There are some texts that teachers absolutely insist on teaching. With AP Lit, I have to teach Frankenstein or Beloved. In World Lit, it’s Cyrano de Bergerac. And with my sophomores, it’s Fahrenheit 451.
I think there are several reasons that I love the novel. First, I read it when I was a sophomore myself. I remember being intrigued by Bradbury’s future setting and wondered if any of it would come to fruition. Secondly, I’ve an avid book-reader and always have been. The idea of a society without books and all the represent is one of my worst nightmares. Most importantly, I’ve found more applications to the conflicts in Fahrenheit 451 every year I teach it.
Sadly, the older I get, the closer we get to Montag’s world becoming our reality.
Whenever I teach Fahrenheit 451, I pair the novel with several other texts, videos, and articles to demonstrate the novel’s strong connections to society today. You can get all of these ideas (and more) in my Fahrenheit 451 Bundle or Critical Thinking Activities, but here is a snapshot of some ideas you can use for now:
The Pedestrian
Ray Bradbury wrote this short story after having an unpleasant altercation with a police officer in 1951. The officer accosted Bradbury and a friend who were out walking, saying that no one just walks around for no reason. He went home and wrote “The Pedestrian,” but the story stayed with him. Two years later he would publish Fahrenheit 451, which follows the same themes and is set in the same setting. Leonard Mead is indirectly featured in the novel as Clarisse’s eccentric uncle. You can read the story here.
Banned and Challenged Books
Banned books have become such a controversial issue that teachers now celebrate an entire week devoted to spreading awareness of censorship and challenges in classrooms. The first banned book week was celebrated in 1982 and the list of challenged books grows longer each year. Fahrenheit 451 is perhaps more powerful now than in the past 30 years because we’re living in a new age of book challenges. Check out the list of classic books that have been challenged as well as the top challenged books of each year.
Wall-Sized Televisions
One detail from Fahrenheit 451 that always intrigues my students are the parlor walls, wall-sized televisions that entrance citizens and keep them most interpersonal relationships. This article, published in an online website that specializes in luxury tech, examines LG’s new and upcoming giant TV screen, which is estimated to cost nearly $2 million.
Ted Ed: I Lost My Phone
I stumbled upon this two minute documentary when scrolling through Ted Ed for supplementary lessons. It provides several social situations where people use their phones rather than be in the moment with others. This video is incredibly thought-provoking and produces interesting conversation among students who will admit to being guilty of some offenses, while finding others inexcusable.
The Last Flower
I’ve been showing this video reading of James Thurber’s “The Last Flower” ever since I first started teaching Fahrenheit 451. This video clip is a reading of James Thurber’s “parable in pictures” against the haunting song, “Lux Aeterna.” It discusses how civilization rises and falls into destruction due to violence and hatred. It’s perfect to pair with the final portion of the novel to help students focus the mirror on themselves, as Granger tells Montag we have to do.
Get more for your own lessons!
I provide discussion questions that require close reading and critical thinking for each of these five resources, plus several more in my Fahrenheit 451 Critical Thinking Activities resource on TpT. These materials are also included in my discounted unit bundle!
Looking for more resources to use in 9-10 grades? Check out my year-long ELA bellringers, which tackle vocabulary, grammar, literary terms and rhetorical analysis so YOU DON’T HAVE TO. You can get a full week for free by signing up for my mailing list! Read more in this blog post here.
