A Crime Against Society?

Montag escapes from the city and loses the helicopters and dogs at the river. When he loses them the news coverage keeps on going and acting like their chasing him. That really made me hink why didn't they just tell the audience that Montag escaped?

In Fahrenheit 451, the government has too much control over society and have to have things their way. So I think the government doesn't want enlightened people to go revolt and sort of keep the "readers" in their place. If the government would come out and say that they lost Montag, they would present themselves as inferior and that's what they are afraid of.

Usually you think of events such as 9/11 as crimes against society. Montag's crime was only destroying a mechanical dog and supposively killing Beatty. In today's world people do far worse things than destroying a machine and killing a man. People do things like crash planes into buildings,that is definately not on the same level as murdering one man and a machine. The government just wants to keep people scared to read and intimidate them. Basically they are just getting at Montag because the government thiks reading is a crime against society, but the real crime is not letting people read.


-Kody Heitz

Love

One of the reasons Guy is questioning himself and things is because everyone needs love in their lives. No one talks to him and he feels alone. This is why he is questioning himself, his decisions, his life choices, and his ability to make decisions. If you do not have love and the encouragement of others, you will start questioning yourself. You can see that there are people in the book who do not care for each other. At the end Guy finds a group that cares about him. He is with that group now and has the love he needs to be happy and confident.

Josh Hill

Alcohol

Alcohol solves everything! I can't believe that Montag knew how to throw off the scent of the hound. When we were sitting class I asked someone not to mention names Nathan Knodel, why they drank the alcohol and this person told me they did it because they were probably going to die. Well later in the book in the river scene when Montag put the alcohol on himself, the booze that he took from Fabers house. I knew right then that he was doing it to throw off the hound. It is a quite ingenious idea if you think about it. The hound is a machine and does have flaws because it was made by a human that makes mistakes. So the fact that Montag thought of that was really cool and made me think about how efficient the government actually was because they didn’t read either so the people that do read have an advantage over them. KNOWLEDGE! If the government and firefighters don’t read then they are probably not going to be smart. The people that do read have that edge over them. They could get more people to read by outsmarting them and then soon everyone would realize what a horrible place they live. Then they would revolt. Finally they could have a revolution and change their horrible way of life and government.
By: Austin Stephey

why... Maria Valle

Well what made Montag snap i mean. He was living a normal life and nothing ever went wrong until he met Clarissa. then his whole life changed she actually got him to think. But why? Was it all part of her plan or was she just an odd one out of everyone else. Why didnt beatty tell them where they were going and what house they where burning down he made it a big secret then he makes Montag burn his own house how crazy is that. who would burn their house down and come to find out his so called "wife" reported the booke that was a big stab in the back to Montag. Seriously, that was pathetic she was there she knew they were there but yet she runs. Runs away from everything that happened she let all of his things get burned none of her things now that was just plan out dumb. Then they talk about how grey their government is how boring it is well our school is grey does that mean we are boring...Hmmmm... i seriously dint understand one thing about this book it confuses me to where i want to pull out my hair just because of the fact it has so many things happening at different times. When Montag finally escapes after killing that ding dong of a man called Beatty who just brought Montag to kill him he wouldn't of died i think if he just leave montag alone and stop blabbing on about books. Why would they studie a person everyday just so they can stop things like Montag from happening.. Our society now seems like it's heading in that direction because so much has started already it just a matter of time till we are controled by the government and things like this start to happen and destroy this place we call home. Hmmm... i am so still thinking of the guy who came into class he really got my attention not because he was odd but he made our class end up like world history well government class and everyone was talking about the government and what they do wrong...hmmm... well I'm off to do some more work..
HAPPY HALLOWEEN AND PEACE OUT:)

Achieving One of Many Goals

Montag says earlier in part one, The Hearth and The Salamander of Fahrenheit 451, that he never really thinks on his own and how Faber was going to be doing the thinking for him. In the second part, Burning Bright, I think Montag is really changing and starting to think on his own. When Montag kills Beatty he looses Faber's thoughts because the ear piece burns in Beatty's pocket. This is a huge step for Montag because now he has to try to escape on his own. Over all I think Montag is a brilliant man. I love the river scene. It shows just how intelligent Montag really is. I would have never thought to drench myself with liquor or put on Faber's dirty clothes. If I was in Montag's situation I would have probably given up on escaping and just turn myself in. I envy Montag's perseverance to keep moving even though he has nothing. He lost his wife and home but still pushes on. I also love when he gets out of the river and it says, "He felt as if he had left a stage behind and many actors. He felt as if he had left the great seance and all the murmuring ghosts." It's neat to think he achieved his goal by getting away from everything he hated, his past, and the nothingness of his comunity. Now he can start all over and become the Montag he really wants to be. His goal to escape is now complete.

♪♫ Danielle Slagle ♪♫

The Bible, Fahrenheit 451, and YOU (Gwen Montes)

Ever since Montag saved his Bible, the story has shown a great deal of religious imagery and makes references to scripture. I personally think that the way the scripture that is used and how it relates to the story is genius. We get our first glipse of this when Montag reads the Bible on the subway and is trying very hard to comprehend its meaning. The passage he is reading comes from The book of Matthew, chapter 6, verses 28-34.

"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' 32For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."

This passage is especially important because it is quoted during the Montag's transitional period. It is also ironic that Montag should be reading this passage about not worrying about materialistic wants and needs, because at the same time on the subway an advertisement for a product is keeping Montag from absorbing the words that he is trying to read. It's almost like the words are at war with each other.

Another significant bit of biblical imagery is at the end of the book when Montag watches as the city is destroyed. Bradbury uses language and imagery from the Bible to resolve the novel. In the last pages, as Montag and Granger’s group walk upriver to find survivors after the bombing of the city, Montag tries to remember appropriate passages from the Bible. He brings to mind Ecclesiastes 3:1, “To everything there is a season,” and also Revelations 22:2, “And on either side of the river was there a tree of life . . . and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations,” which he decides to save for when they reach the city. The verse from Revelations also speaks of the holy city of God, and the last line of the book, “When we reach the city,” implies a strong symbolic connection between the war in Montag’s world and the Apocalypse of the Bible.

I'm sure that there are more biblical parallels in Fahrenheit 451, however I felt that these were the most important.

(P.S. sorry I didn't sign it ^_^)

what does it mean to truly live?

Throughout the chapters and sections of Fahrenheit 451, a reader may notice the feelingless, the "greyness" of the citizens. The emotionless people in this book are often found in reality. do you ever notice the person who is always on the run? The one who you can never get in contact with? they are most likely a person who hardly has time to sit and relax. The average U.S. citizen has less than one hour to sit down, think, and relax. The people in the book have the same qualities. They don't sit down and think. they only go or waste their time on mindless talk or watching giant televisions or listening to meaningless talk all day, day in and day out.
Sometimes people should take a break form reality. Just sit, relax, and think about your day. I feel that the only way to live your life is actually living. You cant spend your whole life working or on the run because its just not healthy to put all that stress an yourself all the time. Some people do not realize that they have the potential to do amazing things. Go on, learn a new language, go skydiving, travel the world, do whatever pleases you, because the only thing that should matter is happiness, and that is the key to truly living.

-Zach Spear

Gray=No Personality Nathan Knodel

In Fahrenheit 451 Ray Bradybury calls the people in the society "gray". Personally, I think this is a great description of them. They have no personalities whatsoever and can't even think for themselves. This can easily be related to the color gray because gray expresses a boring, dull mood. If you have no personality and can't think for yourself, then you're boring and dull as well.

A different kind of example of this is when they go and kill the fake Montag just to please everyone. If you have to go and kill some innocent person just so people can have a few laughs then there's no way they have a true personality. Plus, I strongly believe that even seeing that man die was still not enough to please that society based on what everything we've seen in the book already. Even if they did laugh it wasn't true happiness that they were expressing.

Finally, the reason that everyone was gray to Montag in the first place is because he isn't gray. If everyone's gray in a society, then they don't look at themselves or eachother that way. They'd look at themselves the same way our society does now. But Montag isn't gray and the same as everyone else. He has color, a personality, so they looked different to him. I remember one time our youth pastor was trying to explain to us the fact about how so many people aren't saved and how we have to try to change that. To try to help us visualize it he said to walk down the hallways in school and visualize yourself in color and all those who aren't with no color. If you would do that you'd feel isolated and alone. I think that's how Montag might feel and why he's seeing people as gray rather than with color.

Baptism by Whisky

He touched it, just to be sure it was real. He waded in and stripped in darkness to the skin, splashing his body, arms, legs, and head with raw liquor; drank it and snuffed some up his nose. Then he dressed in Faber's old clothes and shoes. He tossed his own clothing into the river and watched it swept away. Then, holding the suitcase, he walked out in the river until there was no bottom and he was swept away in the dark. Pg 139 of Fahrenheit 451

This excerpt is DEEP with emotion and connections. While reading this excerpt shivers ran down my spine. In this excerpt, the reader experiences Montag's new sense if freedom. Montag has evaded the authorities and the Hound. When Montag drenches himself in liquor it is a symbolic baptism into a new life. Once he has drenched himself in alcohol the hound will not be able to trace Montag any longer. When Montag tosses his old clothing into the river it is symbolic of him escaping his old life of ignorance and dullness for a new life of new knowledge and experiences. This passage symbolizes a door being opened, not just by the Montag but by the reader as well. The action in this passage foreshadows a new exciting part of the book.

Bob Laing

burning bright (sharief) :)

this chapter is really good and its more exciting than the 1st chapter it is like the more you read it the more its getting really exciting its like a food the more you chew it the more it taste better. i kinda notice in the 1st page in 3nd chapter is like beatty is enjoying the pain of montag, he always giving some hints and that makes montag think than beatty know's what is happining to him and probably know's about the book that montag kept and that might be true that beatty know something but he is like he is just enjoying what is happining to montag the pain that montag have specially when he said that "didnt i hint enough when i send the hound around in your place?" that really makes montag feel nervous but the good thing is, that makes montag thinks that beatty might seriously know something and i need to make a move. and as the days goes beatty and faber and that kinda stuff and the best part is that when montag realize that he must not never burn again and in that time faber is already gone, just like what i mention in my 1st post that by the time faber was gone montag know's what he must do...im looking forward as the story goes.

-sharief-

Purity in Many Forms

In class we talked about Montag and his purity, when he changes slothes and drenches himself in wiskey. To me this is ironic because when we think about purity we think of white and clean. This is the exact opposite of what we think, but it is still purity because he is getting a new pure start. He is leaving his old life in the river. This thought of purity is one that we don't think of often, but it is one that we see in life often.
-Austin Reichert
"Who does it affect that you are upset? None. The only person it affects is you because everyone else will move on with their lives." (Quote of the day)

Absolutly Rediculous Entertainment

Starting at the top of page 148 Granger starts stepping Montag through what's happening on the television. The media cannot tolerate with a simple "we lost him" story. They, along with the law enforcement, will make up a story to satisfy the public. Keeping tabs on this "Montag" for years has finally benefited them by delivering a great news program. The innocent and probably lonely guy was just taking a morning walk for goodness sakes. Obviously that doesn't affect how the media handles this because they're pretty involved in getting the correct camera shot for their viewers. Why is the hound even going for this guy anyway? He has to "know" that this isn't Montag.
It's also really funny to me when I picture how people look as they watch this. To us, seeing this, would be a movie from Hollywood. To these people this is real life drama and suspense that is actually KILLING people. Also, the fact that after the announcer..well announces that the search is over and Montag is dead they go directly into "We now take you to the Sky Room of the Hotel Lux for a half hour of Just-Before-Dawn, a program of--." This supposedly is key for everything's all fine and dandy now so you can go back to your happy life. Do these people really take a sigh of relief from that? I just thought that this form of entertainment was extremely disgusting and wanted to share.
-Brittany Jurczyk

Who Owns the Problem?

I am sure, at least once in a person's life, he has blamed another for his problems. From the childhood excuse, "the dog ate my homework" to "he/she did it", no one seems to want to 'fess up to his faults. I, of course am not completely scotch-free on this one, but I still ask myself, "Why?". There is usually a way to fix the problem, so why can't we accept blame for our mistakes? Everyone makes mistakes and everyone has those days; it's human nature. This is most likely because (benefit of the doubt here) most people hold themselves to higher standards to not make mistakes. Or, no one wants others to know he actually has a fault or weakness that can be penetrated. But, really, who owns the problem? Sometimes the fault must be owned up to, no matter how big. Avoiding the problem and putting blame on another won't make your own situation better.
In Fahrenheit 451, there are two very good examples of blame mis-placement. Montag believes his hands stole the books, not him. But, obviously, a person's hands cannot move without the engagement of the brain, right? Right. Now, I know Montag is supposed to be the heroic, wise, non-conformist character, but is he doing anything different (in this sense) than anyone else? He isn't. Montag cannot blame his actions on his body. The action of Montag's hands stealing the books is like saying my eyes cheated on that test, not me. The action can't be done without the thought first.
Another good example is on pages 148 and 149. After Montag crossed the river, the hound lost his scent and lost track of him. So the chase decided to make the public believe that Montag changed directions just so they didn't have to admit the fault. These actions, though, unlike Montag, didn't just end in personal guilt. They ended in the homicide of an innocent man who happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. All of this because the law enforcement decided to hide its mistake and not own up to the fact that it lost Montag.
So next time you are faced with a situation where you could either blame someone else for your actions or own up to them, choose the latter. After all, who owns the problem?
~ Linzey Rice

Post Ideas for the Uncertain

If you're stuck for ideas for posting, below are some discussion questions that relate to life and Fahrenheit 451. Connect them to the book as you choose and expand upon life in general since that is why we study literature: to study humanity.

1. What is reality and how is it constructed? What are the potential conflicts when one person's reality is another person's illusion?
2. What is happiness and what is the degree of importance in one's life?
3. Why does happiness seem to be so elusive for so many people?
4. What color are you? The people in the story are gray; what metapohorical color sums up your personality?
5. What is the relationships between freedom and responsibility? Along those lines, what is freedom and is it ever free? Is restriction on freedom ever a good thing?
6. How does conflict lead to change?
7. How does an individual's point of view affect the way he deals with conflict?
8. What is the relationship between decisions and consequences?
9. How do decisions and actions of characters reveal their personalities?
10. What does it mean to truly live? What kinds of things contribute to the quality of our lives?
11. What did Faber mean when he said, "I don't talk things, sir. I talk the meaning of things. I sit here and know I am alive"?
12.Why do you suppose such a low value is placed on human life in the story? Why is the society so violent in general?

Don't forget! There's a lot of imagery that can be discussed example by example. We are of no shortage for topics this week! Have fun thinking!

The Real Guy Montag

Guy Montag, he is a quiet kind of man. He does whatever he is told to do without even thinking if it is right or wrong. In Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury uses the character, Guy Montag, to show that almost everyone does things without thinking about the effect if will have on them or anyone else in their life. Montag is a firemen, and his job is to burn down the person's house that has books in their home. He does his job under the watchful eye of Captain Beatty. Captain Beatty does his job without any regret of what he has done to the people who own books. Montag eventually becomes more and more like Beatty. Montag's wife, Mildred, only cares about the money that montag brings home. She truly doesn't care what happens to Montag while he is at work or at any other time for that matter. Montag finally realizes that what he is doing is wrong when he is forced to find the books hidden in this little old women's home. He stole one book from that house before it went up into flames. That one book was added to the stash of books hidden in the vent of his own house. The real Guy Montag started to realize that killing people that had books is murder and he did not want to be known as a murderer. Montag finally took a stand against his Beatty and decided he was going to change his life for the better and make himself happy. Montag had to burn down his own house because Beatty found out that Montag had books hidden in his house and Mildred left him there all alone only worrying about her 'family' which was only those floor to ceiling T.V.s in their parlor. Montag's anger got the better of him and he ended up killing Captain Beatty. The Montag we met in the beginning of the book would have never even thought about standing up against his boss and the rest of the firemen. As we have witnessed that stress can bring out the real person inside of you.

-Kenzie Smith

burning his own house

Once Montag returned to the firehouse Beatty was ready to criticize him. He quoted the books that he knew Montag had taken. I think his purpose to this quoting was to confuse Montag. He wanted to show him that books bring nothing good, and they had no meaning, books were just confusing. Whether he really had a dream about he and Montag getting into a fight, or if he just wanted to make Montag mad we don't know, but this did have an effect on Montag. It frightened him and he saw a side of Beatty that, until now, he had not known. I'm sure, after experiencing this side of Beatty, Montag connected the dots when Beatty said that they had an 'important' trip to make that they would end up infront of his and Mildrid's house. Another hint to this was when they got into the salamander and Beatty was the one to drive. When Mildrid came out of the house with her things packed and ready to go gives us the hint that even if she wasn't the one to turn Montag in, she knew that someone would be. I think she turned Montag in because he was becoming so different than what she was use to and it was scaring her, because he wasn't only saying 'happy' things. The one piece of evidence that makes me think it might not have been Mildrid to call the firehouse, is that, if they burnt the house, that meant her 'family' would also be burnt. This makes me think it wasn't her, because she talks about her family as if they were really people, who really loved and cared about her though we all know they weren't really real and had no feelings. However, regardless of who turned Montag in for reading the books and keeping them in his home this was a turning point for Montag.
-Ellie Adams

Beatty At His Worst

From the last few lines on page 110 of Fahrenheit 451 on, we are enlightened on how malicious Beatty is. Prior to that, he had just been shifty. However on page 115, he made a good point: "For everyone nowadays knows, absolutely is certain, that nothing will ever happen to me. Others die, I go on. There are no consequences and no responsibilities. Except that there are. But let's not talk about them, eh? By the time the consequences catch up with you, it's too late, isn't it, Montag?" A common mind set of today is that nothing bad will ever happen to us. Teenage prenancy, sexually transmitted diseases, and deaths in the family are perfect examples of this. Newflash, these things can happen to anyone. Beatty goes on to say that fire is lovely and that everyone thinks that. I guess that if it wasn't destructive, then it could be pretty. However, when it's burning a house, it becomes the ugliest thing in the world. "Its real beauty is that it destroys responsibility and consequences. A problem gets too burdensome, then into the furnace with it. Now, Montag, you're a burden. And fire will lift you off my shoulders, clean, quick, sure; nothing to rot later. Antibiotic, aesthetic, practical." What kind of world is this where wrong becomes right and ugly becomes beautiful? In our society, some people watch movies just for the gore. They love death, destruction, and mayhem. Why? This goes back to thinking only bad things happen to other people. How would we feel if these things happened to us? What if we got "PLAY ME" tapes? What if Michael Myers started chasing us around with a kitchen knife or Jason Voorhees with a machete? I doubt that most of us would say, "Oh sweet! I'm about to get mutilated!" I know i wouldn't.

I wasn't sad at all when he died. He was a psychotic sadist anyway. I can't help but wonder what will happen now that Beatty is out of the way.

-Devyn Font

Beatty At His Worst

Manipulation- Miranda Rickard

After reading that Montag was caught for his book reading, i realized something that changed my view. i realized that Beatty doesn've have such great knowledge on books because he feels like it; Beatty is a manipulator!!! Beatty figured out how these people thought, and then used his knowledge to get into people's heads without them knowing it. If you think about it, we saw all the signs. As Beatty first came to visit Montag when he was "Sick", Beatty told Montag things, that Montag did not know of, and I think this gave Montag a little inspiration to trust Beatty.

Why Farenheit 451?

I wondered what Ray Bradbury’s purpose of writing this book was. I researched a little bit and found out that the original purpose was for Bradbury to express his love of books and libraries. Over the years people interpreted this to be about censorship but it was not. Bradbury has stated that the novel is not about censorship, but is a story of how television destroys interest in reading literature, leading to a replacement of knowledge with "factoids", partial information devoid of context, such as Napoleon's birth date with no explanation of who he was.
Bradbury has also said that Montag resembles himself a lot. This is very interesting since Montag is a “bad guy” somewhat. He does change for the better. Why does he change? I think he changes solely because of Clarisse. Clarisse makes him think and realize that the society that he lives in is completely bogus. He also realizes that people need to slow down. Will Montag ever change and try to change the dystopian world of Fahrenheit 451?
Why did the woman burn herself, and what did the fireman think after she did. I think she burned herself to kind of set an example to the fireman that burn people and their houses. She wanted them to realize that what they were doing was wrong and that she would die for her books. This reminds me of a Rosa Parks but she didn’t kill herself. The fireman was probably wondering if burning all these houses were worth it. I probably wouldn’t kill myself for books I would probably try to get away. Fahrenheit 451 has had many surprises so far but I’m sure has more to come.
-Austin Stephey

Ouch. That hurt.

Pain is something that most people try to avoid. If that's not the case for anyone reading then I suppose you can just ignore this post and go on with your life, but I digress. In general, most pain can be lumped into two basic categories: Physical and emotional. Either way, it hurts. Pain can be acquired in several different ways. Getting hit by a car, for example, would probably put a person in a lot of pain. I think there is also a potential for a lot of pain when it comes to learning the truth about who we are. If we got to know ourselves on a deep and intimate level; if we truly looked into our hearts and saw what's there, it probably would not be exactly what we would want to see. And that hurts. Ouch.

In Fahrenheit 451, Montag starts out thinking he's a fairly happy guy. He's got a good, steady job, he's got a nice wife, and he's always got a smile on his face. Until one day Montag meets his next door neighbor, Clarisse. As we the readers find out, Clarisse basically calls Montag out and says "Whoa man, are you sure you're really ok with your life?" and Montag realizes that he isn't. He is not ok at all. He doesn't know his wife much more than he knows a random stranger on the street. His job is not as honorable or enjoyable as he once thought. He watched, helpless, as an old women sacrificed her own life for the very thing that he was employed to destroy. He feels guilty because his curiosity drove him to steal illegal books and now he actually wants to read them. He reads the books and finds to his dismay that he has no way of understanding words leaping off the page at him. His boss is out to find his books and burn them before Montag has a chance to remember what they said. All of his thoughts are just turning in circles around him and he's so confused that he just wants to scream.......

ouch.

All that because he had a few conversations with his neighbor.

Clarisse made Montag realize that the person he had become was a conformist going through the mechanical life that society had planned out for him. His life and his heart were unfulfilled and barren. Discovering that he had wasted half a lifetime by filling his soul with the insubstantial fluff of a society obsessed with instant gratification and constant distraction from meaningful emotional connections hit Montag like a ton of bricks. What Clarisse showed Montag about himself put him in a world of hurt. He learned the truth about himself and what he saw was not pretty or full of Rainbows and Skittles. His world came crashing down around his ankles, buried him up to his neck, and then suffocated him.

I think as readers we often assume that the changes Montag experiences because of his relationship with Clarisse are good things. Certainly Montag becomes what we would label a "better person" or a more "open-minded" guy, but goodness! what a mess his life seems to be.

As I said before, we as humans like to avoid pain of any kind. Unfortunately for us, the process of filling our existence on this earth with actions and achievements that actually mean something usually involves a lot of uncomfortable and even painful experiences in learning about who we are and who we want to be much like what Montag goes through in the book. Therefore the question that remains is not "will it hurt?"; the answer to that is yes. The question is "is the pain worth it?". Is pain and suffering a fair price for living a life of significance? Can we get down to the nitty gritty and look at the details of our lives, even if it makes us uncomfortable? If we can do that, we bring back hope for our world. As Mrs. Stoller often says, the key is in the details. A happy life is one that is not just a facade over a bunch of fluff but rather a real face with real feelings and real meaning.


--Taylor

Our World Heading Towards Fahrenheit 451's

Obviosly this book seems extremely far from where we are today, but we still can't hide the fact that there are many similarities in this book to today's world. The one thing that stood out to me the most so far that supports this idea is when Beatty explains to Montag how the idea of burning books started. He said that the government didn't start it, but the people did. Every minority in some way or another ends up being offended by books. I recently went to see the Brad Stine concert at the PAC, and I know this is using his ideas but I completely agree with him, most of our country is made up of wussys! Just saying someone is black doesn't mean your racist or talking down to them. Using ideas in books that don't appeal to christians doesn't mean your trying to directly offend them! People don't write books just to put things in them that will offend a certain group. Because most of our nation are wussys, no one will step up to the task of speaking against what our government is doing and try to change it. And for that matter, a lot of people don't even have the knowledge to do such a thing because people just don't care anymore. This is a lot like what is in the book. The government makes them happy so that's the only thing they care about. One reason, in my opinion, why people don't care anymore, is that for some reason it's cool not to....WHAT THE CRAP IS THAT ALL ABOUT? I didn't know that is was cool to be stupid and not care about anything, but, for some reason that's intoxicated the minds of a lot of our teens today. I think that's a huge problem. But I won't go into that much further because it's not based as much on the book as it is to today. The fact of the matter is that today's teens are showing many similarities to the people in the book; and that's extremely dangerous because the teens of today are our future generation. If we don't do something about this "wussification" and not caring anymore, we just might end up like this book.

-Nathan Knodel

Montag's inner struggle

In the begining, Montag is a lost soul, if you will; a person that's lost in the crowd. He has a dark mask over his heart and mind, and in their place he has a burnt in smile and empty thoughts.
A mysterious and impetuous girl meets are stolid Montag. This girl seems awry to him for most peoople don't talk or walk about and think. Clarisse becomes his light, his guide for his thoughts.
Clarisse and Montag become walking companions. Clarisse became the trigger for the chain reaction of everything that is to come in his life. Then she vanishes but the memories of her will forever live in his heart and mind.
Montag has been taking books for a year but without thinking he did it he blames his hand as if it's its own entity. He says his hands are poisoned showing Montag's change. This "poison" stared to go up his arms and through his body symbolizing the change from his mindless life to his life of knowledge and thought.
Montag does everything in his power to read, to memorize, to learn, and to think for himself.
He talks to Clarisse and it shows him how to think for himself but when he talks to Beaty again he almost started to slide back into his mindless trance. Beaty makes everything sound right even though it's wrong. Clarisse's thoughts came from her heart not just deceitful facts or lies. His inner struggle is hard but he is facing not just himself but Mildred, Beaty, and Faber, which makes the struggle even harder. He has to face his past to survive his future. He has to look past the technologies, the easy ways out, and path of mindlessness and find the path that is truth to him. He has to find the very thing that makes others fear change but he has to ready to face the entire country and to d what is necessary to stay on his path.
By Britany Myers

No Religion + No Beliefs = Chaos

If a group of people don't have any values or expectations for themselves they will make society very stolid and full of violence. When people believe in a religion they usually have very strong feelings about their religion and will do almost anything to stand for what they believe in. When a person practices a religion they set values and expectations for themselves based on the religion that they practice. When a person doesn't have values or expectations for themselves all they do is search for habits that please them and will do whatever just for the fun of it. It doesnt matter how violent or distasteful their acts may be if a person doesn't have values they will do anything. Just like the book Fahrenheit 451, you see lives that have no values and what those people do in society. Specifically the teenagers, they go around killing each other and causing random havoc and chaos. Adults like mildred also dont have any values and we see that when she admits to running over animals at high speeds in a vehicle for fun. The whole society in Fahrenheit 451 has absolutely no values and their socieys is stolid and is full of violence, the people are worthless lives and just taking up space on the face of the earth.

-Kody Heitz

Drawing Parallels - Gwen Montes

Because I know how much Mrs. Stoller loves it when her brilliant and extremely intellectual students draw parallels to other books, I've decided to share some of my favorite works of literature and how they all relate to Farenheit 451.

A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess, was written in 1962. The setting of the story is in England and is set in a dystopian future. In this future the children, mainly teenagers, enjoy partaking in acts of "ultraviolence." The story's narrator Alex, is one of the teenagers who, with his friends, partakes in beating an old man half to death, crippling another man, and accidentally killing a women whose house he attempted to steal from. Alex is then sent to prison for fourteen years. However, his sentence is cut short when he is selected to be a subject in a new "rehabilitation technique" sponsored by the government. The technique, as Alex soon finds out, is not exactly what he had expected. The treatment strips Alex of his ability to choose between right and wrong and ultimately forces Alex to choose the morally right choice; whether he likes it or not.

"The problems of the world cannot possibly be solved by skeptics or cynics whose horizons are limited by the obvious realities. We need men who can dream of things that never were and ask "why not?." John F. Kennedy-1962

Anthem by Ayn Rand was written in 1938. It too was set in a dystopian future. In this future people are given a name and a number, like the main character, Equality 7-2521. When people speak, they refer to themselves not using singular pronouns, such as I, me, or my. They instead speak using only plural pronouns, such as we, our, and they, referring to the community rather than the individual. People are actually burned at the stake for using singular pronouns when they talk. The children are raised away from their parents and given a specific job at a specific age with no choice in the matter. Equality 7-2125 considers his eagerness and curiosity a curse and a flaw. One day he comes across an old subway tunnel left over from the "Unmentionable Times." Equality 7-2125 begins to conduct secret experiments in a search for answers.

"We have to put a stop to the idea that it is a part of everybody's civil rights to say whatever he pleases. " Adolf Hitler- 1938

V For Vendetta by Allan Moore was written in 1982. Rather than being set in a dystopian future, the story is set in an alternate version of 1997 in London. The story takes place after a nuclear war that tore the world apart. England is under the power of a fascist political party called "Norsefire" that keeps the citizens under very strict control with secret police, audio and visual surveillance, and extreme censorship. Homosexuals, Jews, blacks, and other "undesirables" are arrested and sent to concentration camps where they are experimented upon. An anarchist who goes by the name of "V" intends to orchestrate a revolution and overthrow the corrupt governmen, following in the foot steps of the late revolutionary Guy Fawkes.

"Happiness is a prison. Happiness is the most insidious prison of all. " Allan Moore- 1982

Watchmen also written by Allan Moore, came out in 1986. Like V For Vendetta, Watchmen does not take place in a dystopian future, it instead takes place in an alternate version of 1985. The U.S. and the U.S.S.R. are on the brink of nuclear war, which could potentially end in the destruction of the entire planet. President Nixon is beginning his fourth presidential term. The story follows the lives of ex-vigilantes after the government has banned their activity. After the murder of one of their ex-colleagues, Rorschach, a vigilante who displays a belief in moral absolutism and moral objectivism (he would rather die than compromise his beliefs), begins an investigation in the murder and soon finds himself uncovering a plot to destroy the world in order to acheive peace.

"The future doesn't belong to the fainthearted, it belongs to the brave." Ronald Reagan -1986

You may have noticed that all of these books have obvious similarities to Farenheit 451. However, if you paid attention closely to the years that these books were released, they all have something deeper in common. Like Farenheit 451 these books were released around times of war. A Clockwork Orange came out when the Vietnam War was beginning. Anthem came out before World War II, when Hitler was rising to power. V For Vendetta and Watchmen came out during the Cold War. I believe that we as a class have forgotten one of the main causes for everyone's way of life in Farenheit 451. As Montag has revealed, the country in which he lives has already been involved in two nuclear wars and is on the brink of a third. During times of war, it is the government's main interest to keep the public under control. This is probably one of the main reasons why oppinionated books are banned, and people seek safety and comfort in mindless entertainment. The mindless entertainment is especially important because is takes peoples minds off the possibility of destruction and plunges them into sweet ignorance.

" The books that the world calls immoral are the books that show the world its own shame." Oscar Wilde

a very dynamic character.

Reading the first part of farenheit 451, i have learned that Guy Montag was a very ordinary person on the world. He had a job that he loved, which was to burn books as a fireman. He also had a wife that he seemed to like named Mildred Montag. he seemed content with his life, until a certain girl popped up and walked with him on his way home one day. Her name was Clarisse McClellan. she seemed so wierd. she was very curious, and she asked Montag a series of questions that pestered him. As he walked by her house, she asked him just one out of the blue question, "are you happy?" At first, Montag said of course and thought it was no big deal, but meeting her and thinking about those questions that she asked him sparked something inside his mind. As he arrived home, he found that his wife took an entire bottle of sleeping pills. He had people pump her stomach. The next morning he asked her what she thought that happened, but she denied anything to do with taking the pills. this was also another point where he asked himself "am i happy?". the truth was, that he was not happy. he kept thinking about when he talked to Clarisse, and his routine book burning at a house turned into a very traumatizing experience for Montag. While the other firemen pumped kerosene onto books they ofund in a woman's apartment, the woman sacrificed her life by lighting the fire herslef and burning with the books. when they were pulling book out, Montag had a urge to take a book, so he did. He tried to hide it from Mildred, but she found it. His boss (Beatty) came over. He talked to Montag and gave him a chance to read the book. Little did he know that Montag is going to take that chance and run with it.
Montag dramatically changed from an everyday working man to an adventerous person almost overnight. he had implications that something in his life wasn't right, but the events that were explained were points that pushed it over the top.
-Zach Spear

montag confusion and connection about clarisse and the women :) *sharief*

the first thing i notice about montag is that he is a guy who doesnt know what is going on and what direction he should go. until when she meet clarisse that changes everything specially when clarisse asked montag a very short question "are you happy?" that small question makes montag think if there is something wrong about him but montag and clarisse is right,there is something wrong with montag but montag is the one who doesnt want to fix it. after that talk they didnt see each other again.

A lot of things happen after he meet clarisse one example is that he got so confuse because he can't believe that there is something wrong with him and that is true but he keeps on accusing that there something wrong about everything in sorrounds him. his job and even his wife,his been drinking pills and got overdose but he dont know why. it seems like his afraid to face the truth about censorship of books and what his been through right now.

montag meet the women because she have been caught that she's keeping some books and montag started the fire. by the time the house is almost broke the women is still inside and also montag but when montag saw the books in that moment his hand try to reach up the books,shocking because he cant control his hands and keep trying to reach up the books but the women slap montag's hand and said that "ide rather die with my books than survive" and that makes montag realize something wrong and there is something about that books that really makes montag lose control about everything and so greedy to took the book, by the way he felt it seems like it is proven that something is wrong like probably he realized that censorship of books is bad and he should do something.

after that incident, 4 days later montag asked mildred where is clarisse and mildred said that she got run over by a car 4 days ago the big question! is that 4 days? the women died 4 days ago and clarisse died 4 days ago? what is that mean?is it means than clarisse and the women have a connection because there gone in the same day and probably the same time too and also it seems like clarisse is the past of montag and the women is the present of montag.

mr.faber came and i im looking forward to go deep into the story because i can really felt that this guy named mr.faber his just like clarisse and the women seems like mr.faber is the future of montag that he can led montag to the right direction. maybe or probably mr.faber will be gone and by that time mr.faber is gone montag know's what he has to do just llike what clarisse and the women im looking forward to go deep into the story.

-sharief-

Paradoxes Bob Laing

Paradox= a statement or proposition that seems self-contradictory or absurd but in reality expresses a possible truth.

I remember one of the first things I wrote in my notes of Fahrenheit 451 was how I noticed Bradbury’s use of paradoxes to help the reader understand and think about the happenings of Fahrenheit 451. These Paradoxes really got me thinking and helped me understand more about the book. One of the first Paradoxes I noticed in Fahrenheit 451 was how Bradbury used these paradoxical statements to describe the “Snake” stomach pump and, later in the book the Mechanical Hound. These paradoxes question the reality of people and things that appear to be living but are spiritually dead. Mildred and the rest of her society seem to be very machine-like, thinking only what they are told to think and relying on government controlled technology and papers to get their information. The culture of Fahrenheit 451 is a culture of fake happiness and Montag is trying to escape this fake happiness and seek more substantial truths in the books he is beginning to read. Also in the beginning of The Hearth and the Salamander, Montag’s bedroom is described as “not empty” and then it is described as “indeed empty” I believe that Montag feels this sense of emptiness because Mildred is physically in the bedroom, but her thoughts and feelings are not present in the bedroom. Bradbury’s repeated use of these paradoxes is usually used to describe Mildred’s acts, suggesting that her empty and almost zombie like actions are those of everyone else in this society. Mildred is our connection to the society and culture of the people in this new world that Bradbury has created.

I believe that we will see many more paradoxes through the rest of the book. I also hope that these paradoxes will help you to take a deeper look at Fahrenheit 451.

Have I changed? Kenzie*(:

In the book, Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury uses the character Guy Montag to symbolize that everyone has the chance to change but, they have to be willing to do it. Clarisse McClellan is the main reason Montag starts to pay attention to his way of life. She influences his way of looking at his life in a more realistic way. When Montag first meets Clarisse, his life was a complete mess. He was forced to believe his life was perfect and that he was happy. Clarisse was this bright, exuberant teenager who could think for herself and saw straight through the barricade that the government was putting on the world. Montag started to realize that his life wasn't as good as he thought it was. Clarisse helped him realize that he was truly not happy with himself and his life. He was just this ordinary, dull firemen who focused his life around his work. When Clarisse came along she opened up Montag's eyes and showed him how bad his life truly was. Montag finally figured it out when Clarisse asked him, "Are you happy?" He replied with, "Of coarse I'm happy!" when he truly wasn't and he knew it. Clarisse became his only true friend. Guy never knew what it was like to have a friend. The government made it so people were basically not allowed to be social because they could possibly become educated and start to figure out what the government is really doing to them.

One night at work, the firemen got a call that there was a house that needed to be burnt down because this old women had books in her home. When they got there and was going through her home looking for the books and Montag was the one to find them. As he was bringing the books into the light and onto the floor, he read some lines of one of the books and he wanted to know more about it so he took it home with him and hid it with the other ones. She burnt herself alive! For books!! Who would do that? Someone very dedicated to her books. This really made Montag think about what he has to live for. Anything? Anything at all? No, nothing.

Montag knew he was truly unhappy with his life, so he started to think about what he could do to help him become happy. He thought about his marriage and relationship with his wife, Mildred. Yes, they were technically married, but they were not happy. They really didn't have much of a relationship, this also contributed to Montag's unhappiness. The only true relationship he had with anything was he friendship with Clarisse. She made his life worth wild.

Kenzie*(:

Clarisse McClellen: MIA by sydneyyyy :)

Clarisse McClellen, the girl that turned Montags life upside down. Where in the world is she?Is she really dead as Millie says? We can not forget about this situation. As the book goes on, I believe this situation is slipping our minds, but it is still pondering in my mind. Clarisse's affect on Montag and this whole novel changed everything. The simple question of " Are you happy?" by Clarisse to Montag sparked the start of the whole novel. Her character was so diverse to the book characters, but to us, is completely normal. It seems to show that she was raised in a different environment or by someone who has a different belief. This makes me feel as if what Millie said is not the truth. I have a speculation that maybe the government has something to do with the disappearance of her and her family. They leave out very little detail about what happened to her family, which makes me think that maybe the government took her family into captivity or into some sort of asylum for being what they call "different".

Though I do feel that it is very odd for Ray to take such a vivid character out of the book so suddenly, I believe he had a purpose for it. Clarisse changed Montags whole view on the society he was living in. I believe this was the starting point of change for Montag, and now that Clarisse is "dead" he is on his own. Montag seems more scared I believe, because now that he has broken through this mind set of monotonous and oblivion, he has no one to relate to anymore. I think Ray took Clarisse out of the novel because he wants to send Montag off on his own now with a whole different mind set. Montags quick change in mind set and more rebellious acts against the society will lead to more drastic happenings in the book. Maybe he will turn into something even more drastic then Clarisse and put himself out there more than she did. This can easily turn him into a huge target. If Clarisse was just a teenage girl who did not have much impact on anyone else but Montag and she got killed for being different, what will happen to a grown man working for the fire department?
These are just some of my many thoughts on this situation. I do not think we should let this situation slip our minds because I believe Clarisse is not dead . . .just MIA.
Leave comments please! peaceee, syd:)

The Late and Great Clarisse McClellan

Clarisse McClellan was not only a person who wouldn't conform to the usual standards, but by far a better match for Guy Montag than Mildred. Things may change with Guy and Mildred since the discovery of the meaning and impact of literature, though. Anyway, back to Clarisse. For however brief a time she was in Fahrenheit 451, she made a large impact on Guy's life. She made him finally think for himself. When he first met her, she remarked that he never stopped to think of what she had asked him before he answered. Now he's actually daring to read books, an act very hypocritical of a fireman.

To most people in the story, Clarisse was weird, different, or any other word for odd that you could find in a thesaurus. However, to one outside of the story, she reminds him of himself. I know that's true for me as well. I believe very strongly in freedom of speech. If I want to write a story or a song, I will not generate it so it will please everyone under the sun. To me, when people are offended, it brings out the most creativity in them. An example of this would be Uncle Tom's Cabin. Harriet Beecher Stowe, most likely, was quite offended by slavery. She then created one of the most prominent antislavery books of all time.

Familiarity conquers the weak that will not seek the unusual. What i mean by this is that people tend to lean towards what their used to, as opposed to thinking for themselves. I believe my statement directly relates to Fahrenheit 451. However, Clarisse is exactly the opposite of it. Because of her family, she breaks the mold of usual behavior. I hope that Guy will stay on the path he's on right now and will make my statement false as well.

Well, I hope that my blog will make you think. Write some comments; I would love to respond to them. Happy blogging!

*Devyn Font

picture

I Maria Valle gave Mrs. Stoller a picture of herself hahahahahahahahaha I wasBored

I'm lost in this book....

Okay well i'm in Mrs. Morrison's class on the computer...

Well why in the world would they burn the lady alive???

What if people went and burned them alive????

Huh???

Bet you they wouldn't like it.. How long has Montage been hiding books is that what he has been thinking about all this time???

Why didnt he just read the books when he got them and then burn them???

See thats why I'm lost is he so caught up in his work that he didnt relize that he actually was taking books that were to be burned????

Why does he even care about Millie if she has no sence in the world to care for him????

Is she even happy with him or is does she just think she is???

She reminds me of the dog it seems like she was programed to not have feelings they all seem like they were programed to not have feelings.

Yeah i would be ticked off if i was married to a man who didn't love me...

Well, Montage is married to a woman but still in my veiw I think its really odd that she has no feelings but yet she only has feelings toward her Tv's...

hmmmm....

Well, its 2:55pm got to go before Mrs.Morrison shoot's me with her evil glare...Pease..

HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND EVERYONE...

~Maria Valle~

Confessing their unhappiness

In class we've discussed Mildred having another 'Mildred' inside herself, that she subconciously overdosed as a suicide attempt. But the two women have never met. This brings up a very good point with Montag's character in this book as well.
I think that to a certain extent Montag up to this point had been like Mildred. He thought that he was happy, but yet he still had been taking books for the past year. This shows that he hasn't really been happy, but he refused to admit it to himself until just recently. Once he and Mildrid begin really reading the books i believe he will continue to take the books and both of their characters will change drastically, as far as accepting their happiness. I expect that they will both realize how wrong their goverment is and that there really is no need to ban the books like they did. People just have to deal with being offended without taking these drastic measures, becasue it is not meant to target anyone in particular.
I also conclude that Beatty owns and reads books himself, because so far in the book we've seen Beatty quote litterature. We've also seen him talk about the past history of our country. This makes me think that he has to be reading wether he has been permited to for job purposes or illegaly like Montag, Mildred and many others in the society.
Ellie♥

In Mildred's Shoes

How long does it take for someone to realize that they aren't happy? What if they have no idea they aren't happy? Why can't they tell that something is missing in their life? Maybe because it's easy not to make things complicated by thinking all the time or by thinking at all. Have you ever worried about something where you decide to just blast music so loud that when you take the ear-buds out you feel like there is cotton in your ear and then you kinda feel better once your head is a little numb? This is what I think its like for Mildred when she listens to her ear-shells. I can't imagine being in Mildred's shoes all the time. She fills her life with her TV clowns she calls her family, who distracts her from feeling or thinking on her own. I don't believe she has very many feelings and if she does, she "escapes" from them because she doesn't want to be unhappy by getting confused by her emotions. I've also noticed she never answers a question completely. It would bother me if I watched a program for hours and could not really tell you what it is about. I can't decide yet if the way Mildred is living has made her an over forgetful person and she overdosed by not remembering she took sleeping pills or if there is something that we don't know about that made her do it. Although, she really doesn't seem to realize she's unhappy. That's where her character is confusing to me. Does she really want to commit to suicide because she is unhappy or is she so distracted that she can't even realize there is more to life than what meets her eye? She is a very strange character that I haven't quite figured out yet. I do know I never want to get so empty like Mildred. Can you imagine the world if we were all like Mildred, so lost, naive, and ignorant? We need problems, feelings, and people in our lives to make us grow as a person...to make us happy. We need to think, read, and communicate more and worry about technology less if we want to avoid this world in Fahrenheit 451 that seems so oddly familiar and so real its scary. What also is scary is that there are a lot of connections to our world and to Ray Bradbury's world. I wonder how he predicted these strange connections. It kind of freaks me out just a little especially when this was written 56 years ago. Its only been 56 years? How much more do you think we will get to a world like the book? I think we should all take this book as a warning to what will become of us if we don't take the time to stand our ground and participate in our government. We need to learn to all get along with each other or everything said will be offending someone leading to less conversations, less knowledge for the individual, less freedom, less thinking, less feelings, less happiness, less life.

♫♪ Danielle Slagle ♪♫

Individuality?

In class, we've discussed censorship multiple times. However, I think in today's society, censorship wouldn't stop at burning books, just like in the book.

If you think about how many freedoms we have in America today, they're all linked back to the constitutional rights we're given at birth. In Fahrenheit 451, it becomes alright (and arguably necessary, says the government) to take away the freedom of press, which leads to people becoming robots that can't think for themselves. If this were to happen today, and with the scary parallels between the book and our lifestyle, it isn't too far-fetched, it would become a gateway to taking away other things. When books get taken away, opinions are repressed. If opinions are repressed, people can forget that there are opinions other than their own. Ideas wouldn't be shared, and individuality would be essentially taken away. Our freedoms define who we are; from our hairstyles, clothes, and make-up, to what we read, etc. When we are denied the right to read books, that's the first step in taking away who we are as individual people.

In relation to the book, I believe that's how it got started. As we can tell, everyone in Montag's time thinks, acts, dresses, and even physically looks the same. Isn't this eerily similar to peer pressure and such today?
~Courtney Neuenschwander (:

Is American on its way to becoming like Fahrenheit 451? By Miranda Rickard

When Beatty comes to visit Montag, when he is "Sick", Beatty explains to Montag, basically how their community was created by the people. What I mean by this, is that people controlled their books, and readings, to the point that they got to the point where basically no one can have an opinion. Many people were getting offended by other people's expressions, so they created a world where nobody can say anything that will offend anyone else. Now, when we look at this, we think to ourselves " Well, thats dumb. Let people have their opinion." I don't think we grasp the fact that we have similar situations in our world day. For example, all of the banned books today in America. We may see that books are just banned, but you may never know, one person can take it to the next step, and create a process in which banned books can be really banned; as in burned, or taken away. I dont know though......comment and let me know what you think! =] -Miranda

Are Everyone's Toes Feeling Okay?

Fahrenheit 451 is all about censorship and the bad things that happen to society when entire cultures are censored. During our class discussions we've talked a lot about the results of censorship but we haven't really talked about why the censoring is happening in the first place.

When searching for clues about the cause of all the suppression a very good place to start seems to be page 57 when Beatty goes to visit Montag and speaks to him about minorities in their civilization. He says the following:

"...Bigger the population, the more minorities...the bigger your market, Montag, the less you handle controversy, remember that! All minor minor minorities with their navels to be kept clean....books, so the critics said, were dishwater. No wonder books stopped selling. But the public, knowing what it wanted, spinning happily, let the comic books survive...There you have it, Montag. It didn't come from the Government down. There was no dictum, no declaration, no censorship to start with, no! Technology, mass exploitation, and minority pressure carried the trick, thank God. Today, thanks to them you can stay happy all the time."

The first thing this passage points out is that censorship did not start with the Government. It started with the entire population of people trying to make all the minorities within the community happy and unoffended. Books became "dishwater" so washed down and diluted that they weren't really even books anymore. People stopped thinking and allowed this to happen with out question. Therefore, it was very simple for regulations and cultural changes to be made by the government. And though people seem to be happy in their ignorance, their lives were actually very unfulfilled in many places.

Our society today is quickly rushing toward a fate similar to the situation in the book. We are so focused on not offending anyone that we have to constantly stop and think about what we say and do.This is not a bad thing most of the time, but sometimes forced regulation can have negative effects even if the intentions were meant for good. Words are banned from culture because they could have racial slurs if used in a certain manner. Art and literature are taken from the shelves of public places because they contain things that might make someone out there in the world uncomfortable. These uncomfortable truths are not things that should be avoided or taken lightly. Instead of avoiding things that make us squeamish when we think about them, we should embrace and learn about them. If we don't, we run a very high risk of becoming a society of robots and machines that do not stop to ponder the world as it rushes by our over stimulated lives, much like the people in the book.

---Taylor

True Happiness by Linzey Rice

One quote struck a lot of different, yet related thoughts in me. On page 52 of Fahrenheit 451, Montag says something like, "We need to be really bothered once in while..." If we aren't bothered by anything or if nothing moves us, how can we differenciate between the important and the unimportant? How can you know if something is worth fighting for? This ties into pages 59-61. Their society takes away conflict by taking away knowledge and the ability to think for themselves. This way, no opinions will offend or bother anyone. These people think ignorance is bliss, which isn't always the case. Montag, like Clarisse and the old woman, is starting to realize, through critical thinking, that happiness doesn't always come from ignoring things. In this case, ignorance equals mindless pleasures. Mildred, for example, surrounds herself with her t.v. "family" and her "seashells" to escape her true thoughts. I believe these thoughts, deep down, have something to do with avoiding her un-relationship with Montag. Mildred and Beatty, along with what seems like the rest of society, are alike in thinking that when the mind isn't thinking (sorry, redundant), they are happier. The heads of this society obviously think this is the most efficient, painless solution (pg 61-"If you don't want a man unhappy politically, don't give him two sides to question, give him one...) So, if they don't think about the violence or the wars going on, or express the opinions that might offend someone, they lead happier lives, right? I personally think this isn't true, even though that seems to be the popular vote in this book. The same happens with Montag. He just realizes that ignorance doesn't equal bliss, but just limits him. A good example of this was how Montag was always looking forward to seeing Clarisse because he actually learned to THINK while he was with her!! So the moral of my rant, supported by the content of this book, is to not go through life not thinking and just ignoring, but realizing that the more you think and express yourself in a healthy way, the more truly happy you are.
The End.
:)

The Dangers of Political Correctness. By- Austin Reichert

On page 58 Beatty talks about the issue that created book burning in the society. This issue that we deal with today too is political correctness. After all the books and school are dumbed down to make reading and learning fast and fun people became offended by books. Without the intelect to have an opinion, the people that were offended started to burn the books to make every one happy. Books that offended them because of their nationality were burned because noone stood up and said no. The scariest thing about this was that even companies could get books burned if they talked bad about their company. I see many of these same these same things in our society today. This is a scary though because people are always sueing people for racism and political correctness. People are always worried about what they are going to say and do because they could offend someone. As the book goes on I will expand this idea on this blog. If you have any examples of crazy political correctness please comment. -Austin Reichert

The Hearth and the Salamander

Some of you have your own topics you want to start discussing, which is fabulous. Here's a question to get some of you started if you're stuck. What is the significance of Part I's title: The Hearth and the Salamander? Do a little research and see what you can connect; put it all together in your own words.

Go beyond the surface and really explain what you think.

In the book so far I think that Montag will not burn the book, but he will tell Beatty that he will. He will become interested in the book and start taking books from all of the houses he burns. I think he will possibly quit his job as a fireman and look more into when Clarisse disapeared.
-Ellie

Welcome!

English 10CB students, welcome to our blog! Because so many colleges now have you post academic responses online, because you love to surf the internet anyway, and because I want you to continue to get practice analyzing and communicating in writing, I have created a forum on which we will share our ideas with one another and in response to one another as we study literature this year.

Our current topic: anything that has to do with Fahrenheit 451 and the world as it relates.

Your requirements: Post at least ONCE EVERY TWO WEEKS. This can be a brand new post (make sure you include a title with the topic) or it can be a response to someone else's post (make sure you click COMMENTS and leave the response there. Grammar counts!! :-)

NOTE: YOU MUST SIGN YOUR NAME WHEN YOU POST IF YOU SIGN IN AND CREATE A NEW POST!