Michael B Jordan on initially rejecting Fahrenheit 451: Being a black man, I didn’t want to play an oppressor (2024)

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Michael B Jordan on initially rejecting Fahrenheit 451: Being a black man, I didn’t want to play an oppressor? ›

“I wasn't interested in playing an authoritative figure. With what's going on in the world with police and my community, being a black man, I didn't want to play somebody who's an oppressor. I just didn't want that in my head. It's just something that I wasn't interested in doing.” Jordan said.

Page 56, Beatty explains that books are dangerous, like a loaded gun. "A book is a loaded gun in the house next door. Burn it. Take the shot from the weapon." (Bradbury, 56.).

Fahrenheit 451 (2018) - Michael B. Jordan as Guy Montag - IMDb.

"We must all be alike. Not everyone born free and equal, as the Constitution says, but everyone made equal.” Such statement, spoken by Captain Beatty from Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury on page fifty-eight, contradicts the true meaning of equality and happiness.

The opening line, "It was a pleasure to burn," establishes a direct connection to the title by indicating that burning is not only a necessary act but also one that brings pleasure to those who carry it out.

The woman burns herself in "Fahrenheit 451" on page 34. In Ray Bradbury's dystopian novel "Fahrenheit 451," the event where the woman burns herself takes place on page 34. In this pivotal scene, the protagonist, Guy Montag, is called to respond to an alarm at a house where books are believed to be hidden.

This novel is not banned. Sometimes Fahrenheit 451 is challenged and asked to be removed because it contains vulgar language and content. Some people may take offense to the content due to conflicting moral, ethical, or religious beliefs.

The overarching theme of Fahrenheit 451 explores the struggle between man's desire for knowledge and individuality in a society that expects ignorance and conformity.

In the context of the story, 451 degrees Fahrenheit is considered the most precise temperature at which paper burns. This is both scientifically and symbolically important for the authoritarian state that aims to depreciate its citizens' intellect through the burning of books.

With school turning out more runners, jumpers, racers, tinkerers, grabbers, snatchers, fliers, and swimmers instead of examiners, critics, knowers, and imaginative creators, the word "intellectual," of course, became the swear word it deserved to be.

What words were censored in Fahrenheit 451? ›

Ironically, Fahrenheit 451, an indictment of censorship, was itself censored by its publisher for thirteen years before Bradbury himself became aware of that. In 1967, Ballantine published an expurgated version of the novel to be used in high schools. Such words as “hell,” “damn” and “abortion” were eliminated.

The novel's ending depicts the inevitable self-destruction of such an oppressive society. Yet the ending also offers a specter of hope. Now that he's in the country, Montag has the leisure to think for himself for the first time in his life.

Quote by Ray Bradbury: “A book is a loaded gun in the house next door. ...”

In the novel, Beatty says, "A book is a loaded gun in the house next door." It means that having a book in one's house is just as dangerous as having a loaded gun. In the society, books are hated and feared throughout the community. Firemen burn houses that contain books.

Part 1 Directions: On pages 52-55, Beatty explains to Montag how books became banned.