Fahrenheit 451:Montag Changes from Oblivious to Aware
Thesis Statement: Montag goes from being oblivious to aware
In the beginning of the book, Montag does what he does purely because he’s told to. He doesn’t think anything through, and neither does the rest of the society. He burns books for the pleasure he thinks it gives him, but in reality, he’s just doing what his boss tells him to. When he meets Clarisse, it is fascinating to him that someone can be so perceptive of the world around her. She makes Montag realise that there is so much to his city that doesn’t make sense. Whilst talking to her at the beginning of the book, she picks up on the fact that he says things without thinking them through, “’You never stop to think what I’ve asked you.’ He stopped walking” (12). Montag then goes on to call her “an odd one” (12). This shows that he doesn’t understand her thought process, much like she doesn’t understand his. It also describes him stopping, which suggests that he agrees with her accusation, but, being the noble fireman that he is, doesn’t want to admit that he’s guilty. It also suggests that he is stopping to think about what she just said, on the one hand proving her wrong, and on the other, proving her right. Montag is also highly oblivious when it comes to his job, and the tasks at hand. At work, he has a routine to go through. An unwritten one, but it is still there. When he returns to the station after the first burning, Bradbury describes how it’s always the same; hang up his clothes, shower, and fall down the hole, “At the last moment, when disaster seemed positive, he pulled his hands from his pockets and broke his fall by grasping the golden pole” (8). He has performed this repetitive sequence of actions so many times, that he knows exactly when to pull out his hands. Knows exactly when to grasp the pole. This is all happening subconsciously, and he repeats it, every time, not stopping at any moment to observe his surroundings. This obliviousness is seen throughout the city, and Montag grasps that
In the beginning of the book, Montag does what he does purely because he’s told to. He doesn’t think anything through, and neither does the rest of the society. He burns books for the pleasure he thinks it gives him, but in reality, he’s just doing what his boss tells him to. When he meets Clarisse, it is fascinating to him that someone can be so perceptive of the world around her. She makes Montag realise that there is so much to his city that doesn’t make sense. Whilst talking to her at the beginning of the book, she picks up on the fact that he says things without thinking them through, “’You never stop to think what I’ve asked you.’ He stopped walking” (12). Montag then goes on to call her “an odd one” (12). This shows that he doesn’t understand her thought process, much like she doesn’t understand his. It also describes him stopping, which suggests that he agrees with her accusation, but, being the noble fireman that he is, doesn’t want to admit that he’s guilty. It also suggests that he is stopping to think about what she just said, on the one hand proving her wrong, and on the other, proving her right. Montag is also highly oblivious when it comes to his job, and the tasks at hand. At work, he has a routine to go through. An unwritten one, but it is still there. When he returns to the station after the first burning, Bradbury describes how it’s always the same; hang up his clothes, shower, and fall down the hole, “At the last moment, when disaster seemed positive, he pulled his hands from his pockets and broke his fall by grasping the golden pole” (8). He has performed this repetitive sequence of actions so many times, that he knows exactly when to pull out his hands. Knows exactly when to grasp the pole. This is all happening subconsciously, and he repeats it, every time, not stopping at any moment to observe his surroundings. This obliviousness is seen throughout the city, and Montag grasps that