Fahrenheit 451

“Where they burn books, they will, in the end, also burn people.”

Heinrich Heine (German Poet)

1950’s Censorship

• McCarthyism

• Obscenity cases were brought against books such as Howl by Allen Ginsberg.

• Many Books were banned from schools and libraries across America.

• http://www.ala.org/advocacy/banned/frequentlychallenged/challengedbydecade/2000_2009

Recent Book Burnings

• Nazis burned books- Anything liberal, socialist, anarchist, Jewish, communist, pacifist, or anything considered against Nazi teaching.

- American Authors include Ernest Hemingway, Jack London, and Helen Keller.

• Wilhelm Reich’s books were burned by the U.S. government in 1956.

• In 2010 an American Pastor organized a book burning of the Islamic holy book, the Qu’ran.

Government Laws

• Patriot Act• Stop Online Piracy Act

Mass Media

Should people be allowed to burn books? Why or Why not?

How many hours in a week do you spend:

Watching TV?

On the computer?

Reading?

“If they give you ruled paper, write the other way” – Juan Ramon JimenezWhat do you think this quote means? Do you agree or disagree with the message?

How often do you ask the question “why?”

What is:

A phoenix?

A salamander?

A sieve?

Is there ever a reason to break the law?