Suicide In Ray Bradbury's 'Fahrenheit 451'

837 Words4 Pages

According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention,, suicide is the second leading cause of death among people ages 10-34.. In Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451, the character of Mildred is portrayed as someone who is extremely unhappy with her life. Throughout the novel, we see her turn to drugs as a way to cope with her problems. This also happens in the world today. Mildred tries ending her life due to loneliness. For example, Mildred overdoses on sleeping pills and has to be revived by emergency medical technicians. This incident shows that Mildred is using drugs as a way to escape from her problems rather than facing them head on. However, Mildred's addiction to drugs is not just a personal problem, it is a symptom of a larger problem …show more content…

He tells Mildred, "I don't want to change sides and just be told what to do. There's no reason to change if I do that. You hear people say things like this all the time. 'I'm not happy, I'm not happy.' I think that's the most ridiculous thing I ever heard" pg( 63). Montag realized that true happiness cannot be found in drugs or other external sources, but rather in the relationships we have with our friends and family. He finally realized that he was never happy until he met Clarrisie because she made him realize how miserable he was when she asked, “Are you happy? ”. Clarrisie then asked Montag if he reads the books he burns and he thought about it and tried reading. After reading, Montag finally found something that he enjoyed reading after searching for something to make him …show more content…

As one of the exiles tells Montag, "We're nothing more than dust jackets for books, of no significance otherwise" pg( 149). In other words, our lives are only meaningful if we are able to connect with others and share our knowledge and ideas. This is the kind of happiness that Montag is seeking, and it is a stark contrast to the empty happiness that Mildred finds in her addiction. Montag starts to find the kind of happiness that he’s been seeking in books because he found interest in them but he knew reading books would get him in trouble so he ran