This movie reminded me a lot of 1984 by George Orwell. A man who for all his life believed that his life was good and normal then basically wakes up one day to see that things are not as they seem.
Another similarity is the ‘family.’ In the movie everyone watches TV being apart of the ‘family’ the host being called cousin and talking about things that to us, the viewer, seems stupid - controlling in what seems to be an obvious way. And let’s not forget how the wife participated in the show. Doesn’t that mean that they can see you and watch what you’re doing? Now come on, you can’t tell me that that doesn’t remind you of Big Brother.
The idea behind the reasoning of the movie made a bit of sense to me. A book can cause lots of problems. Marx’s book lead Lenin to rule with Communism. The Bible leads millions of people’s belief, a belief that is challenged by other religions. The Lord of the Rings defined a hero’s journey and has made all authors now strive for trilogies. Harry Potter is the simple two word answer to define our current generation.
You see, books can cause a lot of noise. In some cases good, but not all. For many they create arguments be about the subjects, principles, or even if it should be aloud to be read. At one point nearly all the books mentioned ere banned at one time or another. In some places they still are.
So in a way I understand why they were burning the books - so as to not spread unwanted or dangerous ideas. But at the same time they also said that it was to because books made you antisocial and that they made you a danger to yourself since it gave you dreams that were ‘unrealistic.’ To there two reasonings I roll my eyes.
Antisocial? Okay, that act of reading can be isolating, but discussing them is a definition of socialism.
Being dangerous? Kind of. I admit that at times I find myself trapped in stories while working or doing something. Or even just wishing that I could do what they did in the books. Look at my school. Harry Potter was so captivating that a muggle version of Quidditch has been made, it even has a national league! Anyway, some people get really hurt playing the game, a game they got from a fictional book and are playing because they all have the wish that they could actually do it. Why do you think they made the “Wizarding World of Harry Potter” in Universal? So people who are obsessed with the stories can be a part of it.
So, are books good or bad? You decide.
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