Book to the Future: What Book Would You Memorize for Humanity?

What book would you save if books were outlawed and the penalty for keeping them is death?

I've often pondered this question since watching the movie Fahrenheit 451 many years ago. The film is based on Ray Bradbury's novella of the same name (the title refers to the temperature at which book paper ignites when exposed to heat) and it depicts a future where reading is lethal - literally.

The world is on the verge of nuclear war and its human inhabitants, oblivious of the unfolding mayhem, are pacified with state-sanctioned drugs and mind-numbing entertainment.

Anyone found with a book is burned - along with it - by a squad of "firemen", one of whom begins to harbor doubts about his profession after meeting a young girl who is more alive and vibrant than everyone else. She inspires him to question a society that bans reading and keeps its citizens ignorant and docile.

He becomes a fugitive after saving a book from destruction and his wife betrays him to the authorities. He flees the city shortly before it's bombed and heads for the forest where he's heard a small resistance movement lives.

When he finds them, he learns they have memorized - word for word - their favourite book and they keep each volume alive because they recite its contents to one another every day. The idea is that, eventually, books will be valued again and the exiles will be free to transcribe their contents.

Years ago, I tutored students in spelling and grammar. After recounting Bradbury's story, I'd ask them what book they'd save for future generations and this exercise became the basis for most of their literacy work. Each student enjoyed memorizing a beloved book and, in the process, their spelling, grammar and comprehension improved dramatically.

This is because I would have them learn each sentence with meticulous attention to correct spelling and punctuation, as they would have to transcribe it for homework (without looking at the book) exactly as written. If they complained, I would tell them their descendants would be short-changed if they inherited second-rate copies of the original. The protests would stop instantly.

I mention my tutoring experience with Fahrenheit 451 because there's something powerful about Bradbury's story. It resonates with me, as it did with my young students, and perhaps with good reason. Who knows what the next few decades will bring? especially if the human tendency to fanaticism is reinforced by the stress of climate change, overpopulation and environmental degradation. Books - quickly destroyed and forgotten - are an easy target for oppressive governments and their absence allows ignorance to thrive.

So, what book would you risk your life for? What book speaks to you so strongly that you would memorize its contents for future generations? What really matters to you? Is it prose or poetry? If so, would it be the work of a single poet or an anthology of different poets? Is it a fiction or a non-fiction book? Is it practical or humorous? Romantic or scientific?

In my case, I'm sticking with something timeless. In fact, I've already started.

The book I'd choose to save is Ursula K. Le Guin's beautiful translation of Lao Tzu's Tao Te Ching. It has a bit of everything: humor, wisdom, practicality and idealism. It's also easy to learn and I never tire of reciting parts of it each day.

It's a hobby for now because memorizing prose and poetry is good for the brain cells - but if books end up on a mass bonfire anytime soon, I'll be ready.

That's the book I'd save. What's yours? Providing useful articles, reviews and writings on movies and films online.

The Rise To Fame of Classic Zombie Movies

When it comes to classic zombie movies, everyone has their own favorites, and most can still remember the first time they sat in front of the television, watching a black and white portrayal of the undead slowly, but determinedly, chasing down their bumbling prey. Classic zombie movies are still a favorite amongst diehard fans, because they lend an element of gritty morbidity that pop culture based movies seem to lack these days; while this shouldn't take away from the latest releases within this genre, it definitely adds to the authority of the films that preceded them.

The reason why classic zombie movies seem to come with the tag line this is what actual zombies are supposed to look like, is because the archetype for these creatures stemmed from the Voodoo religion, which is, in essence, Haitian. When William S. Seabrook returned from his voyage to Haiti and published his travelogue, The magic island, westerners found themselves enthralled with the concept of a creature that rises from the grave due to the powers of a sorcerer called a Brokor. This fascination led to some of the best classic films on the subject, and all within a matter of a few decades.

Bela Lugosi's 'White Zombie' is perhaps one of the most famous classic films on this subject. It follows the story of a prosperous businessman by the name of Murder Legendre, based in Haiti, who has the power to transform men into zombies. When a man falls in love with a woman who is to marry someone else, he approaches the voodoo master for assistance, who then turns his beloved into a zombie. The movie itself is said to closely follow the writings of Seabrook, even going as far as mentioning the potion that was supposed to turn corpses into the undead slaves of the voodoo priest.

George Romero's 'The Night of the Living Dead' was another classic which altered the face of this genre, and remakes of this film continue to be released up until today. The film was released in 1968 and its reception was marked by shock and outrage, although when this subsided, it quickly became one of the penultimate favorite films on the subject. One of the reasons for its initial negative reception was the fact that it was gory, contained nudity, and the protagonist of the film was ultimately killed in the end. Basically, this film was unlike any other that had been released in the past, and it remains one of the most popular films based on the undead to date.

'The Night of the Living Dead' did not only alter the horror genre; it also added to the lore and myth surrounding these supernatural creatures. In the past, zombies were the creation of dark voodoo priests, but in this feature, they could transfer their supernatural abilities to others through a bite. The film also references methods on how to kill these creatures - shoot them through the head- which has become the first method of defense against the undead in countless films and games to date.

While classic zombie movies might have changed slightly during the first few decades when they began making their debuts on big screens all over the world, one thing remains certain; they inspired a fascination with these creatures that continues to thrive today. Providing articles, reviews and writings on movies online.

Wreck-It Ralph: It Sure Must Be Nice, Being the Good Guy

The movie involves the arcade being some kind of video game society, where characters from each game are free to wander from one game to another through a mainframe. The catch is, if they get killed outside their game they die for real. Also, if they fail to show up for work, the arcade owners will assume the game is on the fritz, it will be marked "out of order" and you run the risk of being permanently unplugged, leaving them homeless.

Ralph (voiced by John Reilly) is a character in a video game called "Fix It Felix Jr. where everybody takes him for granted, doing the same thing and seeing all the glory go to Felix (McBrayer), who fixes everything Ralph wrecks with the help of a magic hammer. Ralph has spent so many years watching the residents of the building reward Felix for his work while he has to go sleep in the dump on a bed of bricks every night that he has grown to resent his role in the world. He has been the bad guy so long that he has recoil from it.

Desperate enough to be redefined in the eyes of others and got tired of playing the role of a bad guy, he takes matters into his own massive hands and sets off on a game-hopping journey across the arcade through every generation of video games to prove he's got what it takes to be a hero. Ralph journeys to Game Central Station, the gateway to every game in the store and hops to a 'Starship Trooper'-like game called Hero's Duty and eventually lands up in another one called Sugar Rush. His object of attention is a medal he 'wins' in the former game and sort of - loses - in the latter.

The highlight of the film revolves around Ralph's relationship with that game's glitch, Vanellope, a bratty little girl voiced by an often grating Sarah Silverman, who wants nothing more than to win a race and gain her people's respect. Vanellope was being blackballed from the game's races by its bubbly despot, King Candy (Alan TudykBoth) who happens to be the selfish, jealous game player Turbo who was so obsessed with being the best racer that he abandoned his game in order to become the best racer in other, more popular games like "Sugar Rush".

The film is remarkable in that it takes you on a multi-generational gaming trip, while keeping true to its real story - a hero's dilemma - having to choose between doing the so-called right thing and keeping true to your friends. It was indeed a very good animated movie with a fantastic unique story. It was one of the outstanding animation films that take a moral standpoint. Providing useful articles, reviews and writings on movies and films online.