Ray Bradbury's 'Fahrenheit 451'

Renowned by many for his ability to write stylized works of literature, Ray Bradbury emerged in the middle of the 20th century as a skilled writer whose stories and themes have influenced American culture and the literary community. Although many critics have described Bradbury as a science fiction writer, he is better labeled as author of fantastic tales that display profound observations about human nature (2). In his most famous novel, Fahrenheit 451, Bradbury weaves together a fascinating and unnerving tale of the future of society. With Fahrenheit 451, and many of his other works, Bradbury urges the importance of the human imagination and the retention of moral values, all while warning of the dangers of the loss of individuality and censorship (3). Born on August 20, 1920, Bradbury grew up in Waukegan, Illinois, where he lived with his parents and was …show more content…
However, his high school literature teachers encouraged him not to give up and he started to write for the school newspaper (4). In 1938, one of Bradbury’s stories was published in an amateur fan magazine (5). By 1944, Bradbury was getting his work published in better fan magazines, receiving some national acclaim, and discovering new material for his fiction (5). In 1947, an idea for a novel was beginning to evolve in Bradbury’s mind. Inspired by a newsreel of a Nazi book burning that he had seen as a teenager, Bradbury was in the first stages of development for Fahrenheit 451 when he wrote the first draft originally called “Bright Phoenix,” which showed residents of a small town outsmarting the government book burnings by memorizing the texts (5). His next draft, published in as “The Fireman,” introduced the main character, Montag (5). Finally, in 1953, Bradbury published Fahrenheit 451, almost twice in length as “The Fireman,” as his first full length novel