Solving Problems In Ray Bradbury's Allegory Of The Cave

SOLVING PROBLEMS
As Bradbury describes the citizens “like gray animals peering from electric caves,” (139) He makes an allusion to Plato 's Allegory of the Cave, found in Book VII of "The Republic" where Plato states “Life is like being chained up in a cave forced to watch shadows flitting across a stone wall.” The purpose of Bradbury’s allusion is to make the readers take notice of the citizen’s live styles- absorbed within their tv walls in ignorance of the ongoings and status of the world they live in. Moreover, Bradbury warns readers not to get sidetracked or so obsessed with entertainment to become oblivious to the ongoings of the world around them, and the problems within their society. “ I 'm afraid of children my own age. They kill

Additionally, the willingness to acknowledge and consider questions is the key difference between Mildred and Montag character, and the reason why while Montag is dynamic while Mildred remains Static. From the beginning of Mildred’s life is empty and happy (as this next quote proves): "I wanted to talk to you." He paused. "You took all the pills in your bottle last night." "Oh, I wouldn 't do that," she said, surprised.”(19) Mildred’s inability to consider her unhappiness or believe that there could be something wrong with her life ultimately lead to her stagnancy as a character, remaining unhappy until the end: “Leaning into the wall as if all of the hunger of looking would find the secret of her sleepless unease there. Mildred, leaning anxiously, nervously, as if to plunge, drop, fall into that swarming immensity of colour to drown in its bright happiness. The first bomb struck.”(Bradbury

on page 42 “He was not happy. He said the words to himself. He recognized this as the true state of affairs. He wore his happiness like a mask and the girl had run off across the lawn with the mask and there was no way of going to knock on her door and ask for it back.” To Begin with, Montag was pleased to follow the norms of society; “Montag grinned a fierce grin of all men singed and driven back by flame…. Later going to sleep, he would feel the fiery smile still gripped by his face muscles, in the dark. It never went away, that smile, it never ever went away, as long as he remembered.”(Bradbury 2) This quote shows, how he has chosen to conform to his society and hold on to the illusion of happiness as long as he remembered. However, after acknowledging his feelings of displeasure over the world only deepen as the texts progress. “He felt his smile slide away, melt, fold over and down on itself like a tallow skin,”(Bradbury 12) Because his smile is symbolic of his conformity to society, this quote represents his mask of happiness and willingness to conform to society start to slip. In the end, Montag’s acknowledgment of his unhappiness made him was different from Mildred and brought him