Fahrenheit 451 and Soylent Green

Fahrenheit 451 begins with zoom in to close ups of TV antennas with multiple psychedelic colors with mysterious music that makes the sequence very strange. The antennas symbolize the oppressive grip over the common people by the government. They plan to stamp out free thinking and expression.

"The book burnings of Fahrenheit 451 are clearly intended partly as entertainment, designed to procure the complicity of the general population in the burning of books and the persecution of readers. Their purpose is more symbolic than it is literally to destroy all books, which have already been rendered ineffectual by the general population’s lack of interest in reading them.”(M. Keith Booker)

I agree that the book burnings are entertaining when not having any sympathy or care for books such as the firemen and anyone who has a television signal like Montag’s wife. When the woman sees the firemen in her house she quotes Hugh Latimer who was put to death for Heresy by burning at the stake. She said "play the man, master Ridley; we shall this day light such a candle, by god's grace, in England, as I trust shall never be put out."

 The lady refuses to leave her books as she stands on a large pile of her book collection scattered on her floor. The camera cuts to a close up of the book The world of Salvador Dali. The pages of the book move frantically with the music revealing various pictures of artwork. "the flapping, pigeon-winged books died," it transforms the books from cold objects to beautifully alive birds, whose death is tragic and disturbing.” Ray Bradbury Fahrenheit 451

The camera cuts away to a close up of a fire hose being ready to spray through the window. Blue liquid is sprayed all over the books where the lady is standing. Before the firemen can set the fire themselves she lights a match underneath her lighting everything on fire including herself. I believe the lady wanted to die with her books because she could not live without them. The firemen resemble Nazis going door to door destroying literature. The firemen also seem to be blonde hair and blue eyes in intimidating uniforms like army soldiers. The lady never seems to be in pain but faints in the middle of the blaze of fire that lights her entire living room into a blaze.

The book burnings are more of a spectacle than they are necessary because most of the people in Fahrenheit 451 are already stupefied so destroying all the books is more of a statement of power and control.

 Being connected to the signal is a way of control over the people who watch it. “A general suspicion of technology, and the expectation that advanced technology is inevitably dehumanizing” This theme is present in Fahrenheit 451 because Montags wife and her friends seem to be emotionless and have concerns only for whatever is on television. One of Mildred Montags friends starts to cry when Montag starts reading from a book. This suggests that the women are holding back emotion and thoughts that are being suppressed by the television signal and not reading literature.

“for whom the vision of books as a crucial tool against oppression has to be heartening.” M. Keith Booker

This is a good reason why books are banned in Fahrenheit 451 because it is believed that the books cause unhappiness and makes people want to live in other ways as said by Montags captain. “The only way for everyone to be happy is for everyone to be made equal.” Captain Beatty.

 I could also argue that becoming untouched or unaffected by their emotions like Montags wife could be catastrophic. Mildred attempted suicide without even realizing it and she couldn’t even remember it the next day. 

“To be dystopian, a work needs to foreground the oppressive society in which it is set” M. Keith Booker

In Soylent Green the government controls the over populated city by closing them in poverty. People eat processed food with a dirty secret. Only the rich can live normally tightly secured away in guarded buildings.

“Concern about overpopulation is interconnected with long-standing political, cultural, and economic competition between urban and rural America.” Brian Ireland

Over population is one of the many problems seen in Soylent Green. People are living on the stairs of apartment buildings and even in broken down cars. At one point people are carried away in machines they call scoops like as if they were trash. Technology was supposed to help the city thrive but it seems only those with money and power will survive in the harsh conditions of scarce food supply, living space and inclement weather.

“something must . . . be done in the present to avoid the future” (Evans 33).

If this film was meant to be a warning I think it did a good job of showing what could happen to a city that becomes too large too quickly. Also why would people continue to have kids in such horrible conditions in a densely populated city filled with disease and crime?

When people die in the city their bodies are taken to a factory where they are transformed into edible products for people to consume. The city recycles itself and only the elite few are able to eat expensive bottles of strawberries and animal products.  

Women in the film are referred to as furniture and are used as concubines. Shirl talks Robert Thorn into staying the night after her master was killed. They lay in bed together while maintaining conversation with the notion that romance is not necessary. There is no explanation for why women are turned into sex slaves in Soylent Green. Pretty women seem to be more of a luxury item than anything else. Even Martha Philips the woman eating strawberries offers Robert her company. This sort of theme portrays women as useless slaves, not one female in this movie has any equality to a man which is no surprise. This film was made in (1972) and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women wasn’t until (1979). I am not positive the story would have been any different if made in a later year but compared to modern day films the sexism is off the charts.

Overall I wish this film dived deeper into the elite world. I wanted to know more about the dark side of the city and who is behind the Soylent green production. How was it possible? How can a human body be transformed into an edible product that people would eat? This film seems incomplete like there should be a part 2. I would enjoy watching a part 2 of when the people of the city find out the truth and how they react to eating dead people. For as awesome as this movie could have been I don’t feel like I will always regard this film as a must see classic.  

On Dystopia analysis

To be Dystopian the society must be worse than the reader or watcher is experiencing themselves. The society in non-existent meaning someone has created this society in great detail but it doesn’t actually exist. According to M. Keith Booker new trends in dystopian films are encouraging audiences to feel better about their own lives. It’s hard to agree with this completely but I wouldn’t say this does not happen in the modern age. As far as keeping the genre alive it is definitely possible to shock audiences with new dystopian societies.