Fahrenheit 451 People Live In Normal Houses example essay topic

A dystopia is an imaginary society, which makes comments on our own society, and is usually a place in which most people would not want to live. Ray Bradbury's, Fahrenheit 451, George Orwell's, 1984, and Kevin Reynolds, Waterworld interpretations of a dystopian society, are prime examples of a place in which most people would not wish to live. In Fahrenheit 451 there is an unneeded amount of control over everyone, in 1984 the government controls their very thoughts and are not free in any sense, and in Waterworld there is no dry land, so freedom is minimum. In respects to all works the government has control over almost every move the people make, and almost make it impossible for people to be free.

Despite the common vision of a dystopian society in the works, Fahrenheit 451, Nineteen-Eighty Four, and Waterworld, the creators of these futuristic worlds present diverse elements such as, their protagonists, corrupt government, and way of living. A protagonist is the main character, which in turn is the central focus in the work that the audience is either watching or reading. In Fahrenheit 451, Guy Montag is the protagonist, in which the novel focus' on. Montag is a fireman who must enforce the law, which is to burn books.

In this dystopia of the future, all books must be burnt because they are believed to fill the minds with evil thoughts "A book is a loaded gun in the house next door. Burn it. Take the shot from the weapon. Breach man's mind". (Bradbury, ). In this society if a person is proven to have a book in their possession, than the book and the house is burned.

Guy Montag can be considered a brave person because he is curious and steals books from some of the burnings. Montag keeps this collection of books stowed away in his house, and is often curious as to what is in them. Montag eventually asks Captain Beatty, who is his captain, why people are not aloud to have books. Then, Montag kind of reveals himself by asking what would happen if a fireman were to take a book out of curiosity, and Captain Beatty said that there is no problem as long as it is burned within a day. Proceeding this event, Montag gets all of the books that he has taken from the calls and begins to read them, while under the watchful eye of "the hound". Even though Montag knows the consequences of his actions, he still persists to push on and keep books so that he can further his knowledge.

This constitutes as a very brave action because not only is he going against the government, but he is going against everything he has ever believed in. In the novel 1984, the protagonist Winton Smith is brain washed into believing in the government system in which he lives. Smith also works for the government, in the department titled Ministry of Truth. His duty at his job is to filter out information that he receives from the outside world, and make it pertain to the society in which he lives.

Smith must receive the information from the outside, and change the names, or whatever is necessary. Then he must throw the proof into an incinerator, while recording the new information into a phone like device. Winston Smith is a very brave individual without any doubt whatsoever. Smith has sexual relations with Julia, which is heavily forbidden under the government in Oceania. Winston Smith understands the consequences that could arise from his actions, but still persists in seeing her. Then, he decides to rent a room for him and Julia, so they can make love.

Both Smith and Julia are aware of what may come of them if they are discovered, but still continue to see each other. Eventually, the thought police decide to arrest Winston Smith and Julia. Winston endures an immense amount of pain while being interrogated by O'Brien, who is a member of the inner party, who makes Winston believe he is a member of the Brotherhood. Winston knows that the outcomes of his actions can turn to be very painful, but still tries to find satisfaction in an unsatisfying world. In the film Waterworld, the protagonist is Mariner, who is played by the star actor Kevin Costner. Mariner is a lonely drifter who has no place in society because of his mutant-like abilities.

Mariner has gills and is able to breathe underwater for long periods of time. Throughout the film Mariner is in search for dry land, sailing on a small raft in a big ocean. In fact, the whole world is an ocean, and this presents problems for Mariner. He is forced to compromise with his surroundings, and find ways of getting a source of food. Seeing how he is able to breathe underwater, hunting for fish in the deep sea is always the option, and in order to drink he must filter out his urine. There are many aspects that make Mariner brave, and most of these instances have to do with him fighting off the "Smokers".

The smokers are in search for the same thing as Mariner, dry land, and will do anything to find it. No matter what seems to happen Mariner always persists in trying to find dry land, and will not give up until he dies. This is bravery because even when he is scared for his life, he still persists in achieving his dream of discovering dry land. In Fahrenheit 451 the corrupt government attempts to hide useful knowledge from the society by having all of the books burned. No one in the society is aloud to read or write books, which does not allow people to express their true thoughts and feelings. The firemen are the government, and they are the people who must burn all of the books in the society, and usually hate everything about books and what they represent.

If a situation gets out of hand, they have "the hound" which is mechanical and has a needle that it pokes into the perpetrator and renders him / her unconscious. The society is controlled in a negative fashion, because people are not aloud to possess books. The government teaches people that books only make society worse, and that they are better off without them " "What traitors books can be! You think they " re backing you up, and they turn on you. Others can use them, too, and there you are, lost in the middle of the moor, in a great welter of nouns and verbs and adjectives". (Bradbury, 107).

The burning of the books is unnecessary, and shows the control that the firemen have because they can barge into anyone's home if the alarm goes off on them. In 1984 the amount of power that the government has is absolutely unbelievable. The thought police enforce all laws within Oceania. This is the name of the country in which the novel takes place, and they watch everyone at every moment in time through a tele screen. All the people within the society are brain washed, and must follow the beliefs of the inner party. For those people that do not agree with the government, they are killed.

Therefore, the people that do not agree with the government must keep it to themselves, else the thought police will find out. The thought police can totally turn around people's beliefs by torturing them until they really do believe in what they want them to believe in. The government suggests that two plus two equals five, which is obviously not right, but is pushed on the people by the government to show how much power they posses. O'Brien held up his left hand, its back towards Winston, With the thumb hidden and the four fingers extended. 'How many fingers am I holding up, Winston?' 'Four' 'And if the party that says it is not four but five-then how many?' (Orwell, 261-262) When O'Brien knows that Winston does not believe this equation, he tortures him by stretching his body until the equation is truly believed. 'How many fingers, Winston?' 'Five!

Five! Five!' 'No, Winston, that is no use. You are lying. You still think there are four. How many fingers, please?' 'Four!

Five! Four! Anything you like. Only stop it, stop the pain!' (Orwell, 262) This shows exactly how much power the government has over the people within Oceania, and the society cannot do one thing about it because it is so tightly forced upon them. The film Waterworld does not convey a true government system.

The problem that Mariner faces throughout the film is the smokers. On Mariner's quest for dry land he constantly meets the smokers, who want a map to find the dry land. The smokers can be seen as a sort of government opposing against Mariner because they are much bigger than Mariner, because Mariner is only one man. In this dystopian vision all hell breaks lose, and people are on the rampage to find dry land. The feeling of chaos is conveyed throughout the whole film, and the audience never feels a sense of security for Mariner. Although there may not be a government in Waterworld, there is also no peace, and there is no way that Mariner save himself from others who want to destroy him.

This type of living would be worse than no government because people roam around and do as they please with little or no consequences, and no respect for human life. In Ray Bradbury's adaptation of a dystopian future, he has created a world that is much like the world today in respects to the way of living. In Fahrenheit 451 people live in normal houses, much like todays, and seem to carry on normal lives, also much like society today. The firemen represent the government, and present somewhat of a good order in society.

Although the disallowing of books may seem a little strict, it is not as far-fetched as one might believe. Also, the society in Fahrenheit 451 is still entertained and amused by watching televisions, but in this novel the screens take up their walls, and they can get up to four screens. Mildred, who is Montag's wife, watches daily episodes on the screens, much like soap operas today. The absence of books within this society takes away a lot of knowledge, and creativity from each individual. The people within the society can only demonstrate physical love and cannot display their emotions through poems and other means of written work because they are completely oblivious to the idea.

The people are not free in terms of their minds because they cannot write down their thoughts into any type of written form, and therefore lose creativity. The war-like situation demonstrated throughout the novel 1984 is quite chaotic. The surroundings in which the people live are very run-down, and many buildings seem to be demolished. The mood that is felt throughout the novel is very dirty, and the audience gets a strong sense of everything being unclean. Seeing how the novel takes place during a war, hostility and confusion seems to be the central feeling. Life in Oceania is very different, and very controlled.

The government says what the people can and cannot do with a strict rule, much like a communist government. The people within this society are not free to have feelings of love for another person, and must abide by every rule the inner party suggests or strong consequences may occur. The scenario in this novel is very chaotic, and the way of living is not ideal in any sense of the meaning. Another example of a horrible way of life for a society is demonstrated through Waterworld. The most valuable thing in this film is dirt, and that is the least valuable thing in the other works.

Mariner lives an odd lifestyle in order to survive and must fight for every bit of food that he gets. By reading this novel, the audience learns to appreciate being dry and having the luxuries of being able to have food at anytime. Mariner relies strongly on his gills to help him live because they enable him to stay underwater for long periods of time while trying to obtain fish. Also, he must filter his urine out, which is the last thing that anyone would want to have to do in the world, but he has to adjust to his conditions. Mariner leads a very chaotic lifestyle, constantly searching for dry land and constantly being chased by smokers. The societies within this particular novel all seem to run a chaotic life, and never seem to be at peace with themselves.

The lifestyle in this film is very diverse compared to the other works, and is a far-fetched version of a dystopia. In a dystopian world, things are usually much different than what they are today, but some are more realistic than others. Both Fahrenheit 451, 1984, and Waterworld are very articulate adaptations of a dystopian society because each one has negative aspects. Fahrenheit 451 is a more realistic vision than 1984 and Waterworld because the society is more of a reflection on our own society today, so the probability of Bradbury's novel becoming our actual society can not be dismissed because of the current ways. 1984 is more far-fetched because our society is based on upper class citizens vying for the title of who is better than whom.

Our society is closely knitted, and individual rights and freedoms would not allow such activity to occur. Then, what can be perceived as the most far-fetched adaptations of a dystioia is, Waterworld. This film is an over-exaggerated theory of ice caps melting and covering the earth's surface, due to global warming. It does not seem that global warming is a big enough issue to take it to these extremes. If society had to live on rafts in search of dry land, society would be over. Today, most people enjoy and treasure the everyday luxuries on going to the supermarket and having everything at their finger tips, so society would not be able to change, society would die trying to change.

All of these works are very intriguing, even though somewhat far-fetched, but are very cunning examples of dystopian worlds.