What Makes People Happy In Fahrenheit 451

900 Words4 Pages

Often enough there are people who wonder why we decide to have books. In society, books are used for keeping track of data, facts, and entertaining people. So a question is brought up. If a world decided not to have books, would anyone be really happy? In a specific novel, a world without paper stories is brought to light. Written by Ray Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451 talks about a world where books have been banned throughout the country. The main protagonist, Guy Montag, starts to wonder if this really does make people happy. Within the book are many interesting characters, themes, and a bizarre culture that work together. Starting off, the way the characters are portrayed help the story to move on moderately. Montag is the main character throughout …show more content…

If everyone is the same, then happiness should be inevitable. No one will be fighting and arguing over anything. They will simply agree on an idea and go on their merry way. Not everyone is happy though. Despite Mildred coming off as someone who is completely fine with society, she right away shows signs of not actually being happy. “First, why don’t you tell me if she’ll be all right?” (Bradbury 13) After a day of work, Guy comes home to find an empty bottle of sleeping medication and Mildred dying. She overdosed on sleeping medication. With the idea that everyone is happy if they think the same, one has to wonder how they end up like that. Another theme is the fight between ignorance and knowledge, which seems to begin at school. With the way the schools are teaching the kids, it seemed better to be ignorant than knowledgeable. Clarisse is an example of someone who would rather be knowledgeable. “I’m antisocial, they say” (Bradbury) In school she often asks them why something happened instead of how. Since she doesn’t think the same way that everyone else does, they assume she is antisocial. Her understandings are brought onto Guy who starts to wonder the same things she does. Why do things