Fahrenheit 451, written by Ray Bradbury in 1951, this novel is about a futuristic dystopian society. It’s about this society that doesn’t want the citizens to be thinking and be entertained doing other things. It’s also about firemen that instead of putting fires out, they start them by burning books. They burn them because in their society books aren’t allowed. Books bring misserry, sadness, just negative emotions. The main character Guy Montag, he starts out as a happy person who likes his job as a fireman and has a loving wife named Mildred, who at first overdosed on sleeping pills. At some point he meets a teenage girl named Clarisse, she’s Montags neighbor. She starts talking to Guy Montag, asking him questions like, if before firemen put fires out, instead of starting them. Montag said that wasn’t true and that houses have always been fireproof. Then she decided to ask if he was actually happy. That made him wonder if he is really happy or its just an illusion. Clarisse and Mildred, two of the main characters who are involved in Montag’s life and part of the dystopian society.
Mildred is just a normal citizen who respects the rules and follows them, “”Will you turn the parlor off?” Montag asked. “That’s my family.” Mildred replied. “ Will you turn it off for a sick man?” Montag said. “I’ll turn it down.” Mildred said. She went out of the room and did nothing to the parlor and came back, page 46.” “”... Happiness is important. Fun is everything, And yet I kept sitting there saying to myself, I’m nor happy, I’m not happy.” Montag said. “I am.” Mildred’s mouth beamed. “And proud of it.” “I’m going to do something,” said Montag. “I don’t even know what yet, but I’m going to do something big.” “I’m tired of listening to this junk,” said MIldred, turning from him to the announcer again, page 62.” This shows that Mildred is just how the society wants the people to be, to not think and believe they are really happy. While Clarisse, she’s rebellious, and she’s way different than a normal citizen, she’s a curious and observant person, “Of course,” Montag said, You’re our new neighbor, aren’t you?” “And you must be--” she raised her eyes from his professional symbols “--the fireman.” Her voice trailed off. “How oddly you say that.” Montag replied. “I’d--I’d have known it with my eyes shut,” she said, slowly, page 4.” Mildred is most of the time entertained with the parlor walls, or using her seashells to hear the broadcast, “She had both ears plugged with electronic bees that were humming the hour away, page 16.” Parlor walls are Televisions, and seashells are earbuds. Clarisse enjoys going outside, likes to watch, talks to people, “I like to watch people. Sometimes I ride the subway all day and look at them and listen to them. I just want to figure out who they are and what they want and where they are going. Sometimes I even go to the Fun parks and ride jet cars when they race on the edge of town at midnight and the police don’t care as long as the’re insured, page 28.” She isn’t like others because she does the opposite of what a normal citizen do, also she isn’t addicted to the parlor walls, or neither to the seashells like Mildred and other citizens who spent their time on there and don’t worry about thinking because most of the time they are being entertained.
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Clarisse and Mildred are similar by grabbing Montag’s attention toward both of them, at some point. “Montag shook his head. He looked at a blank wall. The girl’s face was there, really quite beautiful in memory: astonishing, in fact. She had a very thin face like the dial of a small clock seen faintly in a dark room in the middle of the night when you waken to see the time and see the clock telling you the hour and the minute and the second, page 8,” referring to Clarisse. “”Mildred!” Her face was like snow-covered island upon which rain might fall, but it felt no rain; over which clouds might pass their moving shadows, but she felt no shadow. There was only the singing of the thimble-wasps in her tamped-shut ears, and her eyes all glass, and breath going in and out, softly, faintly, in and out her nostrils, and her not caring whether it came or went, went or came, page 11.” That’s how Montag describes Clarisse and Mildred, which he was interested in both of them at some point in time. Both Mildred and Clarisse suffered in their dystopian society. Mildred didn’t have any emotions to express, was never happy even though she thinks she is.At the very first part of the novel Mildred overdosed on sleeping pills, she hasn’t been happy since the very start.Her life is empty, but she still believes she’s happy because she’s kept entertained with her parlor walls which she sees as her family. She's a product toward their dystopian society. Clarisse fears of teenagers of her age, ““Sometimes I’m ancient. I’m afraid of children my own age. They kill each other. Did it always be that way? My uncle says no. Six of my friends have been shot in the last year alone. Ten of them died in car wrecks. I’m afraid of them and they don’t like me because I’m afraid,” page 30.” Clarisse got run over and died, “”No. The same girl. McClellan. McClellan. Run over by a car. Four days ago. I'm not sure. But I think she's dead. The family moved out anyway. I don't know. But I think she's dead,” page 44.” Both Mildred and Clarisse got hurt by their dystopian society.
Ray Bradbury predicted the future with his novel Fahrenheit 451 in many ways. Seashells, parlor walls, how citizens are. If they’re like Mildred, model like follow the rules or Clarisse, more of a curious, observant, and free thinker. Our society is kind of both because respect should be shown and following the rules, or sometimes be like Clarisse and not be the same as others and be the outcast. How the society in Fahrenheit 451 is similar to ours is by the censoring of our personal beliefs or thoughts, nowadays people can get easily offended so the media has to censor things that make people unhappy, and in their society, they don’t let the citizens have books because they can make them feel unhappy.
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