describe montag at the beginning of the book of Fahrenheit 451
Try sparknotes for your answer
-MC
Guy Montag
Appropriately named after a paper-manufacturing company, Montag is the protagonist of Fahrenheit 451. He is by no means a perfect hero, however. The reader can sympathize with Montag's mission, but the steps he takes toward his goal often seem clumsy and misguided. Montag's faith in his profession and his society begins to decline almost immediately after the novel's opening passage. Faced with the enormity and complexity of books for the first time, he is often confused, frustrated, and overwhelmed. As a result, he has difficulty deciding what to do independently of Beatty, Mildred, or Faber. Likewise, he is often rash, inarticulate, self-obsessed, and too easily swayed. At times he is not even aware of why he does things, feeling that his hands are acting by themselves. These subconscious actions can be quite horrific, such as when he finds himself setting his supervisor on fire, but they also represent his deepest desires to rebel against the status quo and find a meaningful way to live. [I got this from sparknotes; analysis of major charactors] Hope this helps!
-MC
You'll find lots of information to help you understand this book at these sites.
http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/451/
http://www.bookrags.com/notes/451/index.htm
http://www.gradesaver.com/fahrenheit-451/
http://www.cliffsnotes.com/WileyCDA/LitNote/id-106.html
this book is pretty confusing..i read it in 9th grade..you have to pay attention alot or else you'll get lost
Yep. Good books demand that we pay attention.
At the beginning of the book Fahrenheit 451, Guy Montag is introduced as a middle-aged fireman living in a dystopian society. However, unlike our traditional notion of firemen as those who extinguish fires, in this society, firemen are responsible for starting fires. Their task is to burn books, as books are regarded as dangerous and a threat to the stability and conformity of society.
Montag is initially depicted as an obedient and content member of his society, blindly conforming to the government's ideology. He takes pleasure in his job, finding satisfaction in watching the flames consume books. He has been desensitized to the value of knowledge and has never questioned his purpose or the policies of the society he lives in.
However, Montag's initial contentment gradually transforms into disillusionment. This change is sparked by his encounters with his enigmatic young neighbor, Clarisse McClellan. Clarisse's innocence and curiosity about the world cause Montag to question his own shallow existence. Her thought-provoking conversations and her love for nature lead him to reflect critically on his life and the society around him.
Thus, at the beginning of the book, Montag is depicted as a loyal conformist who is oblivious to the emptiness and suppression in his life. But this characterization sets the stage for his eventual awakening and transformation as the story progresses.