Images, Symbols and Symbolism in Fahrenheit 451

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Symbols and Images in Fahrenheit 451

Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury is a futuristic novel, taking the reader to a time where books and thinking are outlawed. In a time dreadful FOR those who want to better themselves by thinking, and by reading, BECAUSE READING IS OUTLAWED. Books and ideas are burned, books are burned physically, where as ideas are burned from the mind. Bradbury uses literary devices( I ONLY SEE ONE DEVICE!) such as symbolism, but it is the idea (WHAT IDEA?) he wants to convey that makes this novel so devastating. Bradbury warns us of what may happen if we stop expressing our ideas, and let people take away our books, and thoughts. Bradbury notices what has been going on in the world, with regards to censorship THROUGH book burning in Germany and McCarthyism in America.

Bradbury is also a WRITER WHO incorporates symbolism into his book. Bradbury's use of symbolism throughout the novel makes the book moving and powerful by using symbolism to reinforce the ideas of anti-censorship. (WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY THIS?) The Hearth and the Salamander, the title of part one, is the first example of symbolism. The title suggests two things having to do with fire, the hearth is a source of warmth and goodness, showing the positive, non-destructive side of fire. Whereas a salamander is a small lizard-like amphibian, WHICH in mythology is known to endure fire without getting burnED by it.

Perhaps the salamander is symbolic of Guy Montag who is described as a ONE because he works with fire, endurING ITS DANGER. YET HE CONTINUES TO believes that he can escape the fire and survive, much like a salamander does. On the other hand, it is ironic that Guy, and the other firemen believe themselves to be salamanders because both CAPTAIN Beatty's and Montag's destruction comes from the all mighty flame, from which they thought they were invincible.

The symbol of a Phoenix is used throughout the novel. This quote accurately describes the Phoenix,

"It is known to be a mythical multi-colored bird of Arabia, with a long history of artistic and literary symbolism, the Phoenix is one of a kind. At the end of its five-hundred-year existence, it perches on its nest of spices and sings until sunlight ignites the masses. After the body is consumed in flames, a worm emerges and develops into the next Phoenix.

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