I was actually surprised that Guy’s wife was one of the
people that called in the alert to the firehouse. I would have thought that she
would be more loyal to him for some reason. Even though they didn’t have the
best relationship, and they didn’t actually love each other, I still wouldn’t
expect her to report him. When he first showed her the books she reacted a lot
better than I thought she would. She only burned some of them and then she just
hid them in a new place. When she didn’t run out of the house screaming at
first glance, I didn’t think she would report him. Guy’s wife relies on him for
his money, so wouldn’t she want to keep him around? This definitely goes to
show that there are no real relationships left in this new society. True
marriages don’t actually exist, and neither do friendship. Technology has
turned people into a bunch of fakes because face-to-face communication is no
longer necessary. No one needs the experience of real people anymore because
they have their families in the TV walls.
I disagree with you, Amanda. I wasn't surprised at all that Guy's wife told on him. Right from her initial reaction I thought she might. I think I thought this because she seemed mad at him when he showed her the books. Her initial reaction was to grab a book and run it to the incinerator, screaming, crying, and fighting with Guy. I also wasn't surprised because they never seemed to have a very strong relationship. The only other thing that made Guy happy so far during the story was Clarisse and that went away too. Although Mildred didn't have anything to do with her getting taken away, that we know of, she didn't seem to care much when one of the things that made her husband happy was gone. She didn't even tell him for the first couple of days. Since she didn't mind Clarisse being taken away I'm not surprised she wanted to take the books away too. The only reason I thought she might not turn him in was because she wanted his money and the parlor. But I guess that wasn't enough for her to lie for him. It seems like her friends were a part of it too so maybe they influenced her to alert the firehouse. I agree with you that this is a result of the technology. However, in our world we still care about relationships enough to keep each other's secrets, for now at least. Just as we said in our first posts, I can see our society turning into this one in the near future.
ReplyDeleteThough I haven't read this book, I still found both of your responses really interesting to read. It was great to get a look at two different takes on a relationship. Something that struck me in your post Amanda was your conclusion that no real relationships exist in the society. I think that's similar to the Handmaid's Tale in that the standards of the society have worn down the importance of things such as love and friendship. In your book, the source seems to be technology, whereas in The Handmaid's Tale, the source was definitely desperation. I think it's interesting to see values important to our society today torn down by outside factors. It really makes you think about the direction our society is going in.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Nikita. It seems that in most of the books that are based in the future they have a different base of relationships to other people. In some cases they are forbidden and in some cases they are what keeps you alive. I think it's interesting how priorities have been forced to change. Nobody seems to find the time to make a life they enjoy anymore. Most of it is based on survival, escaping a world that you are now trapped in, or coming to terms with how you are forced to live. None of these books that we are reading seem to have a setting that anybody today would want to live in. I agree that it should make us re-think how we are leaving and what it all could lead to.
DeleteI think it is very interesting that relationships and family are both shown as things that fall apart in these novels. Just as you describe Guy's wife turning him in, in 1984, children turn their parents in to the government as well. I agree that technology is one of the key factors in this outcome; in both 1984 and Fahrenheit 451, technology plays a big role and strong relationships can't really exist. In Children of Men, however, and in The Road, there is less technology and people can think for themselves more, so they are able to form stronger relationships. It is interesting that changes in technology can have such a big effect on how people interact, since technology is constantly changing in our society.
ReplyDeleteYou make a thoughtful connection between Guy's wife's actions and the pervasive technology that surrounds her, preventing her from interacting with the real world. Indeed, she has immersed herself so fully in a fabricated world that she seems incapable of separating from it. It's not just preference any more - it's truth. This transition scares me for our own future. We have become so conditioned toward technology that it is a necessity, much like the Seashells or, if you've read other dystopian texts, the computer chips in the novel Feed by M.T. Anderson.
ReplyDeleteIt did not surprise me that Mildred called in the alarm on Montag. She was nice to him, but it was always apparent that her sympathies lay with the society that kept her fed with interactive screens and "TV families". So, when the laws were threatened, it's no surprise that she defended the system.
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