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Rough Draft Research Paper on Fahrenheit 451
How does a person view the significance and power of knowledge? Ben Carson says, “If we commit ourselves to reading thus increasing our knowledge, only God limits how far we can go in this world.” (Carson, “Think Big Quotes”). In Ray Bradbury’s novel Fahrenheit 451, Bradbury shows the reader the importance books have to further develop one’s knowledge and how easily society disregards books and can be enslaved by government and the technologies of the world. Knowledge is powerful and intimidating to those who do not understand its importance. I suspect that knowledge is what led Montag astray from the life he knew and what his world thought to be so threatening
Ray Douglas Bradbury is an American
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He seems to be content in his life and is infatuated by his job. The opening line in the novel is from Montag’s view point and says, “It was a pleasure to burn. It was a special pleasure to see things eaten, to see things blackened and changed.” (Bradbury, 1). The reader is led to believe Montag believes whole heartedly in what he does for a living. However, when Bradbury introduces Montag’s first antagonist, Clarisse McClellan, Montag begins to question aspects of his life. Clarisse is young, full of ideas, different from the rest of society, asks a lot of questions, and has her own views of life. Clarisse was interesting and brought light to their dark world. The second antagonist is Montag’s wife, Mildred. Mildred on the other hand is not quite as interesting. She is egocentric, unhappy, and concerned only about the walls (televisions) in her home and the characters from the shows being referred to as family. Beatty, Montag’s boss, would be the third antagonist of the novel and he is portrayed as a loud over bearing man. When Clarisse McClellan dies and Montag is forced to burn books, a home, and the occupant that refuses to leave, Montag goes through a change in character. This is the point where the reader would categorize Montag as a round character. Montag begins to question his life, work, society, and all that surround him. Montag had actually been sneaking books from fires over the past year out of curiosity but had never actually read them up until this point. Montag goes against all that firefighters believe in and starts to read the banned books. Mildred filled with fear of discovery and retaliation begs Montag to not bring about such a risk. However, against his wife’s wishes, Montag chose not to listen. Montag got a professor named Faber to help him better understand the books he was reading and that is when Montag realized
“Our Civilization is flinging itself to pieces. Stand back from the centrifuge” (Bradbury, 84). The novel Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury is a comment on the habit of mankind to destroy itself, only to pop right back up from the ashes. The main character, Guy Montag, represents the parts of mankind that are becoming aware of this, through awareness, change through tragedy and obligation to spread both the former.
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 novel first introduces Guy Montag who is a fireman. He is not the average fireman though because instead of putting out fires he starts fires to burn books and the homes they are being hidden in. The novel introduces Montag as a happy man who loves his wife and his job. In Fahrenheit 451, Montag comes to the realization that he is not happy in his marriage or life in general after meeting Clarisse. Bradbury uses his words to describe Montag’s questions about life and his happiness. Bradbury has Montag questioning his beliefs about books and if they really are so hurtful. Montag said, “And I thought about books. And for the first time I realized that a man was behind each one of the books” (Bradbury 49). In the previous quote, Bradbury uses
In the novel Fahrenheit 451 by author Ray Bradbury we are taken into a place of the future where books have become outlawed, technology is at its prime, life is fast, and human interaction is scarce. The novel is seen through the eyes of middle aged man Guy Montag. A firefighter, Ray Bradbury portrays the common firefighter as a personal who creates the fire rather than extinguishing them in order to accomplish the complete annihilation of books. Throughout the book we get to understand that Montag is a fire hungry man that takes pleasure in the destruction of books. It’s not until interacting with three individuals that open Montag’s eyes helping him realize the errors of his ways. Leading Montag to change his opinion about books, and more over to a new direction in life with a mission to preserve and bring back the life once sought out in books. These three individual characters Clarisse McClellan, Faber, and Granger transformed Montag through the methods of questioning, revealing, and teaching.
"It was a pleasure to burn. It was a special pleasure to see things eaten, to see things blackened and changed. With the brass nozzle in his fists, with this great python spouting its venomous kerosene upon the world, the blood pounded in his head, and his hands were the hands of an amazing conductor playing all the symphonies of blazing and burning to bring down the tatters of history. With his symbolic helmet numbered 451 on his stolid head, and his eyes all orange flame with the thought of what came next, he flicked the igniter and the house jumped up in a gorging fire that burned the evening sky red and yellow and black. (Ray Bradbury-Fahrenheit 451, page 3)". In the beginning of Fahrenheit 451, Guy Montag was happy on the outside. He enjoyed burning books for a living, and believed that his marriage and all-around life fulfilled him. However, deep within, Montag really wasn't happy. His marriage was far from perfect. He and Mildred seldom spoke of subjects which held any meaning. They showed little or no love for each other. Seemingly, they had little in common. Deep within himself, Montag knew something was wrong. What sparked Montag to change was Clarisse, who was the catalyst of Montag's huge transformation. Clarisse brought questions and emotions into Montag's life that he had never experienced or seen in anyone before. She questioned things such as society, the world, other people, and everything around her. She thought about life, looking for real answers and meanings.
How does a person view the significance and power of knowledge? Ben Carson says, “If we commit ourselves to reading thus increasing our knowledge, only God limits how far we can go in this world.” (Carson, “Think Big Quotes”). In Ray Bradbury’s novel Fahrenheit 451, Bradbury shows the reader the importance books have to further develop one’s knowledge and how easily society disregards books and can be enslaved by government and the technologies of the world. Knowledge is powerful and intimidating to those who do not understand its importance. I suspect that knowledge is what led Montag astray from the life he knew and what his world thought to be so threatening
Within the many layers of Montag lay several opposite sides. For example, Montag is a fireman who burns books for a living but at home, spends time reading novels, poetry, and other written material. Although Montag could be called a hypocrite, he does not enjoy both the reading and the burning at the same time; he goes through a change that causes him to love books. Humans have the power to change and grow from one extreme to another, sometimes for the better and sometimes for the worse. In addition, when Mildred is with Montag, Montag does not have feelings for her but thinks of her as she is killed by the bombs. He possesses both the knowledge that Mildred does not love him and the heart that truly cares, but he knows not how to deal with this. His feelings are oppressed; it takes a major event (the bomb) to jolt them from hibernation.
“Behind his mask of conformity, Montag gradually undergoes a change of values. Montag realized his life had been meaningless without books” (Liukkonen). In the beginning of the novel, Montag said, “It was a pleasure to burn. It was a special pleasure to see things eaten, to see things blackened and changed” (Bradbury 3). For most of his life, Montag conformed just like the other members of society. He set things on fire because it was his job and did not question whether or not it was the right thing to do. Throughout the story, however, he grew to find and voice his own opinions and resisted the conformity that his society stressed. When Montag had to decide whether or not to burn Beatty to death, he proved himself by not giving in to what was expected. He killed the captain of the police department, which was an entirely defiant act (Bradbury
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.
The importance of knowledge is a message that burns bright throughout this novel. Montag, Granger and his band of hoboes living along the railroad tracks, gave up their entire lives just to know what literature has to offer. In Fahrenheit 451, books are outlawed and instead of putting out fires, firefighters burn any books that are found. In a time where we have the world at our fingertips, are media devices becoming our firefighters?
He realizes that he is limited to his knowledge and freedom by his government and he doesn’t want that for himself anymore. Bradbury symbolizes this when Montag says to Mildred, “ ‘There must be something in books, things we can’t imagine, to make a woman stand in a burning house; there must be something there. You don’t stay for nothing.’ ” (48). During this quote Montag begins to question his society, and why he burns books. He becomes eager to know why they have certain rules and hopes to find the answers in books. Montag’s curiosity also is established when he says, “ ‘I’ve heard rumors; the world is starving, but we’re well fed. Is it true the world works hard and we play? Is that why we’re hated so much? I’ve heard rumors about hate, too, once in a long while, over the years. Do you know why? I don’t that’s sure. Maybe the books can get us half out of the cave. The just might stop us from making the same damn insane mistakes! I don’t hear those idiot bastards in your parlor talking about it. God, Millie, don’t you see? An hour a day, two hours, with these books and maybe…’” (70). This displays that Montag is starting to open his eyes to the truth about the world around him. Montag is starting to question authority and the “true facts” that his government gives his society. Montag is becoming empowered and beginning to think for
Montag loves his job and what he does, there is nothing that can compare to it and he thinks that he has the perfect life. Montag feels that it is a special thing to burn and that it is amazing to see things changed. “It was a pleasure to burn. It was a special pleasure to see things eaten, to see things blackened and changed”(Bradbury 1). He loves that he can make things change and he doesn't think otherwise because that is against the law. Montag doesn't think or question anything that he is doing because he is part of the society and he “helps” the people that are “crazy” and try to break the rules by reading literature. Montag doesn't understand why Clarisse would ask if he is happy if she can just answer it by herself by looking at him.. “‘Happy! Of all the nonsense’... Of course I'm happy. What does she think? I'm not?”(Bradbury 8). He doesn't even think about what she is asking but answers quickly and believes what his society wants him to think. He answers without thinking of what Clarisse is saying because he thinks that his society is great and that he can't possibly be unhappy when he is in such a great world. When Montag is working, he pictures himself as great figure that helps people in need and he is a mighty person because he saves lives from literature. Montag loved the way that things would burn, and that they made
... his argument thus leading to him questioning things more instead of accepting what life gives him. Finally Beatty teaches Montag something in his death. As Montag comes away from the incident, knowing he just committed murder, he also realizes that Beatty wanted to die and that it was no different from suicide. Beatty wished to die since his life was miserable without literature and he works as a fireman, the very people who burn the books. Although Beatty is a well read educated man, he conforms to society which forces him to do what he does not. Therefore he represents somewhat of martyr similar to the unidentified women that burned with her books earlier in the book. From him killing Beatty, Montag learns the misery of conformity and of the oppression living inside of Beatty.
In Fahrenheit 451 the main characters are Montag, Faber, Clarisse, and Beatty. Montag is someone who knows what he wants and what he wants is change. He is a fireman who suddenly realizes the emptiness of his life and starts to search for meaning in the books he is supposed to be burning. Though he is sometimes rash and has a hard time thinking for himself, he is determined to break free from the oppression of ignorance. He quickly forms unusually strong attachments with anyone who seems receptive to true friendship. At first, Montag believes that he is happy. He thinks this because of the question that Clarisse asks him. When he views himself in the firehouse mirror after a night of burning, he grins "the fierce grin of all men singed and driven back by flame." His biggest regret in life is not having a better relationship with his wife. Faber is a very wise and intellectual man. He readily admits that the current state of society is due to the cowardice of people like himself, who would not speak out against book burning when they still could have stopped it. He berates himself for being a coward, but he shows himself capable of acts that require great courage and place him in considerable danger. Clarisse seems to always be of in her own world. She was a beautiful seventeen-year-old who introduces Montag to the world's potential for beauty and meaning with her gentle innocence and curiosity. She is an outcast from society because of her odd habits, which include hiking, playing with flowers, and asking questions. She asks questions such as, "Are you happy?
Some characters like Montag did not succumb to the ignorance of society. Unlike Mildred characters like Montag believed in the power books and knowledge. Montag was once like Mildred until he met Clarisse; his neighbor. Clarisse was different from anyone Montag had ever met. She made him question his career, his happiness and even his marriage. After talking to Clarisse, Montag realizes he’s been ignorant for his whole life and begins a dangerous search for knowledge. After eventually stealing a book and reading it Montag realized that knowledge is really important. Books symbol knowledge because they provide their readers with information they did not know prior to opening the book. Montag no longer believed that ignorance was bliss “”. Through Montag’s fight for knowledge Bradbury is able to help the readers to understand that people are afraid of knowledge because they fear making mistakes. “You’re afraid of making mistakes. Don’t be. Mistakes can be profited by” says Faber (Bradbury 104). Knowledge is gained from experience. The best and worst sides of Montag were revealed during his journey because he made mistakes and learned from them. At the end of the novel Montag like readers comes to the realization that knowledge and experiences is the true meaning of life.