The Symbolism of the Firemen Fahrenheit 451. Main Characters in Fahrenheit 451 Guy Montag Clarisse...
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Transcript of The Symbolism of the Firemen Fahrenheit 451. Main Characters in Fahrenheit 451 Guy Montag Clarisse...
The Symbolism of the Firemen
Fahrenheit 451
Main Characters in Fahrenheit 451
Guy Montag Clarisse McClelland Mildred (Millie) Montag Captain Beatty Granger
The Legend of the Phoenix
A supernatural, beautiful bird Yellow, orange, gold, red feathers (fire) Builds funeral pyre, throws self into flames Reborn into ashes, rises to live again
Symbol of immortality, life after death, resurrection
The Salamander
Greek, meaning “fire animal” Small lizard, Born of fire & flame Fire-proof skin, can endure flame without
damage colors of red, orange & gold = fire, flames
Symbol of faith & courage
The Python
Powerful snake Biblical reference to Adam & Eve
Symbolic of sin
The Hearth
Fireplace Contained fire, controlled
Symbolic of the home
Symbolic Colors In Fahrenheit 451
Red – fire, blood, war, danger, power & passion
Orange – determination & enthusiasm, aggression, thirst for action
Gold- wisdom, wealth Yellow – energy Black- devil, evil, power, death
Guy Montag
“It was a pleasure to burn” Futuristic fireman
- caretakers of society- keepers of peace of mind
30 years old Married to Millie
- thinks they have good marriage- can’t remember how they met
Appears to love job, “forced smile”
Clarisse McClelland
Montag meets her on his way home “I’m seventeen & crazy” She doesn’t fear Montag Questions & talks with him “Do you ever read any of the books you
burn?” She is odd, enjoys walks, talking “Are you happy?”
Mildred (Millie) Montag
Montag’s wife Representative of Society
- Escapes
- drugs, ear seashells, TV parlor walls
- Overdosing
- Selfish
- Violent (Clarisse points this out)
Montag & his Meetings with Clarisse
These encounters set up Montag’s future and his battle against censorship & banned books
They start his quest for knowledge
Impact of Clarisse
Opposite of society and its norms The catalyst – gets Montag thinking Discovery of Violence of Teens
- teens smash windows, beat each other- drive recklessly- “Afraid of others her own”- They kill each other”- foreshadows her death “goodbye”
The Mechanical Hound
A programmable, robotic dog, has 8 legs Made of rubber & metal Armed with needles to inject victims with
Morphine or procaine Programmed by DNA, to find victims Montag fears the dog, “It doesn’t like me”
Devil dogs are guardians of Satan, Hades
The History of the Firemen
Beatty informs Montag of the Firemen People long for a simpler life
– Classics cut, short, people lost interest in reading– English, grammar, spelling neglected– Languages dropped
Money & pleasure only important Minority groups did not like books People became too politically correct
The Sieve & the Sand
Montag remembers a story about a SIEVE as a child
Sieve – Sifter, sand falls through the cracks Trying to fill a sieve with sand is impossible How is this like Montag?
Montag’s Trip To Faber’s House
Montag’s moment of self-discovery Realizes the “old, burnt-in smile” is gone Sieve & the Sand = helplessness Tries to memorize a Bible passage on the
subway Dentham’s Dentifrice
- toothpaste commercial distracts him
Faber’s House: Three Missing Things
Quality of information
-Books have quality, texture, pores
- Provide details of life Leisure – time to think, digest
– Time to develop own conclusions Right to carry out actions based on the first 2
View of Families & Marriage
Relationships & Husbands- husband off at war, not worried- replaceable- no love
Children & Childbirth - have no kids at all, no desire- births by cesarean - don’t want to raise kids, drop them off at schools- turn the TV on & leave them alone- laundry, “ruinous”
Beatty & Montag
Beatty wants Montag to torch his own house Beatty confesses to sending the Mechanical
hound Beatty doesn’t realize Montag ENJOYS
buring his house – SYMBOLIC of a life he hated
Montag burned Beatty – who wanted to die
The Legend of Icarus
Beatty compares Montag to Icarus (more proof that he is well-read
A young man who wanted to fly- made wax wings that worked- flew too close to the sun/melted & his died
Human Books
Granger takes Montag to their group people memorize books to carry the info Montag would become the backup, if
anything happens to that person Montag takes over
They were all in hiding, hoping to come back one day and get people reading & thinking again
War
A bomb strikes the city. Everything is destroyedThey started walking down the river to return to the city
Hope, of the future
Represent the phoenix/city reborn from the ashes
Themes
Disobeying Authority/Government Control
Technology
Knowledge vs Ignorance
Allusions
(see handout) The book contains many, many allusions to
other books from history. Fitting for a book about books.