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Fahrenheit 451 Quote Analysis

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Humans are extremely capable beings. We excel at taking risks and being successful, thus we all have the ability to create, prosper and accomplish. But one thing is for certain… We know nothing about patience. Patience is an everlasting virtue, which, sadly, humanity ignores. Understanding the concept of time is the key to happiness. However, us human beings are in a constant rush and we wish for everything to follow our own pace. But life does not work that way. Not only that, but human beings must understand that there is a time for everything. Ray Bradbury reflects upon this idea in his novel Fahrenheit 451, specifically quoting the Ecclesiastes, found in the Old Testament of the Bible, to show the reader that to everything there is a season. …show more content…

Human beings tend to be whimsy. When things do not go our way, we rapidly change our minds and decide to give up. People prefer to be impatient and shun tough situations, instead of taking the time to make things better. However, Bradbury’s main character Montag is an example we should all follow. Things plot against him since the beginning of the novel. Thus he is a conscious person, living in a dystopian community, reigned by ignorance and emptiness. Ironically, Montag is a fireman, and firemen are in charge of burning books to get rid of all the information. But deep inside, he knows that there is something wrong and decides to begin reading books to find hidden evidence. His values as a human being are put to the test once his own wife Mildred betrays him. Mildred and her friends call the firemen station to report Montag for reading books and Montag is forced by Captain Beatty to burn his own home. However, Montag ends up burning Beatty to death. At first sight, this might seem completely unethical, but the reader is prone to understanding that this is the best Montag can do in order to ensure a long-term benefit for humanity. As the Ecclesiastes say “There is a time for everything, and a season for every …show more content…

Thus, most people do not value happiness until despair comes. For instance, it is the abundance of ignorance in Bradbury’s dystopian world that makes Montag aspire for an improved reality. Similarly, the reader learns to value the advantage within knowledge after seeing Montag fight for that which we take for granted. Captain Beatty once said, “Those who don’t build must burn”(85). However, Montag dismantles this thought through his actions. Montag used to be a fireman, but now he is a builder. Montag proves that fire’s ashes represent a clean slate and a brand new start. This refers to the Ecclesiastes, thus after fire, now clarity will come. Contributing to this thought, at the end of the novel Montag thinks “And on either side of the river was there a tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month; And the leaves of the tree were for healing the nations”(158). With this, he refers to the power of wisdom. The fact that paper is made out of trees makes books allude to the tree’s leaves. And just as leaves, books are also the healing of the nation. Knowledge is the most fructiferous gift that one could possess, thus books are the real tree of

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