Starting off reading Fahrenheit 451, I was reminded of another novel, 1984. This world where books were outlawed and you were burned if you were in possession of one is similar to George Orwell's tale of Big Brother taking over people's minds. The history of the firefighters as told by Beatty to Montag seems like it was changed to suit the firefighters of this time and their job of burning books. In 1984, Winston's job of changing the newspaper articles to suit Big Brother's plan is the same kind of brainwash. I keep getting a weird post-apocalyptic vibe from this novel, probably because the people are so disconnected and think the same. I do like the novel so far. It keeps my interest because I do not know what will happen next, and it is very different from the books I normally read. Earlier this summer, Ray Bradbury died. This made me want to read this novel even more with all of this talk about how great of an author Bradbury was. I for one, could not imagine a world where there was not any books. I love reading and I always love getting new books to read. Burning books to not give people new ideas is an extreme reason.
Guy Montag works as a fireman. He meets a girl, Clarisse McCellan who changes most of his view about life. Clarisse is a very odd girl; she knows all of this information from the past,because her uncle supposedly told her. I like the character of Clarisse because she questions Montag's beliefs about his work and personality, "You laugh when I haven't been funny and you answer right off. You never stop to think what I've asked you" (Bradbury 8). I was really disappointed when we found out her character might have died. She could have more of a pivotal character coming up in the novel. Mildred treats her death so nonchalantly, like most people in their society are supposed to.
Bradbury, Ray. Fahrenheit 451. New York: Del Rey Book, 1991. Print.
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