Fahrenheit 451
Ray Bradbury

Bradbury cited several motivations for writing this novel, including the McCarthy era, the Second Red Scare, threats of book burnings, and the influence of mass media on readership. Written in 1953 and set in a distant future, this novel follows Guy Montag, a book-burning fireman whose experiences lead him to undergo a radical change in his worldview and acceptance of the status quo.

Major thematic elements: censorship and technology, individuality vs. acceptance of the status quo, the power of books vs. the power of mass media

IB Literature and IB Language and Literature Connections

Place of publication: United States
Language: English
Era: 20th Century (1951)
Genre: Fiction
Author: Male

Readers, writers and texts | Time and space | Intertextuality: Connecting texts

Identity | Culture | Creativity | Communication
Perspective | Transformation | Representation

Full text, basic summaries, and overviews

Fahrenheit 451 | Full Text
We found three PDFs of Fahrenheit 451 online; the first link is just the text of the story. Links 2 and 3 contain limited supplemental resources.
Read more - Link 1 | Read more - Link 2 | Read more - Link 3

Fahrenheit 451 | Audiobook
This playlist from Ms. C’s Classroom covers the entire novel and puts each page of the novel on the screen for students to read along with.
Listen here

Fahrenheit 451 Study Guide | Course Hero
This guide includes chapter summaries, character overviews, literary devices, key quotations and more. The entire guide is also available in video form on YouTube.
Read more | Watch here

Fahrenheit 451 Study Guide | Spark Notes
This study guide includes summaries of each part, broken down into smaller pieces, character analysis, literary devices, quick quizzes and more.
Read more

Feeling More Alive: Fahrenheit 451’s The Hearth and the Salamander | Vlogbrothers | YouTube.com | 4:44
In this video, John Green discusses Part 1 of the novel, including “discussions of Guy Montag, Clarisse, the complicated relationship between technology and nature, and more.” A second video, “Existential Airport Anxiety,” discusses the end of the novel.
Watch Part 1 here | Watch Part 2 here

Historical Context of Fahrenheit 451 | ClickView | YouTube.com | 9:36
This video uses historical footage and narration to discuss the 20th century events and ideas that inspired Bradbury’s novel.
Watch here

Why should you read “Fahrenheit 451”? — Iseult Gillespie | TED-Ed | YouTube.com | 4:35
In this lesson, Gillespie discusses what makes Fahrenheit 451 a classic, and how it asks and attempts to answer the question: “How can preserve your mind in a society where free will, self-expression and curiosity are under fire?”
Read more

(playlists)

About the author

Articles, essays, and videos about Madame Bovary

Lesson plans and other teaching resources

Shopping List

Texts and other resources you may find helpful.

When you buy something using the retail links on our website, we may earn a small commission.

 
Title
Link
Title
Link
Title
Link
Title
Link
Title
Link
Title
Link
Title
Link
Title
Link