Written by Tracy Lawson
Today I’m comparing two books that, at first glance, might appear to have nothing in common. And I’m going to try to do it without spoilers…we’ll see how it goes.
As I wrote in an earlier post, I believe YA dystopian literature can serve as a bridge to the classics in the genre. Introducing young teen readers to books with social commentary in a YA setting better prepares them to accept and appreciate adult novels with similar themes.
Both Fahrenheit 451 and Matched illustrate how societal organization can easily become oppressive and regimented, and both focus on the evils of censorship.
The main characters in both novels live in restrictive environments, but nonetheless are expected to go through a “period of curiosity.”
Guy Montag, the protagonist in Fahrenheit 451, has been a fireman for ten years. Firemen in his society burn books, yet Montag has a secret cache of books he’s taken from various fires. When he’s discovered with the contraband, his supervisor gives him one day to read them, to satisfy his curiosity and help him see just how worthless and confusing books are.
In Matched, 17 year-old Cassia Reyes has just been assigned her ideal mate. Cassia notes that indiscretions among newly Matched teens are common, as the Officials expect the teens to experiment a bit with other partners before they settle into their assigned marriages at the age of 21.
The characters’ curiosity may be expected, but it is not tolerated. Montag’s own wife turns him in for having books in his possession, and Cassia’s Infraction is a kiss, shared with a boy who is not her Match.
The people in both societies exist under a Mask of Happiness. The oppressive societies, developed for the comfort of the people, have rules and regulations that eliminate ideas. Without ideas, everyone conforms. With conformity, everyone is equal, and therefore everyone should be happy. The governments in both novels assert that when books and new ideas are available to people, conflict and unhappiness occur.
Montag’s fire captain, Beatty, tells Montag that because each person is angered by some kind of literature, it is best to get rid of it all. He described how books were burned first by minorities, each ripping a page or paragraph from this book, then that, until the day came when the books were empty and the minds shut and the libraries closed forever.
In Cassia’s world, Selection Committees scaled down the number of books, paintings, and songs in the Society to 100 each. The remainder are forbidden and destroyed. Cassia’s father is a Restoration supervisor whose job is to oversee the incineration of the contents of libraries.
In both Fahrenheit 451 and Matched, characters memorize the written word to battle censorship and literally give life to books.
Both novels describe societies that are terrifying to imagine, but not as far-fetched as we might believe.
But there is hope because these books have been written. As I put the finishing touches on Counteract, I feel humbled to join the ranks.
Tracy’s original post can be read here.
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October 23, 2016 at 2:48 am
I appreciate your comparison of Farenheit 451 and Matched. Both are excellent novels. If you want to talk about dystopian YA, there are some newer novels. I truly enjoyed The Hunger Games trilogy and it was well written, especially Catching Fire. I am not a fan of first-person monologue. But The Hunger Games really works. I feel for the character Katniss Everdeen and her struggle to save her family, her home and her society. I admit that I didn’t see that in the Divergent series that much. Granted, there are a lot of fans who like dystopian YA. It isn’t my favorite genre. I am more into social-realistic YA, set in the present date (or close to it–given 5 to 10 years either way).
I have read novels by John Green and Tim Tharp. They are very good. I can also throw in my friend, Vicki Grove, who has written two great realistic YA novels, EVERYTHING BREAKS and RIMWALKERS. Those are her two best novels to date. Even realistic and social-realistic YA will also express some issues that we need to bring out. Our young people are wonderful people and they are great readers. We need to really give them something they can really read, enjoy and think about the world around them.
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