I have recently finished the book Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. This text is about a fireman named Montag who lives in a very controlled society. In this society, "firemen" burn all books they find. With the help of a new girl, Clarise, Montag finds out that he is not happy in this society and recognizes the need for knowledge found in books. After being caught holding books in his home, Montag rebelled and ran away from the scene. By the end of the story, he made it to a new place which has people who think the same as him about books.
This novel has excellent writer's craft and holds many examples of symbolism. For example, fire first represented too much control and destruction, as it was being used to burn books the society was not allowed to have. Page 34 states, "The men above were hurling shovelfuls of magazines into the dusty air. They felt like slaughtered birds..." The way this quote describes the books as "slaughtered birds" made me think of the books being burned as desperate and useless. The fire caused the books to be destroyed like "slaughtered birds", which shows that fire can represent destruction. The destruction of books is happening because of the government having too much control over the people.
Although fire first represents bad things, later on it represents good things. This transition takes place right after Montag escaped where he used to be and went on to a new, more free place. Page 139 talks about a fire he saw. It says, "It was not burning, it was warming... He had never thought in his life that it could give as well as take". The fire in this quote can represent many things (like warmth, giving, life) but they are all good. The fire is giving people warmth, not taking knowledge.
The meaning of fire clearly altered throughout the story for Montag. It depends on how the characters use fire to determine if it's good or bad. The controlled society used it in a bad way, and the more free place Montag is currently in uses it in a good way. The setting can be determined in a way from the fire, because when it is used for good, the setting is more free and less controlled versus when it is used for bad things.
You did an excellent job explaining the symbolism of fire in the novel. It has now become apparent to me that fire represents destruction, and the backwards progression of a society. Good job.
ReplyDelete