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How Does Fahrenheit 451 Change

Decent Essays

People's values, views, and demeanor change as the meet new people and encounter events that impact his/her life. In the novel Fahrenheit 451, written by Ray Bradbury, he describes events that Guy Montag, a firefighter, has come across that have impacted the way he thinks and acts within his community. Montag's view on the society he lives in has changed drastically because of the people he has come into contact with and because of the events he has experienced throughout this novel.
Montag walked home one evening as he meets his neighbor Clarisse McClellan. Clarisse is a seventeen year old girl who views the society she lives in differently than everyone else does. Montag and Clarisse being to walk home as she asks him multiple questions …show more content…

Being a firefighter in the society he lives in means you start fires rather than put them out. At work one day, Montag and his friends get a call to go burn down a woman's home because she broke the law. The woman had books stored in her home and that was forbidden by the government in their society. As Montag and his co workers arrived to the old woman’s home to start the fire, she refused to leave her home. As Montag went into her house to get the woman he stole a book from her. Bradbury mentioned, “ Montag’s hand closed like a mouth, crushed the book with wild devotion, with an insanity of mindlessness to his chest”(Bradbury 34). This shows the curiosity of Montag as he wants to know what books consist of although it is against the law to read/own books. Montag’s action shows that he has changed because he would never have stolen a book unless Clarisse did not ask him about book and the role of his job, which lead him to question himself. Montag’s actions she the conflict as a man vs self conflict because ever since meeting Clarisse he has been questioning himself and his actions which lead him to pursue other actions that are against the law. After stealing the book, and asking the woman to please move out of her house, she refused and insisted on burning with the house if she could not have her books. So she did. Watching the woman burn with her house Montag was in shock. …show more content…

He did not understand it. Mildred tells him that is exactly why the books are against the law. They just make life more complex. Later in the week Montag goes to work and him and his co workers received another call. They went to where they were supposed to go however the call was a call on Montag’s home. Someone had turned him in. As Montag saw Mildred run out of their house he said, “ Mildred, you didn’t put in the alarm” (Bradbury 108)! By Mildred turning in Montag it shows how their relationship is not a strong and trustworthy relationship. Mildred had turned in her own husband. This event was a man vs man conflict which impacted Montag majorly. This event changed Montag for the good though because he realized how wrong the society around him was. Montag refused to get caught so he ran out of town and kept running until he felt safe. Eventually, Montag ended up at a river where he met a man named Granger. Granger welcomed Montag and told him that him and his friends were also book burners. Granger said, “ We’re book burners too. We read the books and burnt them, afraid they’d be found” (Bradbury 145). By meeting Granger and his friends allowed Montag to speak freely of books and the value he believes they have. The event of meeting Granger was a man vs man conflict which changed Montag greatly. Montag was now able to communicate with others who

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