But this is a society that's beyond that kind of formal slavery so the answer is the old Roman one of bread&circuses. Let them be happy in their ignorance and they might not get ideas about a better life and won't rebel. Looking at American history it was a crime in many slave holding states to educate a slave. Bradbury's themes are grounded in reality. She does a good job in both characterizations. Julie Christie plays two roles, Werner's pleasure driven wife and a schoolteacher whose unorthodox for that society's teaching methods have brought her under scrutiny. A good job in a police state, but not a good one if you have an inquiring mind such as Werner has. They seek and burn books in whatever quantities they find. Buildings and such are now fireproof so fireman have become the enforcers of the ban against books. Oskar Werner stars in Fahrenheit 451, he plays a fireman who have a different function in this society. But read for enjoyment or for education about the world beyond the small space of earth you frequent, that's a big no-no in this future America. Reading for pleasure is now banned although I imagine you must have a certain degree of literacy to read food can labels and directions to operate all kinds of machinery. Ray Bradbury's disturbing vision of a possible future comes vividly alive in this film adaption of Fahrenheit 451.
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