Guy Montag

Everyone needs to build meaningful relationships with people who are able to assist them in creating a better life for themselves. In Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, the main character, Guy Montag, builds a relationship with a girl, named Clarisse, who opens up his eyes to the flaws in his life. Later, he reaches out to a man named Faber who made known to him the faults within the society. Lastly, he meets Granger who helps him understand why he went through the events he did. Montag's evolution into a more humanized character throughout the book demonstrates the theme that to be human, we need to form relationships with people who want to aid us in fixing the wrongs in our lives.

Mahatma Gandhi once declared, “You must be the change you wish to see in the world.” Change happens throughout the lives of everyone, and, like Ghandi, anyone can change the world by fighting for what you believe in and standing up for what is right. Similarly, in Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury, the protagonist, Guy Montag, continues to change as he faces more problems in his society and new ideas. Montag, originally a fireman, burned books for a living, but when he meets an eighteen year-old girl named Clarisse who fills him in on what society used to be. Clarisse further questions Montag by asking if he is really happy in this society, and at first Montag is confused why she asked this. However, when Montag thinks about the question, he feels questioning of society coming upon him naturally. Montag, the protagonist, changes as a result of three main conflicts with his dystopian society, that teach him curiosity, confidence, and courage.

Montag is someone who is shy and keeps his thoughts to himself, but thinks many things. He shows that he is distracted instead of being happy throughout the book. At the time, he was walking home from work and was looking at Clarisse. Clarisse is a girl who would roam the streets and was also Montag's neighbor. She walks over to Guy and they start to have a conversation while walking to their houses. They discussing if talking about to see if Montag is really happy or if he was lying. She keeps questioning him. Bradbury explains “He was not happy. He was not happy. He said the words to himself. He recognized this as true state affairs. He wore his happiness like a mask and the girl had run across the lawn with the mask and the way

When Montag met Clarisse, he had a different look on life. Before he met her, he did not realize all that was going on in the world and after he begins to question his happiness.

The character of Montag expresses the theme of the ability to think for oneself and the importance of self-reflection. The main character Montag transforms throughout the story. At first, Montag is content with his job as a fireman. Montag is comfortable with his life. Shortly into the story, the character of Clarisse McClean is introduced. Montag tells Clarisse, “You think too many things” (Bradbury 6). Reading further Bradbury’s dialog between Clarisse and Montag demonstrations Montag lacks critical thinking. Clarisse enlightens Montag and the character of Montag awakens. Montag begins to understand the world around him and comes to realize he is unhappy. In a way, Montag rebels against his society. Montag begins to think for himself. Montag reflected upon his happiness and the theme of self-reflection is conveyed for the first time within the novel. “He wore his happiness like a mask and the girl had run off across the lawn with the mask and there was no way of going to knock on her door and ask for it back” (Bradbury 9). It wasn’t until Clarisse asked Montag “are you happy” did Montag stop to consider if he was happy. Bradbury expresses the importance of self-reflection by displaying Montag as content and then developing Montag’s character to awaken and identify he is unhappy. In addition, Bradbury illustrates the ability to think for oneself creates happiness. Bradbury creates an overzealous Montag towards the end of

Montag first changes when he meets Clarisse, opening his eyes and being able to see his own faults and those of the society. He then proceeds to further change when he questions himself and thinks about his lifestyle after learning how powerful the meaning in the books are when the woman insists on dying. Montag learns the importance of books in the society when he meets Faber, learning how the meaning in books can be applied to what is happening in society. Finally, killing Beatty shows his change from being a passive reader and spy to an active

Ray Bradbury, the author of Fahrenheit 451, expresses his perspective on life in an interview. His interview contains a common theme: "Do what you love, and love what you do" (Bradbury). Bradbury sends a message in his interview that people should love life, and live to the fullest because he believes life is a beautiful thing. Although Bradbury no longer can demonstrate his love for life his message still lives in the pages of Fahrenheit 451. The Government of the society in the novel has told their citizens that thinking is as useless as a broken power tool. The citizens are told that books are meaningless, and have no value to anything except those who want to create chaos. The Government replaced all the meaningful things in society with seashells that can play music and television sets fit to fill a wall. For some, the TV 's have become so important that they replace family interaction. The Government has corrupted society. The protagonist, Guy Montag 's profession is to burn books, but he does not know that the government requires him to do this in order for them to restrict knowledge. Clarisse, Montag 's neighbor, lives in a home where socializing and thinking are essential. On the contrary, these elements are highly unusual in society. Montag has always been curious, but Clarisse sets Montag on a journey that involves being rebellious, curious, and persistent by asking him a strange question. These characteristics set Montag apart from society. Montag has been

Clarisse begins walking with Montag every day and he grows very fond of her insight and childlike playfulness. Clarisse reminds him of his childhood and renews his interest in life--the interest that he didn't realize he had lost. With Clarisse's comforting conversations, Montag realizes that "he wore his happiness like a mask" (26), and that he wasn't truly content with his life, as he had always believed. The first step of change is to acknowledge that something is wrong. Once Montag discovers that he is unhappy with his life, he gains the respect of the reader by taking a step towards changing his

Over the next several weeks, Clarisse and Montag develop a friendly relationship. They talk about ideas and thoughts in a way that no one in this society seems to do anymore. Because of Clarisse's influence, Montag grows more concerned about his own life. Then one day, Clarisse disappears and Montag is troubled. Work troubles him even more, for he must participate in burning an old woman's home. Refusing to leave her books and her belongings, she lights her own fire and stays inside, dying a martyr. Montag is moved by the woman's bravery and sees it as a symbol of what is wrong with society. Almost in protest, he steals a book from the woman's house.

In the beginning, Montag is desensitized and is as cold and empty as those around him. By the end, though, Montag is reinvented as a rehumanized, nonconformist outsider. Upon observing the step by step transformation Montag undergoes, the reader can comprehend one of the story's major themes: without self-identity, one becomes like the others around him. Without Clarisse, Montag would have never asked why things are the way they are. Without Mildred, Montag would have never realized how unhappy and empty society is as a whole.

What Creates and Influences the Greater Good in Fahrenheit 451 In the novel, Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury, the main character, Montag, uses rhetorical techniques to convey his opinion that Montag has been influenced for the greater good by many people and ideas, first being Beatty, and the belief that books were wrong, and then Clarisse McClellan and Montag’s realization that the people whose houses he had burnt weren’t crazy. At first, Montag believes everything in his society and is mainly influenced by his boss the fire chief, Beatty, and the rules of their society. An example of this is Montag reading the firehouse rules, “Rule 1. Answer the alarm quickly. Rule 2.

“Be the change you wish to see in the world.”- Mahatma Gandhi. Fahrenheit 451 is about a man named Guy Montag who doesn’t realize it yet but is one of the most important people in his society. Ray Bradbury wrote this book to show society the change that can and will happened if we keep going the way we are going. Montag has changed through his journey in many ways. One way is Montag has changed from not caring about his wife Millie to caring if she died during the war. Secondly Montag has changed in his journey ever since he met Clarisse, and lastly Montag has changed when he started taking books, reading them, and realizing what him and the other firemen are doing is wrong.

He first meets Clarisse walking home one night from work. She is unlike the people Montag is used to talking to. She opens his eyes to something other than the life he lives. “He wore his happiness like a mask,” and he only realized this, after reflecting from his conversation with Clarisse. (9) Realizing this, his happiness was gone, and he began questioning other things he thought he believed in.

As the conversation carries on between Clarisse and Montag, she begins to notice that Montag is different. She claims “You 're not like the others. I 've seen a few; I know. When I talk, you look at me. When I said something about the moon, you looked at the moon, last night. The others would never do that. The others would walk off and leave me talking. Or threaten me. No one has time anymore for anyone else. You 're one of the few who put up with me...He felt his body divide itself into a hotness and a coldness, a softness and a hardness, a trembling and a not trembling, the two halves grinding one upon the other” (Bradbury 11). Clarisse points out the unique qualities to Montag because whenever they talk, Montag reacts by looking at her or objects that she is talking about. She reveals that the average people cannot comprehend the concept of socializing or reflect on thoughts thus they relapse to a state of violence as a resort to stop thinking. Clarisse doesn’t persuade Montag to think like her, but influence Montag to think outside the box and increase his curiosity. Clarisse’s character going against the common social conformity activates a rare phenomenon inside Montag’s mind. Montag was given two paths, hence the cold and hot or soft and hard. One Path guides Montag down the path of individuality and the other path leads him to the normal society life. Clarisse was an individual who opens the doors to Montag to let him

In Fahrenheit 451’s dystopian society, the possession of books is considered criminal. A once proud fireman who regularly burned books turned a new leaf and began to understand and value the importance of literature. Multiple characters in Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 impact the ex-firemans, Montag, life in a way that changed him forever. Throughout the novel Montag discovers a different outlook and perspective on the society in which he lives and how he perceives books. From a fireman to an outlaw, a few specific characters greatly impact Montag. Montag meets a young woman who perceives the world in a different way which affects Montag’s outlook on society. Also, a retired English professor gave Montag confidence and the comprehension of books. A character close to Montag, his wife, shows him how the loss of importance of books would affect his life . When Montag goes outside, he comes across a young woman who does not seem like the others in the city. Montag begins to talk to her and his life changes in a major way.