Ray Bradbury's Dystopian Writing Style - Novels Fahrenheit 451

Dystopia at its Finest

Imagine a society where laws adversely impact members of society. For example, the government encourages dehumanization instead of allowing the formation of humanitarian groups, firefighters light houses on fire instead of putting fires out, people are afraid to express their thoughts and emotions because they believe others may speak out against them. This type of society can be described as dystopian where a person or group of people directly or indirectly creates a society that is controlling and oppressive. In the novels The Martian Chronicles and Fahrenheit 451 written by Ray Bradbury, oppressive ideals such as complete censorship and urged dehumanization contribute to the dystopian society portrayed in the two novels. Bradbury is widely considered one of the most influential American writers of the 20th century through his science-fiction works including numerous dystopian-based novels such as The Martian Chronicles and Fahrenheit 451. Ray Bradbury’s dystopian writing style is highlighted through the motifs of radical censorship, humanity’s grim future, and frequent dehumanization prevalent in the novels Fahrenheit 451 and The Martian Chronicles.

Fahrenheit 451’s motif of censorship affects all aspects of life in the novel’s society, including people’s independent thoughts. Guy Montag, the protagonist in Fahrenheit 451, is a “firefighter,” someone who helps protect people in free society. However, in Bradbury’s dystopian society, the government uses the firefighters to burn books, ensuring the people are reading only government controlled propaganda. Because of fear instilled by the government, Montag’s early thoughts and actions in the novel are the complete opposite of what one would expect of a firefighter: “It was a pleasure to burn. It was a special pleasure to see things blackened and changed” (1; ch.1). These are just a few of the gruesome words that course through the mind of Montag as the protagonist and firefighter in Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451. Although Montag is given the title “firefighter,” he only fights citizens who disagree to hand over their books. John Miller, a writer for the National Review, describes the jobs of firemen in Fahrenheit 451 accurately: “In the near future, firemen don’t put out fires; they start them instead… When they’re discovered, first responders hurry to the scene” (Donald 8). Miller highlights a dystopian theme when stating the ones who should protect the people do not, amplifying how frightening society is portrayed in Fahrenheit 451. The slogan of the firemen, created by the Fire Chief, demonstrates how the “firefighters” in the novel are key figures in enforcing government censorship: “Monday burn Millay, Wednesday Whitman, Friday Faulkner, burn em’ to ashes, then burn the ashes. That’s our official slogan” (8; ch.1). The Fire Chief’s hostile slogan describes the firemen’s daily targets for book burnings which include numerous American authors. Instead of firefighters working diligently to eradicate fires, they take pleasure in setting houses on fire containing any trace of text slightly resembling a book, leaving nothing but ashes behind. To instill fear, the firefighters torch homes while residents are still inside as an act of intimidating others, showing people what will happen to them if they keep any books at home. The government brainwashes these firemen into believing censoring books, television, and newspapers is good for society to ensure the people have access to very limited information. Although it may be a beneficial action in their minds, the government inherently turns society into a dystopian wasteland, leaving citizens to fend for themselves.

Bradbury’s science-fiction novel The Martian Chronicles is a series of graphic short stories also including radical censorship as a dominant theme. The use of radical censorship is one of the reasons people on Earth leave the planet traveling to Mars in hopes of escaping censorship. Once on Mars, Earth people are known as “Earthlings.” Ironically, Earthlings help create censorship on Mars. One short story in particular uses censorship to further define the government of the humans as cruel and blank-minded as explained by Dr. Tamari Cheishvilli: “The short story “Usher II” within The Martian Chronicles conveys an anti-censorship message… Bradbury realizes full well censorship is simply the most visible symptom of the many political and social forces promoting common standards and behavior” (Cheishvilli 1). Cheisvilli’s analysis reveals that censorship is the leading force in the way the common people and society are formed not only in The Martian Chronicles but also in present-day society. An Earthling living on Mars describes censorship’s effects on Mars’ art and literature culture: “With a screw tightened here and a bolt fastened there, art and literature were soon like a great twine of taffy strung about until there was no more resiliency and no more savor to it” (126; ch.19). The Earthling details what censorship has done to Mars’ culture and how it has simplified as a result of censorship. In his critical essay on The Martian Chronicles, Dr. Cheishvilli makes a reference to present-day censorship, citing that censorship is major factor in how society determines its social standards. A present-day situation involving censorship could include the exclusion of “coarse language” from commonly read novels in education systems, resulting in minds that are limited to only certain subjects. Although the language is usually only determined to be inappropriate by the government, the result of censorship is leaving out often important ideas and concepts. The quote taken from “Usher II” of The Martian Chronicles similarly relates to Dr. Cheishvilli’s critical essay in that the regulation of certain content such as movies, novels, and newspapers leaves the citizens blank-minded and confines them to only what is considered “the best for society” by the government.

While not directly, censorship can be considered to affect humanity’s grim future, a motif present in both Fahrenheit 451 and The Martian Chronicles. In Fahrenheit 451, the advancement of technology and the government’s firm grip on rules and regulations change the future of everyday people. Donald Watt’s analysis of Fahrenheit 451 as a symbolic dystopia interprets Bradbury’s opinion of humanity’s forthcoming as a brainwashed society that realizes their future is solely in the hands of the government: “In Fahrenheit 451, Bradbury can be seen as representative of middle class Americans who have found themselves alternately attracted to the security of an idealized, timeless, and static past and the exciting, yet threatening and disruptive future world of progress and change, especially technological change...” (Watt 11). Watt’s criticism in a sense notes that Fahrenheit 451 foreshadows the grim future of society Americans currently live in. Today, society’s mistrust of the government is prevalent as society does not believe the government tells the whole truth. Another example of dehumanization in Fahrenheit 451 is the description of an event taking place in a doctor’s office. A patient is bewildered at his psychiatrists’ bizarre comments: “The psychiatrist wants to know why I go out and hike around in the forests and watch the birds and collect butterflies. I’ll show you my collection one day” (23; ch.1). The patient is questioning why exploring the beauty of the outside world is considered unusual by the psychiatrist. The psychiatrist is clearly under the control of the government by attempting to use his authoritative power as a doctor to influence the thoughts of his patients. In the psychiatrist’s case, the government only allows him to think and provide his patients with limited information. The fact someone as educated as a physician succumbs to the oppression of the government highlights Fahrenheit 451’s descent into a society ruled by dystopian notions and eventual destruction.

In writing The Martian Chronicles, Bradbury’s main goal was to warn Americans of a potentially drastic change in society. Walter J. Mulcher, a professor of Humanities at the University of Puerto Rico, describes The Martian Chronicles’ society as possibly paralleling America’s society in the near future: “Bradbury's narrative in The Martian Chronicles… questions the Late Modern's (the time period between the 1850s and 1960s) influence upon the self's social journey of hope into the future, especially as it parallels the colonizing and expansionism of the Americas” (Mulcher 24). In addition, Mulcher notes that the people of Mars in The Martian Chronicles have doubts about their own futures. A Martian who is forcibly introduced to technology spotlights its vile effects on his society: “I'm burning away of life… Science ran too far ahead of us quickly,