Fahrenheit 451 Montag's Society Analysis

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(AGG) Why might someone reject their society? (BS-1) At first, Montag agreed with his society. (BS-2) There were important events that caused Montag to start to change by questioning his society. (BS-3) Towards the end of the novel, Montag hated his society, and wanted to change it. (TS) There are some things that can cause a person to reject their society, and a person who agrees with their society can learn to reject it.
(MIP-1) At the beginning of the book, Montag agreed with his society. (SIP-A) He enjoyed being a fireman in his society. (STEWE-1) At the very beginning of the book, it says how for Montag, “It was a pleasure to burn” (1). He took great pleasure in burning books, and completely agreed with the way society was. (STEWE-2) While …show more content…

(SIP-A) He began to question the relationships people in his society have with each other. (STEWE-1) When Clarisse was using a dandelion to see if Montag was in love or not, she said, “‘You're not in love with anyone’” (19). This really got him thinking about if he actually loved Mildred. (STEWE-2) This caused him to realize that, “she was so strange” (39). Mildred was a stranger to him. This caused him to question the relationships people have with each other in his society, because if he didn’t even know his own wife, he realized that he didn't truly know anyone. (SIP-B) He also began to question if burning books was really the right thing to do. (STEWE-1) After he burned the house with the woman still in it, Montag realized that, “‘There must be something in books, things we can't imagine, to make a woman stay in a burning house; there must be something there. You don't stay for nothing’” (48). He began to question if books were actually bad, like society had taught him to believe. He began to realize that books must have something truly great inside them for someone to stay in a burning house because they didn’t want to leave their books. (STEWE-2) After this realization, he decided he had to see what was so great about books, so he got Mildred, and, “They read the long afternoon through, while the cold November rain fell from the sky upon the quiet …show more content…

(SIP-A) He wanted to change everything, and didn't agree with his society. (STEWE-1) Earlier on, he told Faber, “‘I don't want to change sides and just be told what to do. There's no reason to change if I do that’” (88). He wanted to change, by becoming independent. (STEWE-2) Later on, he acted on this, when, “he wanted to change everything, the chairs, the tables, and in the dining room the silverware and plastic dishes, everything that showed that he had lived here in this empty house with a strange woman who would forget him tomorrow” (110). He wanted to change everything about his past life, and in turn, rejected his society. (SIP-B) Montag understood things about the world that he never would have at the beginning of the book. (STEWE-1) After the bombing, “Silence fell down in the sifting dust, and all the leisure they might need to look around, to gather the reality of this day into their senses” (154). He now knew that people require leisure to truly comprehend the world. (STEWE-2) While he was deciding what to tell the men as they walked, Montag thought, “Yes. A time to break down, and a time to build up. Yes. A time to keep silence and a time to speak” (158). He now understood that in order to truly live, people need quiet time, time to speak, and time to talk to one another. (CS) At the end of the book, Montag

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