In The Memory Police, things began to disappear from the unnamed island, along with the communities’ memories associated with the item. However, they do not seem to miss the items, let alone dwell upon their loss. In the beginning, the narrator describes a scene of her and her mother, when she was alive. Her mother was not like the other people in the community, she remembered the items that disappeared, and even housed them in a secret compartment of her studio. She was a sculptor. Her mother is tricked and killed for her memories of the banned objects. Her father was an ornithologist and died before the birds disappeared.
At first, it seemed as if only objects of beauty disappeared. Her mother talked about perfume and emeralds. Once stamps were the next object to disappear, it became apparent that the Memory Police wanted to isolate the island – cut off their resources to the outside world. In order to control a population, especially one that is already isolated, they must first cut communication, like the stamps. It also became apparent when the banning of the ferry came into effect. The Ferry is a mode of transportation, once that disappeared, they had no where to go. One significant disappearance were the birds. Birds symbolize freedom and by taking that away from the people, thus gain control.
One interesting aspect of this story is that in the beginning, people did not seem to care that this was happening. They just seemed to go along with the disappearance of the objects. However, once someone shows resistance or memory, that is when they make the person disappear. In order to have complete control of a population, they must eliminate any of the outsiders. Holding onto the objects is like them trying to hold onto the part of them that remembered. They are trying not to forget. By them losing their memories, it is a way of them moving on, accepting the changes. If they hold on to the objects, it is like a sign of protest against the person in charge. Even if they do not remember the object they are hiding, it is still the act of doing so that undermines the suppressor. In Fahrenheit 451, books were burned and the people who had books were killed. Why? Knowledge is power. If people remembered the items that disappeared, they would start to think about them more, question more. In order for less of a chance of retaliation, ignorance is key.