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Schools

Warnings From Two Novels Written 60 Years Ago Still Relevant Today?

High school book talk brings together students and community members.

In the classic novel Fahrenheit 451, author Ray Bradbury writes about the power of books by describing how the good ones have “texture” and “pores.” Although Bradbury’s dystopian novel was published almost 60 years ago, several Branford High School students got a sense this week of how relevant Bradbury's words can still be.

The 43 students, who are sophomores at BHS, took part in a community book talk event at the high school this week. As part of the book talk, 10 members of the community – including two school officials, a world language teacher, and the school librarian – met at the high school to participate in small group discussions about Fahrenheit 451 and 1984 by George Orwell. Both novels are core texts in the BHS 10th grade English curriculum.

During the community book talk, students and adults sat in small groups, asked questions of one another, and discussed the relevancy in today's digitally-connected world of the ideas raised by Bradbury and Orwell so long ago. As part of the project, the community members agreed to read the books before the discussion – just as the kids were assigned them for class.

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"This is the kind of activity that provides students with real life learning experiences," principal Lee Panagoulias said. "What better way to bring together the ideas of the students with those of the community than through these two classic novels, which are still quite relevant today in our 24/7  online world."

Fahrenheit 451, published in 1953, tells the story of a society too distracted by mindless entertainment and the latest technology to be capable of real human connections or complex thoughts. In Bradbury’s futuristic vision, people race through their day listening to music on “seashell” radios plugged into their ears, and firemen spend their days burning books, which are banned. The great ideas of the world have been lost, and nobody takes the time to enjoy nature or make connections with one another

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Orwell’s masterpiece, 1984, is also set in the future and portrays a horrifying world where the government has thoroughly stripped the citizens of their humanity. In Orwell’s vision, the government rewrites history to suit its needs; people live in fear from constant surveillance; and everywhere are the warnings that “Big Brother is watching you.” The ruling government has even created a new language that strips words of their meaning and limits the complexity of human thought. The book was published in 1949.

During the lively discussions, students and adults discussed how the warnings in Fahrenheit 451 and 1984 have or have not come true in 2011. Participants also shared their views on the merits of reading.

The members of the community who took part were Jean Scott Brookman, Bill Keane,  Barbara Colley, Sarah Greene, Gary Smith, Assistant Superintendent Mary Peraro and Board of Education member Sue Wharfe. World langue  teacher Elise Weisenbach and school librarian Pam Roy also participated.

The day was organized by teachers Bing Miller and Kathy Doonan.

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