A chance encounter can change everything. Though the least prominent of the main characters, Clarisse McClellan of Fahrenheit 451 leaves a lasting impression. Idealistic and imaginative, her sole purpose in the tale is to contrast, to differ. In a dystopian world filled with conformity and apathetic individuals, Clarisse is a character who appreciates the little things and contests the views of those around her. After meeting Montag, Clarisse inspires the man to think differently. This teenage girl, in just one conversation, manages to change Montag forever. Clarisse McClellan from Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451 is a character who exists to contrast and challenge her surroundings; everything from her physique, personality, and position in the …show more content…
Everything from her skin to her eyes, her dress, height, and youthfulness leaves a vivid image in the reader’s mind. When Guy Montag first meets Clarisse he is just returning from work. In the late night blackness, her skin is described as “milk white” (3) and the way she turns her face is compared to a “white stir” (3). It is even called a “fragile milk crystal” (5). Against the dark of night, her paleness is highlighted and the colour white is emphasized. White is also the colour of her dress. Her eyes are described as “shining and alive” (4). Clarisse is called “slender” (9) many times. Both her face and physique are described in this way. She is young, introducing herself as seventeen but later correcting herself as seventeen “next month” (21). Bradbury paints an exquisite, high contrast image in his reader’s mind. The reader can envision the contrast of a tall, slim, girl clad in white, standing out against the black of night. They can see how her dark eyes are striking against her pale skin. Her physique exemplifies contrast and alludes to her role as a …show more content…
When Clarisse introduces herself, her individuality become obvious. While Guy and Mildred are caught up in following society’s unspoken rules Clarisse is unapologetically herself. While the only other female character is absorbed with the “parlor walls”, Clarisse is fascinated by the dew on the grass (7). She is eccentric, quirky, both idealistic and imaginative. She asks unusual questions such as, “may I make you angry again?” (21). She contrasts the other characters and her peer group. How many people would introduce themselves as “seventeen and crazy” (5)? In fact, many are convinced she is indeed crazy. The school makes her attend therapy sessions because they believe she is antisocial (20). She prefers wandering and watching people to driving fast cars and spending time at fun parks (7). She enjoys meaningful conversation not idle chatter. Clarisse’s unique and contrasting personality makes her a powerful character. These differences enable her to leave a lasting
Firstly, Montag is influenced by Clarisse McClellan because she is the first person he has met that is not like the rest of the society. Clarisse is a young 17 year old girl that Montag quickly becomes very fond of. Clarisse influences Montag by the way she questioned Montag, the way she admires nature, and her death. Clarisse first influenced Montag by the way she began questioning him often. Her questions would make him think for himself unlike the rest of society. “Then she seemed to remember something and came back to look at him with wonder and curiosity. “Are you happy?” she said. “Am I what?” he cried. But she was gone- running in the moonlight” (Bradbury, 10). Clarisse was one of the only people that Montag had ever met that had ever asked him that. This question that she asked him influenced him because he thinks about, and Montag asks himself tha...
Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451 opens with Guy Montag, a fireman, reminiscing of the pleasures of burning. As the story unfolds, we learn that Montag is a fireman who rids the world of books by burning all that are found. Walking home one night Montag meets Clarisse, his strong minded neighbor. She begins peppering him with questions. Clarisse doesn’t go along with societal norms and Montag realizes that immediately. “I rarely watch the 'parlor walls ' or go to races or Fun Parks. So I 've lots of time for crazy thoughts, I guess.” (Bradbury 3) Clarisse uses her imagination brought by stories from books and family instead of watching television. Clarisse helps Montag realize that the government induced censorship and conformation is stifling society’s education and imagination. Montag’s wife, Mildred ,is incapable of having a personal conversation with Montag. She conforms to societal standards and is greatly
The questioning from Clarisse has led Montag to a loss of self-esteem. Clarisse, Montag’s new neighbor, starts a conversation with him. Clarisse has a different personality than the other people Montag knows at the fire station. She is very outgoing, likes nature, and is not into socializing. When Clarisse asks about Montag’s job, she says that Montag is a fireman without the typical fireman qualities.
Clarisse is a young 17 year old girl that has emotions, ambitions, and creativity because of the knowledge that comes from old traditions. “I'm seventeen and I'm crazy. My uncle says the two always go together. When people ask your age, he said, always say seventeen and insane.” ( Bradbury ) page 7. Clarisse is the only character to successfully exhibit all of these traits because she always talks to her grandfather that tells stories from the past. She can show emotion by always smiling when Montag encounters her. She also has the ambition of just trying to be accepted in society and trying to get through her treatments. Her creativity comes in two forms. The way she asks questions and the way she expresses her feelings towards simplistic objects such as flowers or even rain. Montag found his ambition to seek out the secrets of his society by receiving insight from Clarisse’s perspective of life. “Are you happy?” ( Bradbury ) page 10. With this one question Montag finally took the time to think if he was really happy. From there he continued to ask more questions which all turns into the events of the book. To recreate people who can feel, think and imagine knowledge must be actively present to create a unique individual.Bradbury asserts that man must retain knowledge in order to think
At the beginning of the book, Clarisse acted as Montag's mirror and changed his self perspective. Clarisse challenged societal views and in turn had influenced Montag to do the same. Mildred was a mirror image of what their society had become. And she was an illustration of where Montag would end up if he had not altered his actions. Their society had driven itself to a point of brainwashed mindlessness that eventually caused it to collapse. In the rubble of what society once was is where the rebirth of the human race must start, this can only happen if society is willing to look in the mirror to see it’s flaws and move past them. Bradbury created a world of people who were not willing to look in the mirror to reflect upon themselves; a world of people who had destroyed themselves in effort to avoid disappointment in what they had become; a world that now must spend a long time looking in mirrors to be able to even attempt to make diamonds out of their
Clarisse shares with Montag that her entire family was almost killed by the government for knowing too much. The government said we were a threat to society and needed to be eliminated. Clarisse’s Uncle was very educated and knew the things they had to do in order to live. They then escaped in the night, but the government did not seem to care. The government then tried to cover it up by saying that she got hit by a car. Clarisse’s family then made it to the same intellects that Montag had been with, and they directed them to the city. Their family then reached the city, where Montag is now. They realized that books were allowed and accepted in that society, and have been living there for the ever since. About three hours go by of Clarisse pouring her brain out to Montag, and finally they look around and see that it is nighttime. The two of them gaze at the stars and let out a small
And everything she said made Montag start to think. While Montag and Clarisse were walking, Clarisse asked Montag “ How long is it since you were really bothered?” she said knowing he didn’t think enough to even be bothered by something. “About something important, about something real?” He heard this question and never thought about it, he reacted impulsively and thought she was crazy for asking such a question. Clarisse later asked him a very deep question and said “Are you happy?” Of course Montag said the first thing that he thought he felt, and said that yes, he was happy. but clarisse knew the truth, that he didnt know what happy was to be able to say that and thats why she asked. Even though Montag didnt think about the question then, once he enters his house he cant shake the question. When clarisse asks these questions she asks them seriously. However when Montag hears these questions he thinks they are obscure and laughs as if his answers are obvious. So clarisse asks him another brain teasing question and says “You laugh when i haven’t been funny, and you answer right off. you never stop to think what i have asked you.” This really gets into Montags head, weather he knows it, or not. And things Soon begin to change.
... ideas in books and understand them. Before this Montag never questioned the way he lives, he was blinded by all the distractions. The role that Clarisse plays in the book enables Montag to break free of the ignorance.
In Dystopian societies, conformity overrules curiosity, but occasionally people stand and rebel. In Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, Clarisse and Mildred represent these two classes of people. they stand on opposite sides of the overall theme to think about. The curiosity of Clarissa and the conformity of Mildred define the opposing sides of Juan Ramon Jimenez's quote, “If they give you ruled paper, write the other way,” by showing both effects in Montag and the rest of society. Clarisse McClellan is the spark, not the flame, nor the match of the novel.
Clarisse is a young, but intelligent girl that, unlike many children in the novel, was raised with discipline. “I was spanked when i needed it, years ago.” Clarisse said to Montag referring to how she was raised. Kids used to be loving and caring, but now it’s not like that anymore. The world is a dystopia and everyone has lost hope, but Clarisse, her family, a group of hobos who want to join the fight for books, and a secret team of Harvard graduates. Clarisse met a man named Montag, who is a firefighter that burns books down along with the house they were in if the owner of the books refuses to reveal their location. Clarisse walked with Montag, right after they had met, and told him of the many things life has to offer that he doesn’t see because he is caught up in burning books for a living. She caught Montag’s emotions and this is what ultimately ended up with Montag deciding he was going to stop burning books and even help the Harvard graduates memorize and spread the words and knowledge of the books that remain. Clarisse filled Montag with empathy and this changed Montag’s view of life
Clarisse McClellan shows a great example of individuality in the novel. She “liked to smell things and look at things, and sometimes stay up all night, walking and watching the sun rise” (Bradbury 5). Clarisse’s question and curiosity showed how different she was than the others. She was a great thinker and Montag thought this made her strange. While she was talking to Montag, she tells him “You 're not like the others. I 've seen a few; I know. When I talk, you look at me. When I said something about the moon, you looked at the moon, last night. The others would never do that. The others would walk off and leave me talking. Or threaten me”, she saw something in Montag that showed how he was willing to be like her, different (Bradbury
perceive the novel in the rational of an eleven-year-old girl. One short, simple sentence is followed by another , relating each in an easy flow of thoughts. Gibbons allows this stream of thoughts to again emphasize the childish perception of life’s greatest tragedies. For example, Gibbons uses the simple diction and stream of consciousness as Ellen searches herself for the true person she is. Gibbons uses this to show the reader how Ellen is an average girl who enjoys all of the things normal children relish and to contrast the naive lucidity of the sentences to the depth of the conceptions which Ellen has such a simplistic way of explaining.
Bradbury showed how Montag’s character changed entirely throughout the book by saying “Of course I’m happy. What does she think? I’m not?” (10). Before he met Clarisse, Montag didn’t know what happiness felt like. Faber could be thought of as a big influence on Montag, but in reality Clarisse started Montag’s curiosity. Clarisse made the biggest impact on Montag’s character because she opened his mind, and made him start thinking.
“We determine our destiny by the actions we take today.”- Catherine Pulsifer. Montag never questions the destruction and ruin his actions assemble; thereupon, he assumes all people simply do not sit back and ponder about life and why it is this way. Clarisse; however, is showing Montag that being different and thinking is not bad. When Montag pilfers a book, Officer Beatty visits Montag’s home, he is telling Montag about how books became illegal, specifically, how it all started. Possessing an own opinion on entity, or even contemplating about how the nation is a gallant and colossal action in Montag's society; moreover, it is unheard of and rebellious.
Guy Montag is a fireman who is greatly influenced in Ray Bradbury's novel, Fahrenheit 451. The job of a fireman in this futuristic society is to burn down houses with books in them. Montag has always enjoyed his job, that is until Clarisse McClellan comes along. Clarisse is seventeen and crazy. At least, this is what her uncle, whom she gets many of her ideas about the world from, describes her as. Clarisse and Montag befriend each other quickly, and Clarisse's impact on Montag is enormous. Clarisse comes into Montag's life, and immediately begins to question his relationship with his wife, his career, and his happiness. Also, Clarisse shows Montag how to appreciate the simple things in life. She teaches him to care about other people and their feelings. By the end of the novel, we can see that Montag is forever changed by Clarisse.