In the novel Fahrenheit 451: The Hearth and the Salamander Ray Bradbury discusses about how easily people are influenced by others through Montag's case. Living in a world of entertainment, Montag was blessed with a job as a fireman, in which he is in charge of burning up books. However, after a small chat with Clarisse, Montag began to view the world differently. Bradbury uses characterization to emphasize this change. In addition, the author utilizes the literary element flashback and conflict to demonstrate Montag's astonishment to the cold society after he was enlightened by Clarisse. Throughout the first part of the novel: The Hearth and the Salamander, the author highlights the apparent change in Montag after he was influenced by Clarisse. At first, Montag is characterized as a proud, happy fireman who would not doubt the life that he is living now, "It was a pleasure to burn. It was a special pleasure...to see things blackened and changed." Montag believed that everything he is doing is correct up to this point and he was ignorant to the feelings of those who have …show more content…
Right at the beginning of his acquainting with Clarisse, Montag flashbacks to that "one afternoon a year ago when he had met an old man and they had talked..." This clearly shows that only a few minutes of chatting is capable of influencing someone to begin to think about something that proves precious and nostalgic to him. Moreover, Montag later flashes back to the woman whom lit herself up and mentions it to his wife. However, he only found himself frustrated when it was revealed that his wife is callous and ignorant to the events occurring around her, "She's nothing to me; she shouldn't have had books. It was her responsibility, she should've thought of that..." Such scene demonstrates the changes in Montag, in which he began to see more of the world in a different way, with more
In Ray Bradbury’s futuristic novel Fahrenheit 451, Montag, the main character is influenced by one person who changes his life completely. Clarisse McClellan, Montag’s new next-door neighbor, introduces Montag into an alternate world where it was believed that firemen once saved houses from burning instead of starting fires. Clarisse is an odd seventeen-year-old with some very peculiar thoughts about society. She is not the only odd person in her family, her whole family, mom, dad, and uncle are all very odd. They stay up at night talking while all the other families are sleeping. Clarisse, the beautiful girl, introduces Montag to the world’s hidden beauty and meaning, through her innocent self and her curious nature. Through a couple of conversations
8-10). Clarisse completely changes Montag’s emotions as she leaves him saying “Are you happy?” making him further question his job and himself both emotionally and physically. This was the first time in the story when Montag actually asks himself if he is truly happy with his life and if he believes that his job is actually the right thing to do. Before he walked with Clarisse, Montag used to be a rule follower and nothing else, he got up, ate, went to his job, went home, ate, watched TV with his wife and went to bed as this continued every day. He was almost emotionless, but once he met Clarisse he changed forever. Montag had been working at the fire station for multiple years now and the day after meeting Clarisse he came in and asked about books and what a fireman’s job was like in the past. “Montag hesitated, “Was-was it always like this? The firehouse, our work? I mean, well once upon a time…” “Once upon a time!” Beatty said. “What kind of talk is that?” Fool, thought Montag to himself, you’ll give it away… “Didn’t firemen prevent fires rather than stoke them up and get them
In the book, Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, Montag is a fireman-a person who burns books. He decides to go against what he has been told and reads a book, and his perspective completely changes. Montag lives in a dystopian society where everyone is alike, and people who differ from them are shunned. He plots against all who were like him, the firemen. After a failed attempt to gather intel from his ex-colleagues, Montag flees from the city and after many years of being alike to everyone else, as he escapes he sees the world from a different view and finally feels like an individual. Bradbury explores the dangers of refusing to widen one's perspective with the use of indirect characterization of society and dynamic characterization of Montag,
Montag grew closer to Clarisse each time they talked, and he enjoyed that. So this shows that Montag, when he talks to Clarisse, gets to be himself and become independent and has to think for himself instead of everyone else thinking for him.
In the start of Fahrenheit 451, Montag’s thoughts are that fire is good for society. He burns books for a living, and never thought twice about doing his job. That is until he meets characters such as Clarisse, Beatty, and the academics. Montag’s understanding of the nature of fire changes as he becomes enlightened through his relationships.
Have you ever read a book you enjoyed a lot? Well if not read Fahrenheit 451. The author of the book is Ray Bradbury. There are many characters, but one of the main, main ones is Montag. Montag is a person who changes quite a bit throughout the story. Montag goes from being conservative to being a rebel.
Montag said “It was pleasure to burn” in page 1, to show the readers that he is happy for what’s he was doing (Bradbury, page 1). He was glad to be a fireman and he like his job. He thinks it’s a pleasure to see things burning. However after he met Clarisse, he start thinking things that he didn’t before.
Montag is very confused with everything that is happening. Throughout this part, Guy Montag transforms from a person who enjoys burning books and living in the society that he lives in to starting to question the reason why he is doing those things. He does not know if he is happy with his life. In one night, he met a 17 year old girl who questions his ideas and his wife almost overdosed. In the beginning, you can see that he enjoys burning books and being a fireman: "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 spitting its venomous kerosene upon the world, the blood pounded in his head, and his hands were the hands of some amazing conductor playing all the symphonies of blazing and burning to bring down the tatters and charcoal ruins of history" (1). A quote where you can see Guy is confused is shown here: "I don't know anything anymore" (15). Guy feels like he is in a deep abyss of nothing. Before his encounter with Clarisse, the 17 year old girl, Guy thought he was happy and that his wife Mildred was also happy. Clarisse tries to make Guy think about his job, life, and everything in general. This is shown here, where Clarisse asks Guy if it is true that firemen used to put out fires instead of starting them: "Is it true that long ago
Montag found who he was as a person just by opening up his eyes to the world. Clarisse McClellan was a brief but significant character within Fahrenheit 451; she allows Guy Montag to discover what his true values are and helps him realize what he was missing in life, which was books. Books give people a sense of intelligence, but we humans tend to miss out on the importance of written literature because we are too focused on what the world chooses to believe. Clarisse has a significant impact on Montag’s life and how he views society. Even if he doesn’t realize it, she challenges his views of himself and the way he sees the world.
In “The Hearth and the Salamander”, fire represents an impetus of destruction to Montag. Hearth is the fireplace of a home; a fire of warmth and intimacy. The salamander is a symbol for the firemen- people who thrive in fire without being consumed in themselves. The paradoxical phrase “The Hearth and the Salamander” is an indication of the diversity of what fire symbolizes, but Montag is too absorbed by ignorance to notice anything except fire’s destructive nature. The first sentences of
In this situation Montag is first meeting Clarisse, and this is the first time the reader meets someone who is unique. This quote brings out the theme that those who are different in a strict society can help bring out someone’s true identity, and Clarisse does this to Montag.
Fahrenheit 451 The book “Fahrenheit 451,” published in 1951, and written by Ray Bradbury, is based on the future. In the novel, one of the characters, named Montag, goes through many character changes. Most of his character changes really affect how the story gets written. In the beginning, in the middle, and in the end is going to be the main focus on Montag’s changes.
Montag is not a static character; he develops and changes due to outside influences. Clarisse’s constant questioning of the outside world influences Montag and gradually pushes over into the rest of his life, as exemplified by this quote, “He opened his mouth and it was Clarisse McClellan saying, ‘Didn’t firemen prevent fires rather than stoke them up and get them going?’” (Bradbury 34). This quote demonstrates how Clarisse’s thoughts and questions have resulted in the change of Montag’s own thought processes. Later in the story, Montag turns completely on his old life as he burns Beatty, making him “...no longer human or known…” (Bradbury 119). Beatty’s prior defence of the government and its philosophies help to strengthen this link between Beatty and the authority. Thus, Montag’s burning of Beatty represents Montag’s rejection of the
In the beginning of the book, Montag is in love with fire. He cherishes it, seeing as he is a firefighter, and believes that “it was a pleasure to burn.” (1-2) He wasn’t afraid of fire, and wasn’t affected when “books went up in sparking whirls.” (1-2)
Clarisse asked Montag "are you happy" with his job that he had never given a second thought about (10). This ultimately lead to Montag not wanting to be a fireman, and burning Beatty. Clarisse also made him question things he never thought of like "why should you" making him think deeper about the situation (7). This caused Montag to start second guessing things and how they worked. In addition, Clarisse also asked Montag "do you read any books" which is one of the reasons he decided to read one (8). Montag didn't think about reading the books until then.