know. This relates to our society, because we should be showing others the masks that they are wearing - we should be helping people show who they really are.
Finally, "[...]we're going to build a mirror factory first and turn out nothing but mirrors for the next year and take a long look in them" (164). This mirror factory producing mirrors is a metaphor for forcing the society to take a look at itself, and see what it really is, not just what it's pretending to be. In order for the survivors of the bomb to create a future for the new society, they have to force the society to see what it used to be. They need to be aware, without the aweareness they will become the way they used to be. In our society today, we need to take a good long look at ourselves, too. This will help us see our own shortcomings, and see where we need to improve.
I'd like to end with this quote from McGiveron's article:
"With Montag's failures and successes, Bradbury shows that all of us, as individuals, and as a society, must struggle to take a long, hard look in the mirror. Whether we look at ourselves from another's perspective or from the perspective of a good work of art, we need this self-exaination to help avoid self destruction."
This is Brittany, by the way... and I like COLORFUL POSTS! lol (please don't include that in the essay XD)
Thursday, April 10, 2008
The Phoenix: In Conclusion
According to Peter Sisario from his A Study of the Allusions the Phoenix depicted by Granger near the closing of the story played an important role in many areas of the book. One in particular was the burning of the woman. How did this burning symbolized the relevance to Montag? How does the following quote put together many pieces of the story?
"There was a silly damn bird called a phoenix back before Christ, every few hundred years he built a pyre and burnt himself up. He must have been first cousin to Man. But every time he burnt himself up he sprang out of the ashes, he got himself born all over again. And it looks like we're doing the same thing, over and over, but we've got one damn thing the phoenix never had. We know the damn silly thing we just did. We know all the damn silly things we've done for a thousand years and as long as we know that and always have it around where we can see it [...]."
After the scene with the old woman burning to death, we start to see Montag evolve out of his pool of self and actually start to wonder why he does what he does. The burning of the woman really symbolized Montags progression on his meaning. Montag started to question certain areas of his life and eventually troubled himself for the answers.
The above quote found on page 163 by Granger, really shows how F451's society evolved from so enclosed to possibly what... Bradbury's ending is somewhat ironic. Especially at the moment in which Granger discusses a bird that dies in the fire, and the whole city is bombed. But as a whole, I think the city was bombed just like the Phoenix was burned in order for the revival of a new civilization. Although it is certain that the city will regain strength the big question is whether the city will regain a new hold on the look of the world.
Written by Eric
"There was a silly damn bird called a phoenix back before Christ, every few hundred years he built a pyre and burnt himself up. He must have been first cousin to Man. But every time he burnt himself up he sprang out of the ashes, he got himself born all over again. And it looks like we're doing the same thing, over and over, but we've got one damn thing the phoenix never had. We know the damn silly thing we just did. We know all the damn silly things we've done for a thousand years and as long as we know that and always have it around where we can see it [...]."
After the scene with the old woman burning to death, we start to see Montag evolve out of his pool of self and actually start to wonder why he does what he does. The burning of the woman really symbolized Montags progression on his meaning. Montag started to question certain areas of his life and eventually troubled himself for the answers.
The above quote found on page 163 by Granger, really shows how F451's society evolved from so enclosed to possibly what... Bradbury's ending is somewhat ironic. Especially at the moment in which Granger discusses a bird that dies in the fire, and the whole city is bombed. But as a whole, I think the city was bombed just like the Phoenix was burned in order for the revival of a new civilization. Although it is certain that the city will regain strength the big question is whether the city will regain a new hold on the look of the world.
Written by Eric
IMPORTANT
Hey you guys. So good job, we have everything we need except the critical article and more about avoiding becoming like F451’s culture. Here’s the thing—I am lame and go to bed around 9:30/10:00ish. If you could have all your posts done by then, that would really help. Because I want to get this all edited by then. If you desperately need more time I can stay up til 10:30 maybe 11:00, but would really like to get sleep because currently we have 8 pages and it takes a while to edit.
How can we prevent our culture from becoming like F451's culture?
('tis Laurie) This seems like a difficult question to answer because putting an end to our culture's ways is much easier said than done. I believe that everyone has the power to stop being like the people in F451, they just have to want it and try enough. The obvious way to avoid becoming like F451's culture is to limit distractions from meaning. We get tuned into television or constantly use our cell phones because we want to avoid and block out thinking. We don't want to contribute or seek knowledge, because it is comfortable for us to do nothing. We should stop being so attached and devoted to our electronics. We should take the time in our day to talk about what really matters. We should talk about things with meaning, instead of television shows with no depth.
(Because television shows can have depth) Like Faber said: "The same infinite detail and awareness [of books] could be projected through the radios and televisors, but are not. No, no, it's not books at all you're looking for! Take it where you can find it, in old phonograph records, old motion pictures, and in old friends; look for it in nature and look for it in youself" (82). It does not matter what medium we get our depth and quality from. We could get it from television, from music, from any medium. So people should start with a medium they are used to: television. Find entertainment with depth. Something that makes us think. Then talk about it. Make time for talking about what is important. Try not to watch mindless television, the more quality we see, the less garbage we'll want to see. We'll want to have quality and high-level thinking in everything we do because once we see the light, we won't want to go back. Even if we can't persuade others, we can live by example. So what do you guys think?
(Because television shows can have depth) Like Faber said: "The same infinite detail and awareness [of books] could be projected through the radios and televisors, but are not. No, no, it's not books at all you're looking for! Take it where you can find it, in old phonograph records, old motion pictures, and in old friends; look for it in nature and look for it in youself" (82). It does not matter what medium we get our depth and quality from. We could get it from television, from music, from any medium. So people should start with a medium they are used to: television. Find entertainment with depth. Something that makes us think. Then talk about it. Make time for talking about what is important. Try not to watch mindless television, the more quality we see, the less garbage we'll want to see. We'll want to have quality and high-level thinking in everything we do because once we see the light, we won't want to go back. Even if we can't persuade others, we can live by example. So what do you guys think?
What does it mean to be UNhealthy?!
As Carl Jung explains, personas are how we codify our ego in order to gain acceptance or approval. In F451 society is just the same every where. It's like a bunch of plastic housewives living in this suburb themed world. Well maybe not exactly, but really F451's society is very unhealthy. Even though the persona reveals we are healthy, the shadow shows different. How do you think the health is in F451's society? What is it about Montag's actions that make his health unique to the rest of the populace? How do you think that this line from Hoaglunds Poetry relateds to F451's society?
"[...] Delicious but unhealthy, or depending on your perspective."
Overall I believe that, F451's society is in desperate need of help. As mentioned by Captain Beatty, in the past the media was less prevelant and people were allowed to free think. Bradbury depicts this world of personas of happiness and extremely influencial media and ironically a bombing of the city in the conclusion. What is with this society?! However Montag is finally, in the end seem to be a thoughtful and emotional character. One of the last actions he does is by returning to the city in order to help survivors. He seems to realize that the world is not all about him.
The reason I put that line in is because of how it connected with the people of F451's society. Most of the people of the society choose delicious but unhealthy ways. That is they stay in their ring and feel secure and entertained by the media. However Montag steps out of the box and somewhat figures out how to retain healthy and delicious.
Any way what do you guys think?
Written by Eric
"[...] Delicious but unhealthy, or depending on your perspective."
Overall I believe that, F451's society is in desperate need of help. As mentioned by Captain Beatty, in the past the media was less prevelant and people were allowed to free think. Bradbury depicts this world of personas of happiness and extremely influencial media and ironically a bombing of the city in the conclusion. What is with this society?! However Montag is finally, in the end seem to be a thoughtful and emotional character. One of the last actions he does is by returning to the city in order to help survivors. He seems to realize that the world is not all about him.
The reason I put that line in is because of how it connected with the people of F451's society. Most of the people of the society choose delicious but unhealthy ways. That is they stay in their ring and feel secure and entertained by the media. However Montag steps out of the box and somewhat figures out how to retain healthy and delicious.
Any way what do you guys think?
Written by Eric
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
How close is our culture to F451's culture?
The culture in F451 doesn't take time to think. They fill their time with entertainment to distract themselves. They only want to consume, not contribute. Mildred only watches television. Also, people in the novel don't have intelligent conversations with each other or lasting relationships. Mildred doesn't remember where she met Montag and she doesn't care. They are lazy and shallow. They try never to show emotion. They don't even care if someone dies. Mildred didn't tell Montag about Clarrisse's death for four days. Mildred's friends don't seem to care if their husbands or other people they know die. My question is, how close is our culture to theirs?
I believe we aren't that extreme. We care if somone dies. We still have intelligence, even if we try to fill our time up to avoid thinking about big questions. Most of us still have culture and lasting relationships. We seek knowledge, even if we watch television sometimes. Although, I admit, sometimes it seems the media can become a huge part of our lives. I have a quote from Brooks to share. Its about businessmen addicted to technology. They are in an airplane in this quote: "They're talking faster and faster, because [...] they'll be ordered to turn off their cell phones and it'll be like someone ripped out their trachea. Cut off! Severed from the information superhighway! Restricted to the tiny capsule of their own immediate experience!"
They businessmen don't want to put away their technology. Its as if it is their life. They need to feel connected to someone so they can feel important. They don't want to be by themselves and think about things, they want to busy themselves with information that doesn't matter in the long run and won't help them find happiness.
This is the same with the younger generation, us, who uses the Internet and texts on their phone for hours at a time. We absorb media and care more about what Britney Spears' next move is than contributing to society. We only care about making ourselves busy, and thus important, than doing something constructive with our lives. However, I don't believe we are exactly the same as the people in F451. We still read, and even though we live in a society that consumes, we still contribute. What do you guys think?
I believe we aren't that extreme. We care if somone dies. We still have intelligence, even if we try to fill our time up to avoid thinking about big questions. Most of us still have culture and lasting relationships. We seek knowledge, even if we watch television sometimes. Although, I admit, sometimes it seems the media can become a huge part of our lives. I have a quote from Brooks to share. Its about businessmen addicted to technology. They are in an airplane in this quote: "They're talking faster and faster, because [...] they'll be ordered to turn off their cell phones and it'll be like someone ripped out their trachea. Cut off! Severed from the information superhighway! Restricted to the tiny capsule of their own immediate experience!"
They businessmen don't want to put away their technology. Its as if it is their life. They need to feel connected to someone so they can feel important. They don't want to be by themselves and think about things, they want to busy themselves with information that doesn't matter in the long run and won't help them find happiness.
This is the same with the younger generation, us, who uses the Internet and texts on their phone for hours at a time. We absorb media and care more about what Britney Spears' next move is than contributing to society. We only care about making ourselves busy, and thus important, than doing something constructive with our lives. However, I don't believe we are exactly the same as the people in F451. We still read, and even though we live in a society that consumes, we still contribute. What do you guys think?
Monday, April 7, 2008
Montags Change
One of the biggest questions I had was why Bradbury decided to make it appear that Clarisse had vanished from the story. Was it because he thought that it would give Montag the whole book to decide who he really was? Or was it so Montag could have the chance to find his meaning? On the other hand do you think that Erich Fromm's thought of awareness to humanity and uniqueness played a role in Bradbury's thinking towards Montag's growth? In addition, how does Montag's growth show us how to be aware and unique in our own society?
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