Fahrenheit 451 Selfish Man

In Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451, the protagonist, Guy Montag is seen as an evil and selfish character, although there is more to his character than one might presume. He is shown to be a strong, self-reliant man, and when in the story he appears that way, but he does the things he does for the benefit of others. Throughout the book Guy Montag is believed to be a selfish man, but instead, he is really a man fighting for justice.

Many believe that Guy Montag is a character doing what is best for himself but, Montag was a brave man who always followed his conscience and disregarded the law for the benefit of others. Montag violated the law in his quest for information and he can even be viewed as a hero despite his weaknesses. Firstly,

“It was a pleasure to burn,” therefore, not only did the firemen start fires instead of putting them out, but they enjoyed doing so. This proves that the society was thinking in a twisted way and was not functioning normally. Montag, after watching the old woman who decided to burn with her book instead of saving herself, decided there must be something special in these books if the government is hiring people to burn them. Next, Montag steals a book to inquire what it is that the government is banning people from reading. Realizing that no one in their society is really satisfied and happy with their lives, Montag’s curiosity grows until he sees the old woman who chooses to burn with her books rather than leave, Guy realizes that he needs to know what was so special about the books that people are willing to die for them. “_______” This quote proves that his curiosity for the books was for the benefit of the town, aiming for them to know the truth about the past. Montag may have appeared to do this selfishly, for his own good,

Denying and questioning these societal rules, Montag talks to his boss, Captain Beatty about the books since Beatty's suspicion that Montag stole a book is growing. This conversation has a significant impact on why Guy does what he does. The quote “_____” can prove this because it shows that Monatg is questioning whether the government is hiding everything for a good reason for the town or if there is something more that he does not know. Everything that Montag does is for the benefit of the society. When he started off as being one of the followers of the rules and not questioning why he was burning books, he later realises that he is not only burning books but, however, cutting ties with art, past history, literature, and civilisation in general. Next Guy Monatg kills Captain Beatty. This is an important part in the story because Monatg kills him for the benefit of society. He knew that the society could not properly function with him still living and controlling everything. Monatg claimed “________”. This proves that he was fighting for justice for the society because he knew with Beatty alive nothing would change and the town would be stuck in an endless loop of not producing their own thoughts. Finally, at the end of the book, Monatg wins and he is safe with the rest of the people that kept books.