Discuss Montag’s Relationship with Mildred
Fahrenheit 451 is a book about a society which depends on technology to a great extent. In the early 1950s, Ray Bradbury, who was only generating the idea for Fahrenheit 451, remarked of his anxiety about the role radio and television played in causing short attention spans. This is a story which alerts us of the multitasking danger (Sam Weller).
Ray Bradbury states that “the culprit in Fahrenheit 451 is not the state — it is the people” and considers TV as a soothing thing. In his book, the author indicated televisions as “walls” and its cast as “family.”
Fahrenheit 451 is a narrative of a future society where books are prohibited. Firefighters move from house to house, searching for black-market literary production to burn. As the novel goes, books are hazardous. These are the source opinions and beliefs. The books are advanced beliefs and opinions — and melancholy comes into philosophy. Despite the fact that books have illegal status, there is an underground community which collects them. Guy Montag, a 30-year-old fireman, comes to the decision to take a book home to find out about it.
Ray Bradbury depicted a society where human culture is altered. People’s interaction is uncommon and is perceived in a contradictory way. People stopped thinking, “then they feel like they’re thinking, they’ll get a sense of motion without moving” (Ray Bradbury). “Typical” marriage between Mildred and Montag is displayed as total indifference to each other. Liaison in their culture is less passionate than it is in ours. These people are not devoted to one another. Montag is hardly in love with Millie – they seem to be distant. Nevertheless, they look after each other. As far as I understand, these people have just lost their way in showing it. In spite of it, every time Guy Montag is away from Millie he begins to become aware of his love. “My wife’s back there.” “I’m sorry to hear that. The cities won’t do well in the next few days,” said Granger. “It’s strange, I don’t miss her,” said Montag.” Even though while the war destroyed the city he didn’t feel anything for Millie or even miss being with her. Later, this feeling changes. “I remember. Montag clung to the Earth. I remember. Chicago. Chicago a long time ago. Millie and I. That’s where we met! I remember now. Chicago. A long time ago” (Ray Bradbury).
It strikes me that it was an exact turning point for Montag because he remembers crucial episodes of his life which he has forgotten. It happens because of his monotonous way of living and the policy of the authority who has taught people to stay and have small talks at home. Small talks about nothing are praised. To my way of thinking, this is the reason why Millie and Montag’s are different from ours. He wondered why someone would give up their life for a book. Millie didn’t even want to get to know this, and she became a devoted member of a brainwashed society. It was completely wrong even to think about books. Like all her friends, Millie used to stay at home in a room with three “walls” or TV sets. They all have small roles in an interactive show. Millie knows a little about the outside world. “It’s only now thousand dollars, she replied. And I should think you’d consider me sometimes. If we had a fourth wall, why it’d be just like this room wasn’t ours at all, but all kinds of exotic people’s rooms. We could do without a few things” (Ray Bradbury n.d.). This lady does nothing but thinks about on securing herself with such life, staring at shows instead of enjoying the life of her own (Litz).
The story depicts the society as obscurity, the members of which are not interested in the surrounding world and the lives of the neighbors. The people are self-concerned and brainwashed. Without interacting with the rest of the world, the people of this society have something they call “a family” the idea of which they hook from experience on the screen (Paradowski). Four wall length screens surround them and give the illusion of communicating with people. Thus, they get a fake of a family. Montag’s wife is totally absorbed in this illusion. “My family is people. They tell me things. I laugh, they laugh!” (Ray Bradbury) The man continues, “Does our family live you, love you very much, love you with all their heart and soul, Mille?” (Ray Bradbury) on getting to know how weird their society has become.
A future society depicted by Bradbury is alarming and differs much from our one. Such things like feelings, socializing, appreciation, and communication are vanishing from their lives. These people are turning to something which is totally inhumane. The relationships inside the couples are a burden. Nothing seems worthwhile. Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451 is a genius work to make people ponder over the future.
Works Cited
Weller, Sam. The Bradbury Chronicles: the Life of Ray Bradbury. Harper Perennial, 2006.
Litz, A. Walton., and Molly Weigel. American Writers: a Collection of Literary Biographies. Charles Scribners Sons, 1996.
Paradowski, Robert J. 2010. “Ray Bradbury.” Critical Survey of Short Fiction. 2nd. ed., Salem Press, 2010.
