Malcolm X learned to read and write while in prison. In his autobiography, he writes of his learning to read: “From then on, until I left that prison, in every free moment I had, if I was not reading in the library, I was reading on my bunk. You couldn’t have gotten me out of books with a wedge…. [M]onths passed by without my even thinking of being imprisoned. In fact, up to then, I never had been so truly free in my life.” Malcolm X’s feelings about books and reading apply to Guy Montag of Fahrenheit 451, who seeks his freedom after being awakened through his contact with books. It is also a commonplace among scholars and teachers that reading is a means of becoming “free” in some sense.
In this essay, you are to test this statement by looking at your own life. Referring to your experience and observations, explain why or why not reading books makes one “free.”
You should also use Fahrenheit 451 as another means of supporting your point. For example, if you take the position that reading is a worthless pastime, you might quote or paraphrase the character of Beatty.
Fun essay. Very fun.
I'm for books freeing people, of course. ^.^ Opposing views, different ways of thinking/ideas.
But, erm, help? I need to find something in F. 451 that backs this up, so the scene where Beatty nearly gives Montag a heart attack with his conflicting quotes is good, but that's not really in favor of books...
I can still use it, I think, but I need another scene from the book, and I've yet to find it. With every scene I think might work, I find something wrong with it. So I've basically looked at the book, and I've discovered that I need fresh eyes for the situation. Help?
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