Fahrenheit 451 In the Making
Ever wondered about the background of Fahrenheit 451? Then you should definitely read this!
“I didn’t know it, but I was literally writing a dime novel,” says Ray Bradbury, author of the famous novel Fahrenheit 451. It cost Bradbury exactly nine dollars and eighty cents in dimes to write the novel in the spring of 1950.
Most of the writing took place in Venice, California, in their garage. They lived there not because it was the cool place, but because it was a location they could actually afford. Bradbury found it hard to concentrate on his writing, because he had to choose between playing with his girls and writing his novel. His income wasn’t sufficient, and he eventually found a real place to work – the basement of the library of the University of California, Los Angeles.
The typewriters there cost a dime per half hour, and that caused Bradbury to frantically type away, eager to get it finished. In roughly nine days, and at 25,000 words, it was half way done.
Who would have known that such a rushed piece of work would eventually become a world renowned novel? This novel is a masterpiece, a clever story of censorship.
However, as I researched Fahrenheit 451, I came across an odd piece of information – one that isn’t found in the book. In an interview I read, Bradbury claimed that the novel was not about censorship at all, but about television replacing books.
Overall, reading Fahrenheit 451 was enjoyable. I’m glad I read it, because it opened up a whole new perspective on books.
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