Friday, November 21, 2014

Who does Faber say the real enemy is in the book, Fahrenheit 451?

In Fahrenheit 451, during a conversation with Montag, Faber reveals who he believes to be the real enemy:



But remember that the Captain belongs to the most dangerous enemy of truth and freedom, the solid unmoving cattle of the majority.



For Faber, then, the enemy of truth and freedom is not the firemen or the government but, in fact, it is the majority. It is these ordinary people who are truly responsible for creating the censorship and control that is so prevalent in his society. Faber expands on this in Part One of the book, again during a conversation with Montag:



The firemen are rarely necessary. The public itself stopped reading of its own accord.



In other words, he believes that the majority chose to pursue mindless entertainment over the messages contained in books. They wanted the "White Clown" and "Mr Gimmick" and to drive fast in their Beetles, not the morality of the Bible or "men quoting Milton." 


Because the majority is the enemy, Faber advocates a complete overhaul of society:



The whole culture's shot through. The skeleton needs melting and re-shaping.



For the majority to change, then, and to reject widespread censorship, they must be re-educated to accept learning and literature into their lives. Until this happens, argues Faber, society will consist of nothing more than what is broadcast through the parlour walls. 

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