Does living unconsciously create a Utopia?

In Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury creates a world where life’s purpose is entertainment and happiness. Everything is easy and enjoyable, and anything that causes strife, emotional conflict and unhappiness are destroyed. Technology is used to distract people from their problems and give them the happiness and sense of family they need. In Bradbury’s world, living is optional, one just simply has to exist. To some, this may have described a flawless world, a perfect utopia. To others, it's oppression. While technology and entertainment can make life easier, life is bland without challenges. In Fahrenheit 451, technology becomes a mask which people hide behind, using it as a shield to protect themselves from life’s problems. Bradbury uses the character development of Mildred Montag to demonstrate how living mindlessly behind technology is not a paradise.

Bradbury frequently uses Mildred’s character to represent how his characters were shielded from the horrors of the world. In the novel, Bradbury’s characters are written to worship technology, it is what their lives revolve around. Bradbury used Mildred to show the readers what technology can do to our society, for Mildred, it makes her less of a person and more of a mindless result of living off of technology. This is seen enormously through her lack of sympathy and compassion for her husband, putting her own needs and wants before him. “Will you turn the parlor off?” he asked. “That’s my family.” “Will you turn it down for a sick man?” “I’ll turn it down.” “She walked out of the room and did nothing to the parlor and came back” (pg. 46) Mildred’s inability to connect and empathize with her husband was a direct result of her addiction to Bradbury’s fictional TV parlors, simply because, she loved her fake family over her actual husband. Mildred rarely spent her time living through the world and instead preferred to live within the digital world as her addiction to technology progressed.

Throughout the novel, there are many instances where other people are constantly seen deflecting responsibility. A most obvious example is when Mildred is having guests over and Mrs. Bowles comments on raising children. “I plunk the children in school nine days out of ten. I put up with them when they come home three days a month; it’s not bad at all. You heave them in the parlor and turn on the switch” (pg. 92) This shows the reader that Bradbury’s characters are more interested in having relationships with fake families rather than real people, not even caring enough to interact with their own children. Mildred demonstrates this with her nonchalant attitude toward her husband, deflecting her responsibility as a wife to be there for him. Mildred is so opposed to distress that she can not have a serious talk with Montag as a result of her constant use of technology numbing her ability to connect to anyone emotionally.

In Fahrenheit 451, Bradbury’s characters are constantly trying to maintain happiness. However this is outwardly accomplished in Mildred’s character but as is found out early in the novel, Mildred is quite miserable. But because of her frequent reliance on technology and inability to face emotional conflict, Mildred is unaware of this fact. This is a result of chasing after things that will only temporarily distract, which in this case, was technology. Mildred was never satisfied with what she had. In Bradbury’s society, the people were obsessed with instant gratification, and never invested in anything that took time. Relationships and achievements outside of the digital world were not valued. Technology was used as a drug to which everyone is addicted. People were getting high off of this reliable source of entertainment and happiness, but the gratification never lasted long, and when they woke up, it made them depressed and even more hungry for the entertainment technology brings. Characters within the text strongly believe that happiness comes from entertainment, Beatty is a prime example of this; “Bring on your clubs and parties, your acrobats and magicians, your daredevils, your jet cars, motorcycle helicopters, your sex and heroin, more of everything to do with automatic reflex… I just like solid entertainment” (pg 58). Although these tactics of happiness are reliable, they most certainly are not permanent, but that instant gratification is what is ideal in their society. Bradbury uses Mildred’s character to demonstrate a numbed mind, unaware of her feelings of depression as she followed the social norm of instant gratification

In conclusion, Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451 portrays many societal flaws, such as valuing technology over relationships, obsession with instant gratification and an inability to face emotional conflicts. All of which worsened with the ever-presence of technology. People used technology to hide their flaws and ignore their problems, depending on it to shield and distract them from anything negative. Bradbury uses the character of Mildred to demonstrate these flaws and represent a cold, mindless society whose obsession with technology led to their inevitable destruction.