The fictional novel, Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, has often been cited as a powerful critique on intellectual and emotional suppression in a society. The story takes place in a dystopian imagining of the future where knowledge is censored on the grounds of keeping people happy. People lead very shallow and unsatisfying lives due to their isolation from one another, sense of disconnect from the world, and lack of intellectual capabilities. The reader follows Guy Montag, a fireman whose job entails censoring books by burning them. Montag begins to question his worldviews after meeting a ‘strange’ girl named Clarisse, who causes him to realize his own unhappiness. As Montag learns about the workings of his world, Bradbury introduces ideas of real and superficial happiness in Fahrenheit 451’s society. Bradbury uses the fictional elements of his novel to convey his opinions on happiness.

Throughout his novel, Bradbury emphasizes the importance and requirements of real happiness by providing contrasting examples of superficial happiness. Bradbury uses the character of Mildred, Montag’s wife, to portray the society's average citizen and the happiness they pursue. Mildred spends all her time watching television, living for the stimulation from it. However, the ‘happiness’ she derives from this lifestyle is very hollow, and deep down Mildred is unsatisfied with her life, proven by when she tries to commit suicide within the first chapter. Still, Mildred refuses to acknowledge her negative emotions and the problems in her life, shown when Montag has a revelation and states, “‘Happiness is important. Fun is everything. And yet I kept sitting there saying to myself, 'I'm not happy, I’m not happy,’” To which Mildred responds “‘I am,’” with a smile (Bradbury 62). People like Mildred refuse to acknowledge any problems in their lives because they believe that facing any form of conflict will take away the ‘happiness’ they have. Instead, the people find distraction in stimulating entertainment to give them a sense of fake joy. Through this, Bradbury is saying that, unlike Mildred, people have to be willing to put effort towards facing conflict, overcoming obstacles, and developing relationships if they want real happiness. The effort required for such improvements is undesirable and can sometimes lead to unpleasantness, which is why the people in the story distract themselves from ever attempting change. This idea that a denial of issues and negative emotions perpetuates unhappiness can be found in the modern world. A 2010 study found that “A greater tendency to accept negative feelings predicted lower levels of depressive symptoms,” suggesting that acknowledging negative emotions rather than distracting oneself from them is healthier (Gruber 2011). Bradbury’s lesson is truly crucial in the modern world, as people can often be found distracting themselves from issues or periods of sadness through entertainment like social media. Like in the novel, the happiness gained from these distractions does not bring real happiness; People must be willing to face difficult topics, hardship, and obstacles, even if they are unpleasant, to reach real happiness and fulfillment. All in all, Bradbury utilizes characters like Mildred to highlight the difference between superficial and true happiness and overall drive the message of the value of happiness.

Bradbury also uses his novel to make commentary on society’s role in its people’s happiness, advocating that society must give people the freedom required to experience real happiness. The beginnings of widespread censorship seen in the novel came from a desire to avoid conflict. People stopped producing media of quality and renounced any intellectual ideas for fear of contrasting opinions, creating a reliance on dimensionless and stimulating entertainment. In the words of fire chief Beatty, “Don’t we keep them moving, don’t we give them fun? That’s all we live for, isn’t it?” (Bradbury 56). The society believed that happiness is an absence of conflict, so they employed censorship to remove controversy, eventually leading the masses to ‘live for’ the previously stated superficial happiness. Through this portrayal of societal standards and their effect on the population, Bradbury is saying that society should not fear the strife of contrasting opinions, and instead should make conflict and existential thought acceptable so people can pursue real happiness. Bradbury’s critique is rooted in reality, as studies have shown that more consistent stimulation and the positive emotions that come from it “lead people to rely more on highly accessible cognitions, such as beliefs, expectations, and stereotypes” (Gruber 2011). The people of  Fahrenheit 451 rely on the stated ‘more accessible cognitions’ because their intellectual capabilities have worsened. Relying on stereotypes and ingrained beliefs is the reason that most of the people are near brain-dead and despise books. They are indoctrinated into unhappiness, taught to hate the meaningful things in life and instead distract themselves from anything they perceive as negative. The process only perpetuates itself as the newer generations are raised into a lifestyle that promotes the ‘accessible cognitions’ that continue to ingrain societal beliefs into the people. Through this depiction of a fictional society’s influence on its people’s happiness, Bradbury is suggesting that society should not enforce standards that lead to superficial happiness, and instead should encourage acceptance of thought, conflict, and expression. He believes that society should not limit its people in their pursuit of happiness.

Bradbury uses his novel to detail the aspects of life that he believes to bring real happiness. The first and best example of a happy character given in Fahrenheit 451 is Clarisse. Clarisse is seen as odd by the society because she has relationships with other people, enjoys intellectual thought and the pursuit of curiosity, and reflects on herself and her actions. Clarrise and her family are shown to have meaningful conversations with one another, such as when Bradbury wrote “Clarisse and her father and mother and the uncle who smiled so quietly and so earnestly. Above all, their laughter was relaxed and hearty and not forced” (14). Clarisse’s genuine relationship with her family contrasts the strained and hollow interactions other characters have. She is aware of the world, her thoughts, and the people around her.  Unlike Clarisse, however, the majority of the population is not in touch with their humanity. They lack empathy and tend to only care about themselves and their immediate circumstances. According to ScienceDirect, “Research on self-humanizing indicates that a perception of others as distant or disconnected may contribute to the tendency to see them as less fully human than the self” (Haslam 2022). This theme can be seen throughout the novel, as the people tend to not value the lives of others. This lack of empathy isolates people, making them unhappier. Bradbury compares the apathetic lives of the masses and Clarisse to show how connection and embracing one’s humanity can bring real happiness, while refusing to acknowledge those aspects of life will not. Bradbury uses the characters and their actions to portray what brings happiness and what does not.

The novel, Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury teaches of the fragility of happiness in a superficial society. Bradbury uses the characters and elements of the fictional society to portray the importance of real happiness compared to superficial happiness, the freedom society must give to its people in order for them to experience happiness, and how meaningful things like relationships and intellectual thought are important to maintaining real happiness. Bradbury’s story serves as a cautionary tale that warns readers against the happiness-supressing behaviors of the people and society in his book. All in all, Bradbury used the fictional elements of his novel to portray his opinions about happiness.

Works Cited

Bradbury, Ray. Fahrenheit 451. Simon and Schuster, New York, 1951.

Gruber, June, et al. “A Dark Side of Happiness? How, When, and Why Happiness Is Not Always       Good.” Perspectives on Psychological Science, vol. 6, no. 3, 2011, pp. 222–233. JSTOR, jstor.org/stable/41613493. Accessed October 2, 2023.

Haslam, Nick. “Dehumanization and the Lack of Social Connection.” Current Opinion in       Psychology, vol. 43, February 2022, pp. 312-316. ScienceDirect, sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352250X21001469?via%3Dihub. Accessed October 3, 2023