Guy Montag was an average, law abiding citizen. He made a good wage, he was married, and he followed his orders, but when Montag met Clarisse McClellan and Faber he began an ideological growth that started his tailspin into what was right and what was wrong. When Montag first meets Clarisse McClellan he thinks she is odd, and he begins to become frustrated as she rambles on about the moon, her uncle, and all other things. Before she leaves him, however, she asks him, “‘Are you happy?’ she said. ‘Am I what?’ he cried.” (Bradbury, 10). Although Montag is unsure of what she is asking, this causes him to evaluate his life, Clarisse causes Montag to truly think and analyze different aspects of his life. This is where Montag’s ideological growth begins. …show more content…
Clarisse, although unknowingly, was helping Montag to learn and grow mentally. She has helped him to see between the lines in their society, “‘You’re peculiar yourself, Mr.Montag. Sometimes I even forget you’re a fireman….’” (Bradbury, 23). Montag has begun to finally feel happy again, he enjoys his time with Clarisse and, although he does not know it, is slowly beginning to feel his humanity again. Unfortunately, Clarisse is killed on the roadway, this causes Montag immense grief, but it also aids him in reaching the next step of his
Soon, he began to wonder why he was not satisfied with his life, he began to question why nobody had the time to sit back for a minute and reflect upon their lives. He discovered that nothing he had done through out his life defined his character; everything Montag had done was merely influenced by his community. He had adapted an image of someone that was not him. He had to met Clarisse in order to realize that his behavior and his way of living was not who he wanted to be. Subsequently, he began a desperate quest to find his true character and comprehend his purpose in
He is shaken by their meeting at first but then finds himself considering her ideas about nature and the other fireman, and he begins to think about straying from his society’s ideals. Montag does not fully accept Clarisse at first, saying to her “You think too many things” (9). Montag becomes uneasy because it is the first time his conformist way of thinking and his obedient actions have been challenged. At the end of their first interaction, Clarisse asks whether he is happy or not. After being caught off guard by her question, he hastily responds that he was happy with his life, and afterward thinks that the question was meaningless and silly.
In Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451, Montag, the protagonist and book burner, battles between the light and dark sides of society, first with Beatty, his boss, and the government and then with Clarisse, a neighbor girl and Faber, an English professor. Montag is stuck in the dark burning books and is ignorant to the world around him. He moves towards greater awareness when he meets Clarisse and is awakened to the wonders of deep thought and books. Finally, he risks his life by trying to save the books.
(Bradbury, P. 9) Clarisse’s family is different than the normal family; they talk to each other, and let Clarisse be herself. Therefore, Clarisse never lost her childhood ideals. She is still free the think for herself, be kind, and be curious. When Montag meets Clarisse, the two clash in an interesting way.
Upon meeting Clarisse, Montag had "a brief hour of rediscovery" when his mother "lit a last candle" that made "such illumination that space lost its vast dimensions" (Bradbury 17). In agreeing to escort Clarisse on her walk, Montag wanted to remember his rediscovery and to find out who he was through conversing with Clarisse. Clarisse comment, "You never stop to think what I've asked you" forms curiosity in Montag to question the purpose of everything (Bradbury 31). Her remark hint a future that Montag will wonder into the most dangerous place where books resided to find out the truth behind the government's lies. Clarisse's introduction, "I'm seventeen
Would anyone conform to their societies wishes if they were in Montag’s place, or would they still be their own individual as Montag did throughout Fahrenheit 451? Montag was told, on multiple occasion, to conform to the society and that it would be easier; however he denies society and forms his own individual personality due to the influences of his friends. Although Montag’s society told him to be indifferent and conform to what the society wanted, many other societies would have told him to be unique, not the doll that his society and government had made and told him to be. Montag was told to be what society wanted him to do; however, he lived by being an individual against the grain of society in the book. Montag had been told to conform to society and the government and even by his boss, yet he still rebelled against everything that had to do with conformity.
Fahrenheit 451 Do books really harm the world or does the government dislike the idea of society turning knowledge into power? Montag was a heroic character, he did what he thought was best, despite what the laws said. Montag went against the law and sought knowledge. Despite his flaws, Montag can be considered a heroic figure.
Neil Gaiman once wrote, “some books exist between covers that are perfectly people-shaped” (Gaiman xvi). The idea that books can be defined as the sharing of thoughts and information between people reveals a deeper meaning in Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451. In Fahrenheit 451, the protagonist faces a society in which books are censored and, thus, burned. This, according to his definition, means that if books become banned, certain connections between people will, too, be destroyed. Ray Bradbury reveals the theme (the importance of books) through the protagonist’s dynamic character, which comes as a result from his conflicts with society.
To begin, At first montag is the average civilian living a normal life. He does what he needs to do to survive, all the while he knows something is missing. Before he met the life changing character Clarisse, he was conformed to society just like everyone else. However, Clarisse was the spark that grew the fire of knowledge in his heart. Then when he seen a woman rather be burned alive then to live without books the spark only grew.
Is ignorance bliss? Or can true happiness come only from knowledge? In Ray Bradbury’s novel Fahrenheit 451, the protagonist, Guy Montag, lives in a futuristic, dystopian version of the United States in which knowledge is frowned upon, ignorance runs rampant, and uniformity is imperative. To fit in with the societal assumption that sameness equates to happiness, Guy feels he must conform and play the part of a contented citizen. However, Guy frequently finds himself questioning the validity of his society’s mindless, materialistic approach to life.
From one of his first experiences with Clarisse, Montag feels something that he realizes he never felt before in his daily life. He ponders to himself, "How rarely did other people's faces take of you and throw back to your own expression, your own innermost trembling thought?" (Bradbury 8). What Montag is pondering about is how she behaved so attentive and natural towards
As Clarisse questions why Montag begins to think about his actions and how they affect people as well as society. The reader realizes Montag is a puppet in the dystopian society following the protocol as he is told by society. Montag’s inability to reason with what he is doing makes him gullible. Montag’s society would consider him dangerous within his society, but in reality he is escaping what is a dysfunctional.
Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury, is a classic novel that challenges authority through self-discovery and growth. The main character Guy Montag is a dedicated fireman. He enjoys his job, watching pages of books become nothing more than burnt ash. He has never questioned anything before, nor has he had a reason to. That is, until he encounters three important individuals that seem to influence a change in Montag and ultimately change his world.
It is seen here Montag was following Clarisse’s footsteps and that throughout this novel he was trying to follow what Clarisse stood for. This is accomplished when Montag begins reading and vacates his job. Looking back, it can be seen Montag had an appreciation for Clarisse like a mentor. Clarisse influenced Montag to read books and therefore eventually act
Clarisse enlightens Montag on the past when people were not afraid to share their thoughts and opinions. Speaking without a filter in her mind, Clarisse immediately connects with Montag. He had not felt like that in a long while as his wife can get caught up in her own mind. Clarisse asks