"Dover Beach"

In this section of the book, Montag goes home to eat dinner after visiting with Professor Faber.  Mildred has invited over two of her friends to watch TV in her parlor and Montag can't take it, so he pulls out the plug on the TV walls.  The author uses a simile to describe this: "The images drained away, as if the water had been let from a gigantic crystal bowl of hysterical fish" (p. 94).  Montag asks one of the ladies, Mrs. Phelps, when does she think the war will begin, since the Army called her husband in for duty.  She replies that he should be back by next week because the Army said that the war would last no more than 48 hours and that everyone would return home safely.  She definitely seems to be in denial when she says, "It's always someone else's husband dies they say" (p. 94).  The husband and wife dynamic in this world seems to lack what I know love to be.  Based on what I already know about Montag and Mildred's marriage, and now, reading about how Mrs. Phelps describes her relationship with her husband, it's as if couples aren't really in love.  They are just together because… Because of money maybe?  I'm not quite sure why these people get married if they don't even care about each other.  Mrs. Phelps says, "Pete and I always said, no tears, nothing like that.  It's our third marriage each and we're independent… He said, if I get killed off, you just go right ahead and don't cry, but get married again, and don't think of me" (p. 95).  Montag can't believe what he's hearing, but he still tries to get them to talk to him.  They touch on subjects like children, where the women talk about unnecessary C-sections, how horrible having children is, and how easy it is to just throw them in parlor with the wall TVs and go about your business.  Montag becomes more outraged.  Another subject, politics, is brought up and the women talk about how one politician is much more handsome than the other.  Montag can't stand how superficial these women are, especially now that his eyes have been opened to the reality of the world, and he finally snaps.  He brings out a book of poetry to try to make these women see what he's trying to tell them.  Faber is in his ear, telling him to stop, or he'll ruin everything. But at this point, Montag can't stop.  Mildred tries to cover for him (or actually probably more for herself) saying that the firemen are allowed to bring home one book just to show their family how "silly" they were.  Montag reads a poem called Dover Beach, that brings Mrs. Phelps to tears!  For me, I would consider this poem as "touching" or "heartfelt" that it brought her to tears, but these women have no idea why she's crying and accuse Montag of making her cry, saying that poetry is full of "sadness" and "hurt."  This section ends with Mrs. Bowles, Mildred's other friend yelling at Montag for making Mrs. Phelps cry and that she is leaving and never coming back to their home, and Montag tells her she better get out before he kicks her out!

Reaction and Questions:  Montag needs to control himself, otherwise he will get turned in!  I would not be surprised if Mildred's two friends turn him into the fire station.  Although, maybe he could play it off and tell Captain Beatty that the book he read to them is the same one that he stole that Beatty knows about.  But wouldn't Montag still get in trouble, since he seems to be going around flaunting books?  It's not like he just kept it to himself and burned it.  Mildred is probably really upset with him too, for upsetting her friends.  I think the only reason that Mildred hasn't turned him in yet is because she doesn't want to put herself out of the house and "go down" with Montag.  I still don't think she can be trusted at all though.  Now that Montag has messed up and couldn't control his anger, will he and Faber still be able to carry out their plan, or will one of the ladies turn him in to the fire station?  If they do turn him in, what will be the repercussions?

Preparing for Battle

  Montag does end up visiting Professor Faber.  Montag explains that he stole the book and wants to learn how to understand what he reads because, "We have everything we need to be happy, but we aren't happy.  Something's missing. ...The only thing I positively knew was gone was the books" (p. 82).  He explains to Faber that he thought if he were to salvage some books, perhaps it could help.  Faber tells him that he is brave, but a "hopeless romantic," since it's not the fact that books are missing, it's the content of what was in the books that has been a great loss to their society.  The new technology of the wall TV's and Seashell radios is not to blame, but the content that is being dispersed to the nation through these devices is what is causing people to not think for themselves.  I found this insight to be eye-opening, as I too had believed that it was the lack of books making the people the way they were since they weren't receiving the knowledge contained in books.  I did not, however, think that the new technology could still deliver the same types of information, but it doesn't, and that's where the problem lies.  Faber continues, explaining to Montag that there are three things missing besides the books themselves:  1) "quality, texture of information" 2) "leisure to digest it" and 3) "the right to carry out actions based on what we learn from the interaction of the first two" (p. 84-85).  These are not easy fixes to a society, and Faber is doubtful that he and Montag alone could change things.  He argues that in the beginning, people stopped reading and thinking for themselves on their own, and the government just decided to take advantage of their weakness.  Montag is still determined to do whatever he needs to do to try to make things right.  So Montag and Faber come up with a plan to plant books in firemen's houses and then turn them in, the idea being to bring down the firemen.  This section ends with Professor Faber giving Montag a little device he has created that looks like a Seashell radio, but works like a walkie talkie.  Montag is worried that Captain Beatty might brainwash him back to the old way of thinking, so Professor Faber will be in his ear, feeding him lines.  They think perhaps Beatty may even be on their side, since he seems to know so much about books.  Also, Montag decides to leave the Bible with Faber and take a chance that Beatty doesn't know which book he stole, so that Faber can check with an old friend who used to print newspapers about making copies of it.    

   I love Montag's determination to fix things, even though he is just one man.  I would like to think that I would be brave, had I been in his situation, but I think I probably would have been a coward like Professor Faber and not say anything... I mean, how could one person change the nation?  At least, that's how I would think.  But then again, there are obviously still people out there who believe that society is corrupted.  People like Clarisse and her family, the woman who burned with her books, and people like Montag... Maybe they will somehow find a way to form a militia against the government?  I  wonder, could Captain Beatty really be on their side?  I think that maybe Captain Beatty went through a revelation just as Montag is now, and he had to make a choice, and he chose to not fight and to just give in.  Who knows, maybe Montag could turn him?  

Sieve and Sand

  Montag is trying his best to read the books, but he isn't able to understand or make sense of anything that he is reading, which is very frustrating to him.  He realizes that the book he had taken from the house of the woman who burned herself along with the books is the Bible, which Montag knows is a rare and important book.  Knowing he does not have much time left before turning over the book to Captain Beatty, he contemplates giving Beatty a different book instead, but then if Beatty knows which book Montag stole, then Beatty would know that Montag had more than one book!  Mildred is no help at all since she just keeps screaming at Montag that he's ruining their lives.  Frankly, she is really annoying me.  I'm surprised Montag even told her about the books.  Personally, I wouldn't have trusted her, she is too far gone to understand Montag's thought process.  Montag is finally seeing that his country has deprived him of information and he seeks answers and wants to know the why behind things.  The reader gets a better picture of this world when Montag says, "We've started and won two atomic wars since 1990! ... I've heard rumors; the world is starving, but we're well fed.  Is it true, the world works hard and we play?  Is that why we're hated so much?" (p. 73-74).  I hadn't thought to ask if other countries burned books as well.  It seems like only this country, which I am inferring is America because of the way that Clarisse spoke of the past, burns books and tries to keep people "entertained" instead of "in the know."  Another reason why I am able to infer that the country is America is that in this section of the book, Montag remembers an encounter he had with a former English professor named Faber who was reading a book, but quickly hid it as soon as he saw Montag.  Montag convinced him to talk for a while and once Faber wasn't scared of Montag anymore, he began to say something that Montag thought might have been a poem, "Faber held his hand over his left coat pocket and spoke these words gently" (p. 75), which made me think of the "Pledge of Allegiance."

  Montag decides that if he is going to give Beatty the Bible, then he needs to somehow make a copy of it before he gives it to him.  How the heck is he going to make a copy?!  He gets on the subway, but the book does not say where he is going.  Maybe to Professor Faber's house?  Earlier in the book, he attempted to call him, but Faber thought it was a trick.  Perhaps he is going to go see him in person?  While on the subway, Montag recalls a memory of himself as a child trying to fill a sieve with sand because a cousin told him he would get a dime if he could do it.  "And the faster he poured, the faster it sifted through with a hot whispering.  His hands were tired, the sand was boiling, the sieve was empty" (p. 78).  Montag equates this memory with trying to comprehend the books he stole.  He is reading and reading, but cannot seem to make sense of any of it, like the sand, the words fall right through his brain.  He begins trying to read the Bible publicly on the subway, without seeming to care if anyone sees, but a song keeps playing and is distracting him from reading.  Montag gets extremely frustrated and starts yelling, "Shut up!" The people on the subway are startled by him and think that he has gone crazy, which he in fact, might have for a moment.  He manages to slip out the door at the next stop before any guards can get him.  

Burning of Books Explained

  After burning the woman and her books, Montag is not feeling well at all.  He tries to talk to Mildred but she is no help.  He tries to think of when and where he met his wife, "and suddenly she was so strange he couldn't believe he knew her at all" (p. 42).  He is disturbed that neither of them are able to remember how they met.  Montag realizes that's he's been feeling "empty" and that he and his wife have drifted so far apart.  I thought this was interesting because I had been wondering why and how Montag and Mildred came to be together since the beginning of the book!  I was hoping to get an explanation, but the fact that neither of them remember says a lot as well.  We also learn in this section that Clarisse has been run over by a car and died, which is why Montag had not seen her for the past four days.  Mildred knew about this and forgot to tell Montag.  Seems like she forgets a lot of things!  Montag decides to call in sick for work since he just can't stand the thought of going in later and Mildred realizes that he was supposed to switch to the early shift that day so he's actually two hours late.  In the middle of their argument, Captain Beatty shows up at the house.

  With the book still hidden under Montag's pillow, Captain Beatty walks into Montag's room saying that he knew he was sick and wanted to check up on him.  Beatty says that every fireman reaches a breaking point where they question their job and that previously they used to explain it to new firemen, but they don't anymore, so he decides to explain it to Montag.  Beatty explains that long ago, as technology evolved, books evolved into shorter and shorter pieces -- "Classics cut to fifteen-minute radio shows, then cut again to fill a two-minute book column, winding up at last as a ten- or twelve-line dictionary resume" (p. 54).  He also speaks of the changes for the younger generations, "school is shortened, discipline relaxed, philosophies, histories, languages dropped.  English and spelling gradually neglected, finally almost completely ignored" (p. 55).  Beatty continues, explaining that with all the diversity of opinions and ideas on things, someone was always unhappy.  But if everyone was taught one idea, then everyone would be happy.  "If you don't want a man unhappy politically, don't give him two sides to a question to worry him; give him one" (p. 61).  The reasoning behind burning books makes me think of the adage "ignorance is bliss."  Books contain knowledge, and with this knowledge, people may not agree with each other, therefore be unhappy.  If these people have no knowledge in the first place, then they will always be happy.  Captain Beatty seems to think this explanation makes perfect sense, but Montag is skeptical.  To me, clearly everyone is NOT happy if there are so many people overdosing every night -- how do they explain this?

  Before Beatty leaves, he tells Montag that it's not uncommon for a fireman to want to take one of the books, seeming to hint that he knows Montag has that book under his pillow.  Montag asks what happens if a fireman were to take a book home, and Beatty says that they give the fireman 24 hours to burn the book and if they don't, then the other firemen will come burn it for him.  Once Beatty is gone, Montag decides to reveal his secret to Mildred, not only of the book under the pillow but of the secret behind the ventilator -- which turns out to be not ONE stolen book, but around 20 stolen books!  Mildred begins to panic, but Montag insists that he needs her help.  He just wants to read them all and try to make sense of them and if what Beatty says is true, he will burn them, but if he decides there is more to it, then he may try to pass them on to someone else.

REACTION AND QUESTIONS:  A lot was revealed in this section!  The theory behind the burning of the books is explained, and it went into a lot more detail than my general prediction, but it was pretty much the same idea.  If they don't educate the people, then the people will remain happy.  However, they seem to have forgotten that knowledge and opinion is not the only factor involved in happiness. I think Montag is just beginning to realize this, but I feel as if some people, like Mildred, are so far gone, there is no bringing them back.  It's kind of like they've brainwashed everyone into thinking a certain way, but for some reason, deep down, the people know they need more.  Perhaps this is why there are so many overdoses.  I was shocked to learn that Montag had stolen SEVERAL books, when this whole time I had just been picturing ONE book behind the ventilator.  I feel like Mildred is not going to cooperate and may report her own husband to the fire station.  I wonder, what will Montag feel after reading the books?  Will he understand the meaning behind them?  24 hours does not seem long enough to go through that many books, especially when you are not used to reading very often.  How will the Hound factor into all of this, since the book keeps mentioning it.  Maybe the Hound will be sent to kill Montag?  A fireman in possession of that many books will surely be frowned upon and I wouldn't put it past Beatty to kill Montag for it.

Guilty Conscience

  In my last blog, I had written that I was getting a flirtatious vibe between Montag and Clarisse, but I was concerned about their age difference.  The author may have cleared this up for me when Montag tells Clarisse, "You make me feel very old and very much like a father" (p. 28).  Perhaps I was misinterpreting the type of relationship these two characters will end up having.  Clarisse asks Montag why he never had any kids of his own and his answer was that his wife never wanted any -- again another major difference between his wife and himself that makes me wonder why they are together in the first place.  In this section of the book, the author also gives a little more information about the youth of this book's world.  Clarisse explains to Montag that she doesn't fit in at school and they call her "antisocial" which to them means she does not care to participate in typical school activities such as "an hour of TV class, an hour of basketball or baseball or running, another hour of transcription history or painting pictures, and more sports" (p.29).  Due to the lack of books, it seems that school is more focused on physical and technology activities.  She also mentions that many young people kill each other.  Clarisse also references her uncle several times in this section and how he explains of the days before... the days that are more like the world of today, that I know.  We still have yet to meet her uncle, however.  Montag and Clarisse have established a daily routine of chatting while he walks to work; until one day, Clarisse does not show, which leaves an unsettling feeling with Montag as if something might be wrong.  This section does not explain why she didn't show.  Did something happen to her?  If so, what?

  I had also speculated in my previous blog that The Hound killed people who owned books.  While this may still be true, I have learned that people do not necessarily get killed for owning books.  Montag asks Captain Beatty what happened to the last man whose books they burned, and he tells him that "They took him screaming off to the asylum" (p.33).  Montag says that the man was not insane and begins to speak of the guilt he feels, saying "I've tried to imagine just how it would feel.  I mean, to have firemen burn our houses and our books."  Beatty asks him if he has any books, which makes Montag think of his secret hidden behind the ventilator -- at this point, I think it's safe to assume there is definitely a book behind that ventilator, even though the author has not directly stated it.  Montag quickly denies owning a book and changes the subject by bringing up what Clarisse had told him earlier and asking if firefighters used to put out fires instead of start them.  At this point, his fellow firefighters, Stoneman and Black, jump in and bring out their rule book, which clearly states that this was not the case.  This makes me realize that there are some books and clearly, they know how to read, which were questions that I had earlier.  So it must be the content of the books is the reason the firefighters must burn them.

  The last section of this book describes a call the firefighters get of a woman who is suspected to have books in her attic.  They go to the house and the woman is still there, which throws Montag off because usually the police have already taken the owners away and "when you arrived you found an empty house.  You weren't hurting anyone, you were hurting only things!" (p.36).  The woman being there gave Montag a tremendous feeling of guilt.  In the midst of all the guilt and the book burning, Montag catches a glimpse of a line in one of the books and he ends up stealing the book!  It's described as if he wasn't even in control of himself, his hand just snuck the book into his pocket in a flash, before he could even think about what he was doing.  No one seemed to notice that he took the book.  They have to find out at some point right?  I think that Beatty already has his suspicions about Montag.  Another bit of insight given in this section is when Beatty tells the lady who owns the books, "Where's your common sense?  None of those books agree with each other... The people in those books never lived" (p. 38).  So it seems that the main reason they burn books is to discourage differences of opinion... and ultimately thinking for yourself as well.  The woman refuses to leave the house, knowing full well that it will burn down in flames as soon as the fire is lit.  Montag tries to convince her to get out, but the women pulls out a match of her own.  All the firefighters leave the house and the women lights the match, burning herself along with the books.  On the way back to the firehouse, Montag asks about what the woman was saying when they first entered the house.  Surprisingly, Beatty knows the quote that the woman was reciting from a book.  He claims that he is "full of bits and pieces...most fire captains have to be." (p.40).  I found this to be interesting, since it's supposed to be illegal to read/own these books!  Maybe Beatty had once been curious like Montag?  The section ends with Montag going home to Mildred, not really saying a word and shoving the stolen book under his pillow.

QUESTIONS, QUESTIONS, QUESTIONS:  Why did Montag have the sudden urge to take that book?  What happened to Clarisse?  Who is going to catch Montag with the book -- Mildred?  If it was her, would she turn in her own husband?  Or maybe Beatty will figure it out.  Either way, someone HAS to find out, right?  Will Montag tell Clarisse his secret about the stolen books?  When will we meet Clarisse's uncle who has been mentioned several times, but not yet introduced into the story?

Communication & Secrets

This section begins by describing two devices used to cleanse Mildred of the pills she overdosed on.  Montag is surprised that a doctor was not sent, but instead only two men who operate the devices.  One device pumped everything out of the stomach and the other device drained Mildred's blood and put in new, fresh blood.  To the device operators, this overdose is no big deal since they "get these cases nine or ten a night" (p.15).  He tells an angry and worried Montag matter-of-factly that, "You take out the old and put in the new [blood] and you're okay" (p. 15).  The device operators were in-and-out as they had another call to get to.  Seems like these overdose cases are plentiful.  Why is everyone overdosing on sleeping pills in this book's world?

The next morning, when Montag wakes up, Mildred is up and eating toast.  She wonders why she is so hungry, with no recollection of the events the night before.  At first, Montag doesn't have the heart to tell her what happened, but later in the afternoon, he finally tells her and she denies that it happened, saying, "What would I want to go and do a silly thing like that for?" (p. 19).  Instead of arguing the point, Montag just goes along with it.  The book again mentions the "Seashells" that are permanently in Mildred's ears, so much so that she has become "an expert at lip reading" (p.18).  I am beginning to equate these ear seashells to a teenager who constantly has their iPod/iPhone earbuds in.  There's also another piece of entertainment technology that the book describes in this section called wall TVs.  Mildred complains to Montag that they need to get a fourth wall TV to complete their room, since they only have three.  Montag argues that it's expensive -- $2000, which is one-third of his yearly salary.  When reading, I immediately calculated his salary in my head and thought $6000/year?  This book's world really IS different than ours!  I have to remind myself that this book was originally written in 1953, but still, in comparison with the cost of living today, it surprised me.  Also, it seems that Mildred does not work at all.  She seems a little crazy to me, in fact.  I am surprised that her and Montag are still married, or how they came to be together in the first place, since they seem so different.  Was Mildred always this way?  Or did something happen to her after Montag married her that made her this way?

When Montag leaves for work that day, he runs into Clarisse again.  While reading their conversation, I got a bit of a flirtatious vibe between these two characters, which seems a little scandalous to me since she is 17 and he is 30, besides the obvious fact that he is married (although not exactly happily).  Clarisse also questions Montag about why and how he became a firefighter in the first place.  She tells him, "You're not like the others... When I talk, you look at me... The others would walk off and leave me talking.  Or threaten me... That's why I think it's so strange you're a fireman.  It just doesn't seem right for you, somehow" (p. 23-24).  Montag does not respond to her questions and instead tells her that she better get going off to her psychiatrist appointment.  Montag seems to be really intrigued by Clarisse and her family.  He doesn't understand how they can stay up late at night talking.  He wonders, what do they talk about?  It seems that communication in this book's world is rare and not normal.  Perhaps this is an effect of not being allowed to read books?

The last piece in this section introduced me to "The Mechanical Hound," which is a type of robot dog, but with eight legs instead of four.  The Hound is a type of weapon used by the firefighters to hunt and kill, I would guess people who own books (although it does not say specifically in this section).  Montag swears the Hound doesn't like him, since he has growled and nearly attacked him multiple times.  A new character, Captain Beatty, tells Montag that the Hound is incapable of having feelings and that Montag must be mistaken.  However, Montag insists that since the Hound is programmed to hunt for certain things, maybe someone programmed it to hunt him.  The Captain assures him that he has no enemies at the station, but Montag has a secret that, if discovered, makes him think otherwise.  The author writes, "Montag did not move and only stood thinking of the ventilator grille in the hall at home and what lay hidden behind the grille.  If someone here in the firehouse knew about the ventilator then mightn't they "tell" the Hound?" (p.27).  I can only assume that Montag has stolen a book and stashed it at his house, which was very surprising to me.  What book did he steal?  Why did he steal it?  Does he even know how to read?  Does someone at the firehouse know about his secret and did they program the Hound to kill Montag?  Or perhaps the Hound can sense the smell of books and Montag has a faint hint of it on him?!  So many questions...

A Few Main Characters

     Wow, in the first few pages of Fahrenheit 451, I have already learned so much.  I have been introduced to three characters, two more specifically than the last.  The main character, Guy Montag, when first introduced, seemed a little cocky to me when the author wrote, “He knew that when he returned to the firehouse, he might wink at himself… in the mirror” (p. 4).  I have learned that Montag is a 30-year-old firefighter – which has a completely different definition in the book than what I know a firefighter to be.  The firefighters in this book actually start fires to burn books and it is against the law for them to read any of the books they burn, which is information that is pointed out by the second character, Clarisse McClellan.  Clarisse is a 17-year-old girl who seems to have many questions.  To me, her questions seem valid, perhaps because I think of the world that I live in today.  To Montag, her questions seem ridiculous and unfounded, since the world he knows is so different.  One question she asks Montag is, “Are you happy?” and this question seems to haunt him.  Later in the section, as he dwells upon this question, it is revealed that his smile that, “never went away, as long as he remembered” (p.4), has finally left his face.  I felt I got a little more insight to Montag when the author writes, “He wore his happiness like a mask” (p. 12).  Finally, the section ends with Montag coming home to his wife, Mildred, the third character introduced to me.  Just by the description of her, I immediately felt like something was wrong.  The author describes Montag picturing what his wife would look like if he turned on the light, “like a body displayed on the lid of a tomb” (p. 12).  It also describes “little Seashells” in her ears that seem to be transmitting ocean sounds, music, and words… I’m still unclear about what these Seashells are and I am hoping to learn more.  Montag then trips over an empty medicine bottle that he knew was full that morning, and he realizes that his wife has taken all of the pills, and this section ends with him calling the “Emergency hospital.”            

     Questions I have after reading this section are:  Why do firefighters burn books and why is it illegal to read them?  Why does Montag hide his emotions?  What will be the significance of the mysterious Clarisse character?  Why is Montag’s wife so depressed she is trying to kill herself?