Fahrenheit 451: Media

         Entertainment and media are another major theme in Fahrenheit 451. Both elements are extremely essential in keeping the balance in the future United States the novel is set in. They use media to distract the country from what is really going on. If they were not brainwashed by the entertainment, they would have been able to see the wrong going on. They were just being distracted so higher powers could control them. They use a couple different forms of entertainment. The main form is used in their homes, and more specifically their family or living rooms. It is a television, but unlike the television we are used to, the ones they used are on constantly and are put on multiple walls to ensure that you can always see it (Bradbury). They can also interact with the characters on the shows to make your own fake story to avoid taking advantage of your real one. Mildred spends her days doing this and is completely out of touch with reality. If they are not in the house, they have another piece of entertainment used to distract them from their surroundings. Everyone is given a little ear piece that delivers continuous news and updates so they never have a chance to be out of the loop (Bradbury). The constant stream of media and entertainment distracts from any problem and distractions in the world.  Bradbury predicts the media will one day run our lives and brainwash us from ever having to have conversations or interactions of any kind with other people. This could possibly come out to be true. We are already at a point in society that if you are without the newest technology you are behind. We strive on technology, because it makes conversation easy and we do not have to face each other. This also causes conflict because we can say things we usually would not say. Bradbury ,may have made a very true prediction.   

Bradbury, Ray. Fahrenheit 451. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1967. Print.