Examples Of Allusions In Fahrenheit 451

The theme of the novel Fahrenheit 451 is incredibly complex and completely entwined with almost every description and word choice the author chose to employ. On the surface, it appears to be simple commentary on the incompetence of those unwilling to cooperate with the system and the agitation they caused by their socially-aberrant behaviors, i.e. Clarisse McClellan’s love for talking about unconventional topics and a deep appreciation for nature. Yet, once one looks deeper into the metaphorical wording and progression in the novel’s character-arcs and shift in tones, you come to find it is instead exploiting the deeper, sicker behaviors of those in charge and the silencing effect they have on the public. An example is the burning of

In the novel, Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury uses an allusion to John the Baptist and a direct reference to a line in the Book of Ecclesiastes to foreshadow how Montag and Granger’s group were preparing to direct society towards a new value for acquiring knowledge. Bradbury first uses an allusion to John the Baptist to foreshadow the new direction that Montag and Granger’s group have planned for society. When Montag meets Ganger’s group, Granger explains to Montag that they are gaining knowledge to be the voice, “... crying in the wilderness” (152). This allusion is from the Bible and is explaining how when the time came, John the Baptist would prepare the way for Jesus Christ. John the Baptist told the people to repent of their sins and listen to the one that was coming, Jesus.

There are many ways characters in the book Fahrenheit 451 that show symbolism and emotion through the words they speak. These emotions show how passionate of a writer Ray Bradbury is.

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury is full of different allusions from different books and authors and also full of themes connected to the allusions. Some of the allusions in the book are Henry David Thoreau and his book, Walden. Guy Fawkes and the book of Job connect to the book as well.

In Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury tells a story about the utopian future where the government controls human identity. In that society there is no place for free thoughts. Those who read are outlawed and sometimes killed. On the first pages of the novel, Juan Jimenez wrote a striking quote:” If they give you ruled paper write the other way”, and that quote pretty much shows the author’s attitude toward public pressure, censorship and oppression. It unquestionably can be stated that without knowledge there is no freedom, books- are the only answer to the demise of the oppressor.

In Ray Bradbury’s novel Fahrenheit 451, fire is a recurring idea. Bradbury used the main character, Guy Montag, to present the fire motif throughout the story. Montag, a fireman, had doubts about his career and society. He sought answers and enlightenment to cure his curiosity about the truth in books. He did not have faith in his society, nor did he understand why intellect was so terrible. In his search Montag realized that fire (and books) were not so evil after all. Montag began to see fire in a different light. Therefore, fire, in Fahrenheit 451, represented rejuvenation through cleansing and renewal.

In the novel Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury, there are many different characters and each one plays a different role. One of the main characters, Guy Montag, is a fireman who takes pride in his work and enjoys burning books as a part of his job. His outlook about burning books changes after he meets Clarisse McClellan and Professor Faber. It’s very interesting how Montag’s way of thinking transforms overtime. He becomes very courageous about hiding books and is also curious about reading them. Throughout the novel his actions, ideas, and his feelings change as he starts to think for himself.

The book Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury is a science fiction novel placed in the future. The plot of the story is about a firefighter named Montag in a futuristic city where firefighters start fires instead of extinguishing them. He starts to read books although it is illegal and realizes many truths in the society. Montag kills his fire chief and meets intellectuals by the railroads. They watch as the city is destroyed and go back to rebuild society. Beatty is Montag’s fire chief and boss. He is invested in getting rid of books, although he himself reads. Faber is a former english professor who maintains a low profile and also reads books. He helps Montag understand them. In Fahrenheit 451

For starters, the true history and purpose of firefighters has been manipulated and changed. Instead of being established in 1678 by Thomas Atkins to prevent fires, the firefighters in “Fahrenheit 451” were believed to be “established [in] 1790 [by Benjamin Franklin], to burn English-influenced books in the colonies” (Bradbury 32). This example of false information is one of the main issues of censorship and is overall the main idea of “Fahrenheit 451.” From the very first page, readers are immediately bombarded by the major role of fires including their control over the jobs of firefighters. The text states that “it was a pleasure to burn” and “Montag grinned the fierce grin of all men singed and driven back by flame,” which deemed fire as a valuable tool used to express oneself (Bradbury 1-2). The knowledge of the citizens is also a

Fahrenheit 451 utilizes indirect characterization to project an image of a dystopian future ravaged by war and without freedom of thought. This is evident in the fact that

The first main character of Fahrenheit 451 is Guy Montag. He is a 30 year old fireman, who has black hair and smelled of kerosene, and at first wasn’t an individual or a thinker, but developed into one as the story progressed. He is a dynamic character who was very angry and confused about his life, and the life his society tells him to live. Montag is the protagonist, and he goes against the government to change the society for the better. His goal is to preserve knowledge and literature for future generations. Montag said, “‘I realized that a man was behind each one of those books’” (49). This shows that he acknowledged that books were written by real people, with their real thoughts in them; that they had details and meaning to them. This was something most people in this society did not realize.

Many authors use literary devices such as allusions, metaphors, similes, imagery, euphemisms, and others to create a more enhanced effect to their work. Ray Bradbury, the author of the acclaimed dystopian novel, Fahrenheit 451, cleverly incorporated several of these, throughout the text, along with a lot of symbolism. One example is the relentless burning of literature, symbolizing the ignorance of human beings, as well as the censorship of knowledge and freedom of thought. Another example is the many fascinating technological innovations featured in the novel, such as the TV walls or the mechanical hound, which expresses how people had mindlessly replaced the “real” stuff with the artificial.

Bradbury uses allusions to provide ideas of how the characters in the novel understand literature and past occurrences. Throughout this novel, Bradbury alludes to events in history, mythological, and Biblical stories. He brings up historical events to draw the connection that the pass is reoccurring in the future which is a prominent social issue. The use of mythological allusions in Fahrenheit 451 emblematizes how far left society has gone and that even someone with clear eyes cannot even see what is happening. Bradbury does this by referring to the legends of "Hercules" and "Antaeus (Bradbury 79)." The Biblical allusions in the novel represent how relatable and similar main Guy Montag is to Jesus. They are both similar in the way of how they lead others. The allusion of "water turning into wine" is a parallel between "Jesus finding ministry" and "Montag's aspiration for transformation." Guy Montag found and taught enlightenment in society that only wanted to promote ignorance, and Jesus took the knowledge that he knew and led his followers to salvation (Bradbury 49).

Ray Bradbury´s wrote a book about this dystopian society where everything in our world is backwards in their world, they can speed, they burn books, and everybody is always gloomy and sad. Montag changed his mindset throughout the book, he went from burning books to saving them from getting burnt. Mildred on the other hand, continuously stayed the same throughout the book. She beginned the book showing she did not care, and carried that same mentality through the rest of the book. Ray Bradbury´s uses contrasting characters in Fahrenheit 451 to illustrate the differences within views of a dystopian society with his development of Montag and Mildred.

Ray Bradbury originally wrote his novel, Fahrenheit 451, as an indictment against the censorship evident during the McCarthy era of America, and it has since become one of the few modern science fiction books that can be considered a classic. The adulation of this novel is due to its plethora of symbols, metaphors, and character development. Bradbury's character development is singularly impressive in this book because he shows the evolution of the main character, Guy Montag, "from book-burner to living-book" (Johnson 111). His maturity is displayed by his growing understanding of the world in which he lives and by seeing the flaws in his society. Bradbury illustrates Montag's metamorphosis with him changing from a mindless burning drone