Examples Of Marxism In Fahrenheit 451

Fahrenheit 451, a novel by Ray Bradbury, depicts a man named Guy Montag, a “fireman” who burns books. It is broken up into three sections; "The Hearth and the Salamander,” "The Sieve and the Sand,” and "Burning Bright.” Through a feminist, mythological, and Marxist approach we see that Bradbury’s story acknowledges gender inequalities and reflects the ideals of the times.

From a feminist perspective it is apparent that the women in the story are unequal to men. All of the females in the story, other than Clarisse McClellan, are conditioned by society to be mindless. A feminist would agree that women are trained by their culture to behave a certain way as the women in the story do. This is seen by Montag’s wife, Mildred, and her friends.

A feminist would specifically dislike the fact that, not only do these women not have a voice, they make no effort to speak out for themselves. This differs from the men in the story, who have power and the ability to question society. This is particularly seen by the characters Faber, Montag, and Beatty. When given the opportunity, Faber works with Montag to create change. Although he works in secret, he helps develop a plan to bring down the firemen internally. While Faber has the knowledge, Montag has the power, as he is in the perfect position to carry out the plan as he is a fireman. Even Beatty has power as the captain of the firemen. Every character who has power or the capacity to question the system is male. Even the least powerful males in the story have more control than any of the women. This is seen by the characters Stoneman and Black. Although they conform to society as well, they are firemen. They do their job as told, but they still have control over others. As firemen, they have the opportunity to drastically change someone’s life by burning all of their possessions. There are no

These archetypes include the tragic hero, the outcast, the fool, and the sage. Montag is a tragic hero because he has fallen in status at the end of the book. In the beginning, Montag experiences immense joy from his work as a “fireman.” He described it as a “pleasure to see things eaten, to see things blackened and changed” and would leave work with a “fierce grin” (Bradbury, 1). His status was higher as a fireman, as it was deemed as a respectable profession in his culture. After meeting Clarisse, he begins to question his role in society. He develops an urge to create change and revolt from common practice. In the end, his downfall is his passion. Montag reveals himself to Mildred and her friends by reciting poetry and “blind raging” (Bradbury, 47). He leaves and the town is destroyed. Montag’s extreme passion is his fatal fall. This flaw is common for the tragic hero archetype. Although his story is left on misfortune, it is implied that Montag is on the slow path of transformation for himself and humanity. Faber is an example of an outcast because he has allowed himself to become alone. He has “’lived alone so many years,’” (Bradbury, 38) as he refused to forego literature. As the outcast he “lives outside the norms” (Melendez) which state books aren’t allowed. The fool is seen several times throughout the novel, but it is mainly depicted by Mildred. In the novel Mildred has