When you think about this statement, "Times are products of their texts," you instantly think of the classics (canonical books). I decided to go a similar route but instead chose two books (one Young Adult Lit and one canonical), The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins and Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. Both of these books have, in one-way or another, affected the times and societies surrounding them.
In The Hunger Games,
there is this post-apocalyptic society controlled by an advanced metropolis
known as The Capitol. Every year the Hunger Games is hosted and the twelve
remaining districts must send one boy and one girl between the ages of 12 and
18 to compete in a brutal battle that is broadcasted to all the districts as
well as the capital. Two major noticeable themes would be oppression and the
effects the war has had on the remaining districts. The oppression of the
government is certainly comparable to our own current day structure. If just
reading to read, one would not quite make that same connection. But when
looking at the text critically, one can definitely see the parallels. The
phrase, “Only I keep wishing I could think of a way to…to show the Capitol they
don’t own me. That I’m more than just a piece in their Games…,” strikes a chord
especially with our generation. After reading the series, young adults are more
aware of their own government and the implications and actions of what occurs.
In Fahrenheit 451,
there is a dystopian future society in which books are outlawed and “firemen”
must undertake the burning of all books. Ray Bradbury talked about how he was
concerned with threats of censorship and book burning in the US. In the novel
it states how there is more than one way to burn a book. It goes on to explain
how taking bits and pieces or chunks turn the book into something empty. At
that time in history, people were very concerned with censoring what children
read and turned books into something empty, just like the story. After a few
years though, people seemed to realize how censoring could corrupt the story
and stopped focusing so much on censoring.
One theme that both the stories have in common would be the
control over individuals through mass media/technology. In The Hunger Games, the Capitol constantly played past Hunger Games
as well as anti-rebellion propaganda to encourage people to keep the “current
peace”. In Fahrenheit 451, the
government is able to suppress individuality through book burning because they
discouraged people from thinking outside the box and to only think and agree
with what the government said. This can be seen in present day news shows and
websites in how they only show the position that they want to be seen. Whether
or not our generation becomes aware of this before it is too late is the
question.
Favorite quotes from Ray Bradbury and Fahrenheit 451:
"You don't have to burn books to destroy a culture. Just get people to stop reading them." - Ray Bradbury
"We need not to be let alone. We need to be really bothered once in a while. How long is it since you were really bothered? About something important, about something real?"
"If you hide your ignorance, no one will hit you and you'll never learn."
Favorite quotes from The Hunger Games:
"...I'm more than just a piece in their Games." - Peeta Mellark
"Katniss Everdeen, the girl who was on fire, you have provided a spark, that left unattended, may grow into an inferno that destroys Panem." - President Snow
"Fire is catching! And if we burn then you burn with us!" - Katniss Everdeen
"I wish I could freeze this moment, right here, right now, and live in it forever." - Peeta Mellark
"May the odds be ever in your favor." - Effie Trinket
