The theme of alienation in two dystopian novels: Brave new world and Fahrenheit 451

Brave New World and Fahrenheit 451 are both about how the influence of technology affected mankind. Brave New World depicts a future where people are produced scientifically. Fahrenheit 451 is about a future where firemen start fires instead of extinguishing them, in order to burn books. Huxley?s and Bradbury?s novels are above all about the theme of alienation and people that are affected by it. The aim of this paper is to analyse the theme of alienation in Aldous Huxley?s Brave New World and Ray Bradbury?s Fahrenheit 451 from sociological and psychological viewpoints and to present evidence that support the paper?s purpose. The paper is divided into five chapters. The first chapter is an introduction to the concepts of alienation, dystopia and mass culture, and the Postwar Literary World. The second chapter explains the theme of alienation in Brave New World; dealing with the features of alienation in Huxley?s ideal society and discusses how alienation manifests in three characters in Brave New World; finally focuses on the issue of isolation and being outcasts from society which the theme of alienation also can be linked to. The third chapter presents the theme of alienation in Fahrenheit 451; deals with the features of alienation in Bradbury?s ideal society and discusses how alienation manifests in three characters in Fahrenheit 451; finally focuses on the issue of isolation and being outcasts from society which the theme of alienation also can be linked to. The fourth chapter focuses on similarities and differences between features of alienation in both novels. The fifth chapter is a summary of this thesis, including the conclusions drawn from the study. Key Words: Dystopia, Alienation, Technology, Isolation, Outcast.