Theme Of Pain In Fahrenheit 451

Improved Essays
The complete absence of pain my present itself to be blissful, though this very notion allows for the flaws of uncontested pleasure to shine through. Utopia is generally thought to be devoid of any struggle, which in practicality, this overshadows humanity’s genuine need for pain. This presents the need for emotional equilibrium, which contributes to the betterment of society through the balance of pleasure and pain. The thoughts presented by both Epicurus and Keats speak to the necessity of failure, as it is essential to create balance within society, fueling the world’s hunger for perpetual motion. Humanity’s need for failure, the requirement of an emotional equalization system, and the immense void left by desensitization show that uncontested pleasure cannot be preferable to society. Although many believe that controlled …show more content…
Emotional control is essential to both enjoyment and success, leaving the idea of failure to regulate emotions for the greater good. The necessity for failure and the control that it provides allows for our emotions to be held in check, exemplified by a swinging pendulum of failure and success. The idea of rebirth is exemplified in Bradbury’s work, and is conveyed through Granger: “There was a silly damn bird called a phoenix back before Christ, every few years he built himself a pyre and burned himself up. He must have been a first cousin to Man. But every time he burnt himself up and sprang out of the ashes, he got himself born all over again” (Bradbury, 156). The phoenix’s journey is a perfect example of pain and

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    The dead or alive theme in Fahrenheit 451 The major theme of life and death was expressed throughout the novel Fahrenheit 451. Ray Bradbury author of the arguably greatest dystopias Fahrenheit 451 reveals paradoxes between life and death, the main theme throughout. Bradbury demonstrates life and death, also what the society has come to by the characters carless actions. The confusion if something is alive or dead and the unawareness of people’s life threatening situations provides the reader with a visual of life and death in the book. The book includes many mercy killing stories such as the old woman who burned herself to death, The woman who overdosed on sleeping pills and the mechanical hound which had many human characteristics, although was not…

    • 735 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    “A book is a loaded gun in the house next door. Burn it” (58). Quotes like these are what this novel is filled with, quotes that get you thinking. Symbols are very important in Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. Fahrenheit 451 follows the story of Guy Montag, a Fireman.…

    • 1015 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Fahrenheit 451: Symptism

    • 170 Words
    • 1 Pages

    Fahrenheit 451 written by Ray Bradbury is a novel in which a "baptism" scene occurs. Guy Montag is the main character and the novel centers around him escaping his society where the government controls everything and where reading books is a sin, so people burn the books instead; like a daily community activity. The scene in which Guy Montag is running away from the society he lives and is being chased by a mechanical hound is the start of the baptism scene. The "baptism" part actually occurs when Guy Montag enters the river and takes off his clothes and wears Faber's clothes so that he could lose his scent, in order to ensure the hound could no longer trace him down. When Guy Montag comes out of the river, he is a new person, in a new society…

    • 170 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Imagine yourself growing up in a world that was turned upside down. Everyone is behaving like it’s actually right to do the wrong things. But no one says anything because everyone is just following others or as people say “going with the flow.” No one has a say in what they think or how they feel, and this leads to the people acting quite similar. Ray Bradbury introduces this idea in his novel Fahrenheit 451.…

    • 1089 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Rules, laws, and restrictions are what make Fahrenheit 451.There is a lot of violence and death in Fahrenheit 451.Shmoop Editorial Team) This is an American book about the future and how books are outlawed. Firmen find books and burn them. In this book there are a lot of themes, literary elements, and characters. One major theme that is used throughout the book is knowledge and wisdom.…

    • 627 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Under the Bill of Rights in the United States constitution, Americans are granted the freedoms of religion, assembly, and in relevance to Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, the rights to free speech and the sharing of information via the press. Bradbury’s science fiction novel takes place in a futuristic dystopian America where all forms of literature are deemed illegal by the government. To uphold the book ban are firemen, whose job it is to start fires rather than putting them out in the traditional sense. Guy Montag, the novels central character, is one of these firemen. Early in the novel, Montag meets a young, free-spirited girl named Clarisse, who gets Montag to begin questioning the very system he is a part of.…

    • 1333 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Philo's Argument Analysis

    • 1700 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Philo begins his argument from the existence of evil by introducing a few examples on why God has either not willed humanity’s happiness or that He does not believe that happiness is an essential component to the human condition. In his first argument, he asserts first that God is a moral being who values traits such a justice, kindness, and mercy. He then states that God’s scope is infinite, and he can perform whatever deeds he so wishes. Finally, he says that humanity is unhappy. This leads to the conclusion that God must not wish for the contentment of mankind.…

    • 1700 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The setting of the novel, Fahrenheit 451,by Ray Bradbury, is set in 2053 in a large nameless U.S. city. The place for this setting is not given directly from the author. The time of the book is during a time where they aren’t allowed to have books, which leaves them without knowledge. The mood of the book is sad and curiosity. The author is trying to make you feel how the characters are feeling.…

    • 879 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In the philosophical dialogue, I represented Epicurus and his views on “what traits, if any, do all human beings share?”. Epicurus would answer this question by stating that all humans are self-centered, seeking to secure pleasures and avoid pain. In other words, everything that one does is simply for the sake of gaining pleasure. To Epicurus, pleasure is the only intrinsic good and it is the foundation for all human choices and all evaluation of things as good and bad. In this context, pleasure is good, resulting from getting what you want, and pain is bad, in which you do not.…

    • 323 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Have you ever wanted to be a superhero? To save lives? To really help people? Well, sadly, we’re not all rich enough to have an Iron-Man style suit. And if you’re bitten by a spider you probably won’t begin to climb walls like Spiderman.…

    • 1529 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Great Essays

    Individuality vs Conformity in Fahrenheit 451 It is easier to be unremarkable and blend in than to be an individual and speak one’s mind. In the novel, Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, it shows how people who reveal their individuality find themselves as social outcasts. Clarisse 's adamant questioning of society demonstrates her positive influence on Montag in contrast to Mildred 's, due to her susceptibility to conform. The differences in Clarisse and Mildred’s choices, perception on life, and relationship with Montag emphasizes their impact on him.…

    • 1561 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Originally published in 1953, Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury started out as a small, unnoticed novel. However, its enticing story and universal themes appealed to many readers, and its popularity soon grew. One of the novel’s most defining characteristics is its stance on human nature itself. Through Bradbury’s unique writing style, the themes and messages built upon in the novel are easily conveyed to the audience. Particularly, in Fahrenheit 451, Bradbury expands upon the human nature themes of free thought, courage, and the need for fulfillment.…

    • 1617 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Leo Tolstoy once said “We can know only that we know nothing. And that is the highest degree of human wisdom.” Humanity has always been challenged by knowledge, and the desire to either flourish through understanding or sit in complacency. In Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451, Guy Montag’s character is used to criticize humanity because of its human nature and meaning, absorption in technology and depression brought on by inequalities.…

    • 936 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Even when trapped and imprisoned, be this figuratively or literally, human beings have a tendency to assert their freedom. In a dystopian society, where freedom of decision is stifled, this rings especially true. Fahrenheit 451, written by Ray Bradbury, sticks true to this fact of human nature. Guy Montag, a firefighter, is the main example of this fact. Starting on the track to his rebellion, Montag begins to steal books from the homes he burns, reading them illegally in his own home.…

    • 1966 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Superior Essays

    The Stoic Doctrine

    • 1538 Words
    • 7 Pages

    For instance, Epicureans regarded pleasure to be of fundamental importance and the ultimate goal for us to achieve. Pleasure is regarded as a freedom from pain (and is not to be understood as gaining any satisfaction of positive kind): “pleasure is the goal that nature has ordained for us; it is also the standard by which we judge everything good” (Epicurus). Epicureans prized the following belief of ataraxia, described as a freedom from disturbance, ‘a state of serene…

    • 1538 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Superior Essays