Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451 Misinterpreted Essay Example for Free

Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451 Misinterpreted Essay Reading Fahrenheit 451 one can only wonder on somewhat naà ¯ve, but nevertheless terrible prophecy of the dark future to come, brought on us by Ray Bradbury. Often seen as a work of fiction or anti-utopia, in fact this is just a social horror story, if such a genre can be invented for its description. The technologies depicted in Fahrenheit are rather primitive compared to modern times. Sure, Bradbury had extrapolated the TV screens of 50’s and predicted the invention of giant TV walls, with â€Å"presence effect† that allows the viewer to feel himself in the center of action. Bradbury had expressed the fears that TV means death of media of a previous generation, being the books. But, as McLuhan stated, the technologies of past ages don’t die so easily, â€Å"The dominant technologies of one age become the games and pastimes of a later age† (McLuhan, p99). As fears that cinema would mean the death of theatre had proved themselves to be incorrect, thus a larger-scale fear that TV means the end of books had proved itself to be false too. On the other hand, Bradbury hadn’t predicted the invention of a new media which would outscore the TV as much as TV outscores the books: the Internet. The TV had no chance to progress into totally-enveloping media reality depicted in the book, losing the race to more modern media. While Bradbury’s technology prediction hadn’t been correct, his social predictions had proved to be uncannily true, if somewhat optimistic. The all-world media programming is here, broadcasted by orbiting satellites, turns the globe into a repertory theater to be programmed (McLuhan, p9). And the news brought to us by every source – from TV to Internet and even to Radio – are apt to be manipulated simultaneously, as was shown brilliantly in â€Å"Wag the Dog†. The censorship depicted by Bradbury isn’t here; instead, we have a total media coverage that produces fake events undistinguishable from real. People do not need to follow instructions told to them on TV; instead, we follow the views and ideas presented to us daily. The Electric Dog doesn’t roam the streets: the society is our Electric Dog that doesn’t kill nonconformists in real sense but effectively blocks ‘them’ from ‘us’. What brings salvation and hope in Bradbury’s world after the holocaust are Bible words. It doesn’t mean that he relies on religion to carry us through the new Dark Ages – rather, he tells us about our inner faith, which isn’t expressed but felt and understood. But as no holocaust had happened yet, only those who really feels in need seek salvation, others are content with what they’ve got. Bradbury’s views on government in Fahrenheit border with clear accusations of fascism, the burning of books being the most obvious historical reference. But fascism in US had became such a popular scare since the end of WWII that we don’t fear it as much anymore. After all, if government would ever decide to apply a ‘stricter’ views to economics like Roosevelt’s New Deal in 30’s, (which is quite possible now because of economics crisis), most voices would be raised in its defense rather than in its critics. People feel the government to be controlled by them, not the other way round. In Fahrenheit society education of youth program them to see their world as unquestionably right, defies critical thinking and praises the conformity instead. This is not only an exaggerated, but also a distorted picture of modern education, depicted just to scare us even more, to create a sense of further isolation of Guy Montag from the world. Bradbury doesn’t give much attention to the youth; this is sensible, for what he longs for is the past. Fahrenheit’s ending can be seen as a longing for â€Å"Golden Age†, the times that never were real but always in our eyes seem to be brighter than today. It is a hymn to nostalgia. But one cannot contemplate his past too long – he must consider the future. We should look ahead and be brave, no matter what dangers are waiting for us there. Works Cited Bradbury, Ray. Fahrenheit 451. Published by Del Rey Books, Random House Publishing Group, 1953, renewed 1981. McLuhan, Marshall, From Clichà © to Archetype, Published by Viking Adult, 1970. Wag the Dog, by Barry Levinson, 1997 (the movie).

The Bean Trees Essay -- Character Analysis, Taylor

The Bean Trees is a novel which shows Taylor’s maturation; it is a bildungsroman story. Taylor is a developing or dynamic character. Her moral qualities and outlook undergo a permanent change. When the novel begins, Taylor is an independent-minded young woman embarking on an adventure to a new world. She has no cares or worries. She is confident in her abilities, and is determined to make it through life on her own. As she discovers new things and meets new people, Taylor is exposed to the realities of the world. She learns about the plight of abandoned children and of illegal immigrants. She learns how to give help and how to depend upon the help of others. As she interacts with others, those people are likewise affected by Taylor. The other developing characters are Lou Ann Ruiz, Turtle, and Esperanza. Together they learn the importance of interdependence and find their confidence. At the beginning of the novel, Taylor is intensely independent. She stands apart from the other high school girls at Pittman County. She is the only girl not wearing â€Å"beige or pink Bobbie Brooks matching sweater-and-skirt outfits† (5). She is determined to avoid teenage pregnancy, which is so common in her high school. She is the only girl brave enough to ask the science teacher for a job. Taylor believes that she can survive on her own. She finds herself a rickety car. It is a ’55 Volkswagen bug â€Å"with no windows to speak of, and no seat and no starter† (11-12). She learns how to push start it all by herself. Her mother helps her to be independent and to conquer her fears. Mrs. Greer lets the air out of one of the tires and also the spare, forcing Taylor to pump the tire herself despite her fear of exploding tires. Taylor learns that â€Å"nobody was goi... ...ope. Taylor, Turtle, Lou Ann, and Esperanza all develop because of their relationship with and to others. An iron is sharpened when it rubs against another piece of iron. Similarly, it is through contact and relationships that character is developed. The characters discover that they need each other to survive, just like the symbiotic relationship between the wisteria and the rhizobia. Taylor learns to depend upon the help of her friends. Turtle overcomes her emotional shock through Taylor’s love and care. Lou Ann finds her self-confidence through Taylor’s encouragement. Esperanza finds hope through her love for Turtle. All the characters learn how to be like the people in heaven. They are â€Å"well-fed† because they help and serve each other. The interaction among the characters provides nourishment and life. They develop into better people through this interaction.

A Way of Life for Searching People Essay

The book Practicing Our Faith: a Way of Life for a Searching People is about addressing the need for sharing the fundamental needs of man to establish faithful and honorable Christian way of life. It explores twelve central Christian practices contributed together by thirteen individuals coming from diverse denominational and ethnic backgrounds. Specifically this book provides significance to every Christian practice even honoring the old tradition of honoring the body, forgiveness, hospitality, testimony, discernment and honoring the Sabbath by putting emphasis on its historical and biblical context and reexamining its relevance to our present and everyday lives. But though it may seem that representing old belief may sound too idealistic and obsolete, accordingly adopting this practice can also free us of unnecessary system of belief, tradition and ritualistic procedures contributed by governing rules of different ritualistic concept of Christian practices. As Christendom is presented in this book, it tells us how to put our faith into action by enabling ourselves to adapt and tuning in with the communities‘way of life, tradition and belief while doing good deeds for the poor, feeding the hungry and building houses for the homeless. In other words, this book will serve as guidelines and principles when dealing with different people of different ethnic origins but with the same Christian belief. Thus the intention of this book would be to serve as a guiding entity especially for the laities who are engage in spiritual outreach activities while making their Christian ministries employs discipline and become sensitive to issues regarding the religious conviction of the communities. The laws presented here are not strict because they prioritize freedom of faith and expression which in way can be able to change the fragmented conviction of people living in a confused spiritual world. Simply put, the principle behind this book is the formulation of approach in ministering Christian’s way of life to different communities in order to resolve how they can be able to understand and preserve their Christian identity. Many of the chapters here locate the connections of people and religion and how particular practice is applicable for each people.

Journalistic and Commercial News Value News Organizations...

JOURNALISTIC AND COMMERCIAL NEWS VALUES Journalistic and Commercial News Values News Organizations as Patrons of an Institution and Market Actors SIGURD ALLERN Why do some events fill the columns and air time of news media, while others are ignored? Why do some stories make banner headlines whereas others merit no more than a few lines? What factors decide what news professionals consider newsworthy? Such questions are often answered – by journalists and media researchers alike – with references to journalistic news values or ‘news criteria’. Some answers are normatively founded; others are pragmatic and descriptive. In the present article, I submit that editorial priorities should not be analyzed in purely journalistic terms.†¦show more content†¦These include tacit procedures, routines and conditions that can both expand and constrain the room for maneuver. Such rules and procedures become internalized and are perceived as more or less natural ways to go about doing things. If we then consider news media in this perspective, it becomes clear that regardless of the organization, there is a common underst anding of certain basic genre rules that news reporting must observe and conventions regarding what is relevant and how it should be presented. This understanding is also reflected in both sources’ and the public’s expectations and requirements. News desks solve the problem by establishing certain routines for surveillance and news gathering in certain areas and through decisions concerning frameworks for the content ‘mix’, page or program editing, and design. Reporters are forced, as Gaye Tuchman (1973) so aptly put it, to â€Å"routinize the unexpectedâ€Å". News stories are generally presented in familiar wrappings. Another characteristic of institutions is that they extend over space and endure over time. â€Å"Institutions by definition are the more enduring features of social life,â€Å" as Anthony Giddens (1984:24) observes. News enterprises differ with respect to their size, geographical locality, orientation toward their audiences, technology and financing; they wereShow MoreRelatedJournalistic and Commercial News Value: News Organizations as Patrons of an Institution and Market Actors 9276 Words   |  38 PagesJOURNALISTIC AND COMMERCIAL NEWS VALUES Journalistic and Commercial News Values News Organizations as Patrons of an Institution and Market Actors SIGURD ALLERN Why do some events fill the columns and air time of news media, while others are ignored? Why do some stories make banner headlines whereas others merit no more than a few lines? What factors decide what news professionals consider newsworthy? Such questions are often answered – by journalists and media researchers alike – with references