Fahrenheit 451 Real World Application Essay

In terms of curriculum planning and initiatives to select core texts for instruction, at least one conversation should be held in regards to the real world application and relevance of a text. The idea that a text is relevant to the current society as well as student lives is crucial to a successful school environment. Students must be able to make direct connections between what they are reading and the world around them. Teachers are the necessary connectors of the concepts.

Therefore, if a text were to be chosen that encapsulates real world application and relevance in a modern society, that obvious choice is Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451. At its inception midway through the 20th century, the novel was speculative fiction dealing in “what if” and “if only.” However, the world around us has developed in such a way to mirror the world Bradbury created. A supposed intent of the author in writing the text was to provide a warning, to prevent the real world from becoming like the one he created.

If the focus of instruction for the novel is rooted in cultural relevance and real world application, then teaching Fahrenheit must first begin with

The introduction to the author and genre relays into an in-class reading of Bradbury’s short story “The Pedestrian.” Students would discuss the novel while reading, speculating how Bradbury communicates exposition about the world of the story as well as how the world got to be that way. A reinforcing assessment would be for students to write a short essay comparing the main text and an television adaptation of the story, highlighting how each construct their own version of a dystopia. As another form of assessment, students would be given the opportunity to write their own mini-version of a dystopian