Allusions In Fahrenheit 451

Fahrenheit 451 is about a fireman named Guy Montag in a post present American society. Books are outlawed, and the simple action of thinking has become a social taboo. As a result, it’s a fireman’s job to start fires to burn books, rather than to put out fires. Montag’s eyes are opened when he meets a young lady, Clarisse Mclellan, who forces him to think about his true state of love and happiness. He becomes more and more unhappy with his life as his curiosity of books grow. With the help of a retired professor, his knowledge of books and various works of literature grows. After a fruitless encounter of trying to show his wife and her friends the value of books, he is reported by them to the police. He flees from his city to a small camp of

Montag voices his understanding of the fact that firemen used to put out fires rather than starting them, when he is ridiculed for such a thought and “...Stoneman and Black drew forth their rule books, which also contained brief histories of the Firemen of America...Established, 1790, to burn English-influenced books in the colonies. Fire Fireman: Benjamin Franklin”(34). This is an allusion to Benjamin Franklin; who established the first firehouse and library. The society rewrites this historical fact to make it appear as if Benjamin Franklin was in fact for the concept of burning books, even going as far to say he was among the ones first started this practice.The society uses this distorted image of Benjamin Franklin in order to keep up the ideals of burning books to both the firemen and the pedestrians. For instance, because it is such a long lived value, it must be of importance. Furthermore, the society warped the image and actions of Benjamin Franklin like this in order for their to be a sort of logical response to question firemen. Just as Montag was questioning the logic of firemen creating fires rather than putting them out, that idea is quickly dismissed by the other firemen. Because the society has deemed the root of this practice to have served a similar purpose, as well as being created by a great figure in history, they are convinced of this

Upon arrival, Montag is greeted by Beatty, and invited for a game of poker. As Montag sits down to play, Beatty begins to bombard him with quotes of literature, “What do you think of the Montag?...Or this? ‘A little learning is a dangerous thing. Drink deep,or taste not the Pieran spring; There shallow draughts intoxicate the brain, and drinking largely sobers us again’”(106). The pieces of literature used out of context appear to support the stance of books and knowledge being unnecessary. That quote is an allusion to Pope Alexander’s Essay on Criticism. Pope Alexander’s intention of that stanza is to say that one may become over confident as a result of minimal knowledge or understanding(phrases.org.uk). Beatty, however, used that quote to imply that even a little bit of knowledge will fill one with illogical and “drunken” thoughts. By distorting the intended definition of Pope Alexander’s essay, he attempts to confuse Montag, who has just begun on his journey of knowledge. Beatty realizes Montag knows and has done more than he is letting on, but at the same time he has been brainwashed for so many years. Beatty uses that to his advantage in order to make Montag feel disheartened regarding his secret interest of