voice

This subject is something you here alot about in our culture, but don't often see put into practice in real life. One of the few places we find examples of being the real you and not being moved by other people's opinion is in books. Farenheight 451 is a book that displays alot of what many Americans thirst for.

In our world, people are often pressured to conform to a certian culture. It effects the way we think, talk, socilize, dress and act. In some ways this is to be excpected depending on what climate we live in. Sometimes, in our American society, where we have so many climates, even mini cultures, the "Land of Opportunity," it seems like it would be a place where less pressure is applied. I don't think it is. I wish it was. People are so pressured to be a certian kind of person. We have set up models of who the perfect person should be (ex. Barbie, TV stars etc.). If you can't conform to who you "should" be, you are excpected to fit in to a certian "group" of your same "type." This is what forms cliques and gangs.

People don't want it to be this way, but it seems as though people need security. They need someone to show them what they should be. A goal. They need to meet others approval. Humans, I believe, were made for relationship, for community. Our world has just twisted how to do that. You see, people were also made to be unique. Like a puzzle. Different shapes that are made to fit together. Our society seems to like blocks better; the same shapes piled on top of each other.

Farenheight is an extreem example of this. The balance between uniqueness and relationship have been mushed together to form an ugly, grey, empty society. It's sad. The idea of uniqueness is gone. The idea of relationship is gone. Look at Montag and Mildred. Love; dependance on each other is nonexistent in there relationship. At the same time, they don't respect each other as unique people. They are just normal; average. They don't share there different ideas or personalities. What makes this situation even worse is that the don't have books to even present the idea to them. The government has taken away opinion and no one knows how to get it back. That's what makes Clarice so differnt. She is balance. She has relationship with her family and at the same time she has uniqueness. She has discovered her voice and, with the help and support of her family, is learning to sing. Montag has never really heard any other voice but that of the government and he is drawn.

The root of all this seems to come down to two words. Fear and Courage. Fear keeps people from being who they are. Fear keeps people from asking for help from people. Courage is the strength to do this. I know I struggle with fear. Finding the balance betweenbeing who I was made to be and relying on other people for help. I geuss we need to not rely on other people's voices but rely on the help the people offer. It's like a giant chior and everyonehas a differnet voice to contribute. It's okay to ask for help with finding the right place in the music and things like that. it's not okay to stop siniging your part and rely soley on someone else's voice. That takes away from everyone, including yourself.

My religion is teaching me to sing. You see, my God is the conducter and I'm not afraid to follow. Maybe some of the reason our chior sounds so terribly disorganized is because we are not all following the same conducter. The right, true, worthy conducter.

I have run out time and I was just starting to really get into it. that's okay. I probably would'v gotten of subject anyway! Thank you for reading.