Importance Of Society In Fahrenheit 451

Guy Montag, the main character in the book Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, was a man lacking in any sense of worry or care in the world. In Fahrenheit 451, that is the way to live in society in which they are oblivious of the power the government has over their lives. His occupation is to be a firefighter, which ironically, is to ignite fires instead of extinguishing them. The reason is that within their society they are not allowed to read books because the government fears that knowledge in one 's mind might lead to the person overthrowing whoever is in control or has the most power in the society. Montag had no problem with this and went about carrying out his job wholeheartedly, but only for a short amount of time. It was only when Montag …show more content…
After Montag’s experience with Clarisse, Montag comes home to find that his wife Mildred lying unconscious, for she had overdosed the sleeping pills. Montag calls the hospital and they send two men with machines that are used to pump Mildred’s stomach, to remove all the harmful substances, from her blood and serum. “There are billions of us and that’s too many. Nobody knows anyone. Strangers come and cut your heart out. Strangers come and take your blood. Good God, who were those men? I never saw them before in my life?” (Bradbury 16). This demonstrates that Montag shudders from the impersonal, mechanized medical care that restored his dying wife to health and starts realizing that people are void of emotion and are oblivious to the world around them. Montag’s job plays a big role in the changes he undergoes throughout the novel. These changes were mainly influenced by his co-workers and more so his boss, Captain Beatty. Captain Beatty tries to gain knowledge to obstruct his belief that Montag is in possession of a book. Until then, Montag just tries to do his job which isn’t always the easiest thing to do. There are moments within the novel that alter Montag’s state of mind, mentally and physically. This happens when Montag and his co-workers answer an alarm that leads them to a house where there is still an aged woman living in there. She refuses to leave her books …show more content…
After Montag fakes having an illness, Beatty easily identifies the cause of Montag’s discomfort-a dangerously expanded sensibility in a world that prizes dull conscious. Beatty isn’t fooled and comes to Montag’s house to lecture him on the history of firemen burning books. “A natural error. Curiosity alone,’ said Beatty. ‘We don’t get overanxious or mad. We let the firemen keep the book twenty-four hours. If he hasn’t burned it by then, we simply come burn it for him” (Bradbury 62). That was warning number one because to show that Beatty was suspicious of Montag housing books. Montag’s hunger for knowledge drives him to Professor Faber, the one educated person he trusts to teach him. After the burning of the old woman, which was the company’s first human victim, Montag faces a dilemma of love and hate for his job. As a fireman he is marked by a phoenix symbol but ironically, he is reluctant from rising like the phoenix because lacks the knowledge to transform his ability to think about and understand his world into deeds. After Montag contacts Faber though, Montag begins to change that signifies the rebirth of the phoenix of a new generation. Faber becomes good friends with Montag and knows that Montag is in possession of books. Montag changes his opinions about his society and the firemen and would rather harbor books than burn them. Later,