Over the summer, incoming juniors taking Advanced Study English read “Fahrenheit 451” by Ray Bradbury. Told from the perspective of Guy Montag, the novel takes place in a dystopia where books are banned. Montag is a firefighter which, in this society, means he burns books and houses rather than extinguishing them.
Eleventh grade English teachers Brian Wogensen and Kathleen Keelty assigned students a literature recitation project inspired by Bradbury’s main message in the novel: knowledge and reading are critical to society and uphold individual values. Keelty was unable to sit for an interview, but emailed The Oracle, with details pertaining to the assignment.
“[The project] mirrors the actions of the rebels in Bradbury’s dystopia: memorizing [an] important text in order to preserve it, and in doing so, making a single entity out of the text and the humans that value that text,” Keelty wrote. “Bradbury reminds us that we are all bits and pieces of history, literature and international law.'”
Sofia Capanna (’26) is in Wogensen’s class and chose to memorize and recite a monologue from the final act of “Macbeth.” Capanna said she thinks connecting with literature is important to gain an understanding of different perspectives. One of the reasons Capanna said she enjoyed this project was because she got to pick a piece that resonated with her.
“We live in a society that encourages us to seek knowledge and challenge our ignorance, whereas in ‘Fahrenheit 451,’ that ignorance is encouraged and it doesn’t end well,” Capanna said. “I’m grateful we live in a place that [invites] knowledge to flourish.”
One of Keelty’s students, Selah Johnson (’26), said she enjoyed the project because she loves poetry and performing. She recited “Self-Portrait as Kendrick Lamar, Laughing to the Bank” by Ashanti Anderson. Johnson said poetry is essential to society because it is a way to gain insight into others’ experiences and emotions.
“It’s nice to have a creative outlet where we can express ourselves and our emotions in a year that is so academically heavy,” Johnson said.
As an actor, Johnson said she is used to performing in front of a large group of people, especially after competing in the statewide Poetry Out Loud competition last year. Johnson said although she was nervous to recite the poem in a more intimate setting, she enjoyed listening closely to her partner’s recitation and finding the meaning in the poem.
Meadbh Brown (’26) chose a poem by Mary Oliver called “Wild Geese.” Brown said the poem is warm and heartfelt. She said she believes it is valuable to experience memorizing literature, as sharing knowledge orally was the only way literature was able to be preserved in “Fahrenheit 451.”
“Literature being banned is always a thing and always an issue, and censorship is always a topic on people’s minds,” Brown said. “But now also, with [fewer] people reading, and more of the digital age coming about, it’s really nice to take the time to memorize something that someone wrote even a long time ago.”
