In Fahrenheit 451 and The name of the Rose, a common theme is the role of the government’s hierarchy and the ability to control knowledge. Both the book and the film illustrate a strong sense of how society and the people within that society thrive off of knowledge and information. This raises the question, is the government right by holding information back from the public?
The freedom of knowledge has given the public the ability to overcome obstacles and tribulations. Without knowledge, our own thoughts would be suppressed. For instance, in the film, "The Name of the Rose" conveyed the message that some knowledge is like a forbidden fruit, "dangerous". When the Monks found the Socrates book in their library, they knew that it was wrong, because it was a source of laughter, which was not allowed. Despite, the monks knowledge of knowing that this book was forbidden, the temptation to read it’s secrets were too great to resist.
Therefore, the fact that these monks found a source of laughter, which represented lack of respect to the Catholic Church. This would undermine the Franciscan hierarchy. In addition, the power of free thought is a dangerous and powerful tool among men. The Socrates book did exactly that, by nurturing free thought. This fact illustrates and reinforces the theory that when one has more knowledge, they rely less on others for directions. In other words, the secret of knowledge poses a threat to people in power.
Another example of how dangerous knowledge can be was demonstrated in “The Name of the Rose”, when a monk read Socrates and was found murdered and used as an example to surrounding citizens. This example, was meant to keep people in line and show that you do not go against the powers of the government. The character, William, played by Sean Connery, used his intelligence to outweigh demonic possession, and used his knowledge to solve the case of the murder that had taken place. The character of William, already possessed his own train of free thought, which enabled him to unfold oppressive hierarchy of power.Another example of controlling information can be seen in the novel “ Fahrenheit 451”. For instance, the main character, Montag, who is a fireman burns books. This is a way for the government to limit societies knowledge. In our world, the role of a fireman is to save anything that is materialistic or a source of knowledge. In contrast, in “Fahrenheit 451”, a fireman’s job is to destroy books in order to keep people from thinking outside the norms of society. The problem with this is that without any books, peoples memories begin to fade, and then nobody has any recollection of history.
Throughout both books, the common theme of fire is used. Montag who is the main character in “Fahrenheit 451”, is a fireman whose job is to set fires, in order to suppress the society and keep order as it should be, in the hands of the government. Since he has been putting our fires for so long, and does not know the reasons behind his orders, he has a void of emotions and feelings, that normal people in our society naturally have. Therefore, the use of fire conveys the most powerful means of destruction. The destruction of books in a sense is the destruction of free will and thought.
On the other hand, in the “Name of the Rose” the people that were seen reading or obtaining knowledge in one form or another would be burnt at the stake. For example, the character Menocchio was burnt at the stake, because we gazed his eyes on the Socrates book, which was the most sinful things that one can do in the eyes of the church. The reason Menochhio was burnt at the stake, is because he was opened about his intelligence and this theories and philosophies. These are the reasons why the hierarchy views knowledge as a privilege that is reserved for certain people.
Therefore, through the analysis of each book and the common themes of knowledge and fire, it is obvious that if the ruling power of a society loses the upper hand on their citizens, their power dissipates. This theory can be used in modern society as we see it today. For example, when the government holds the majority of information, and chooses to either censor the information, or only distribute the knowledge as they see fit, the citizens of that society have fear in their hearts. However, when the knowledge is acknowledged publicly, the government loses authority and order over the citizens that they suppress.
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On Thursday, April 2nd, the crew of Psycholitiks were joined by two talented and ambitious musicians and artists.
