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Summary of Fahrenheit 451

Fahrenheit 451 can be boiled down to a story of a man in course of soul searching, but, as it usually happens with Ray Bradbury’s works, the reader is completely immersed into his fictitious world outlined with creepy detalization. The timeline is XXIV century, and life in this period is fast and depreciated.

In Part 1, “The Hearth and the Salamander”, we meet the protagonist, Guy Montag, in course of his work, while he enjoys the feeling the books burning brings to him. He is a fireman, his job is to burn and he really loves doing it, each sense involved. He ends his working hours and heads home. On his way he meets Clarisse McClellan, a girl who characterizes herself as being “seventeen and mad”. Bradbury (and Montag) pictures her as nearly unearthly being, made of light and precious stones. She and her family are Montag’s new neighbors. Clarisse speaks of strange things, strange for Montag, but not for reader, and asks strange questions. The last question that became a straw breaking the back of a proverbial camel, is “Are you happy?”

Montag doesn’t want to acknowledge that he is not, but the reality has a nasty surprise for him: at home he finds his wife Mildred nearly dead due to overdose of sleeping pills. No wonder that he’s horrified, and bomber aircrafts flying over his house with a thunderous noise are not just merely hinting that the country is on the verge of war, but also serve as acoustic counterpoint to Montag’s despair. He calls medical attention, but instead of physicians, technicians arrive. They are completely uncaring, doing their job almost mechanically. They are pumping Mildred’s stomach with a specially designed machine and perform a complete blood transfusion, so not a single drop of abused substance will be left in her, as one of them explains to Montag.

There is no need of a physician: overdoses became frequent in recent time. EMT’s receive a call for another overdose and leave Montag to observe as new blood returns some color on Mildred’s face and reflect somberly on the possibility to purify not only her stomach and blood vessels, but her flesh, brain and memory, even her soul. After some time he goes outside to get some fresh air and overhears Clarisse and her family talking about the value of human life in modern world, comparing it to a paper napkin. Grim subject, but Montag listens longingly, because such talk is a rarity, it’s unusual, like everything related to Clarisse; he is eager to join their conversation, or at least listen to it. He returns home, checks on his wife, tries to sleep, but is too overwhelmed by thoughts and events of this day, so he takes his sleeping pill.

Next morning he finds Mildred well and awake. She does not remember taking thirty or forty pills instead of two, so she assumes that they had a party last night, and this is just a hangover and hunger. When Montag tries to remind her about it, she just waves him away, being busy reading the scenario of a day-time interactive soap opera. At the same time she cannot tell what the teleplay is about and just nags her husband about getting the forth TV-wall (i.e., a wall-size TV screen), forgetting that they’ve got a third one only two months ago and had to shorten their spends in many ways.

Montag heads to work and meets Clarisse again. She’s visiting a psychiatrist, because her habits of walking, watching birds and butterflies, tasting the rain etc. are considered weird in the depicted society. A childish “dandelion test” shows that she is in love with somebody, while Montag is not. This leads to further splitting on Montag’s personality, a loyal citizen and employee on one level, a curious dreamer on the other.

At firehouse Montag confronts the Mechanical Hound, and it’s not the first time. This mechanism, intended for finding criminals by chemical composition of their blood and sweat, fascinates him in a way, particularly because, in spite of its adjustment, the hound actually snarls at Montag and demonstrates irritation by his presence. This is technically impossible, the hound’s memory contains chemical characteristics of each fireman, but what if somebody tampered with its settings, so it partially perceives Montag as a threat? Montag is practically sure that this is the case, for he has a little secret of his own, hidden behind the ventilation grate. When he mentions this possibility to his chief fireman, Captain Beatty, the answer is only taunting.

Seven days pass. Every day Montag meets Clarisse, he sees her shaking the tree and knitting, she leaves him small presents – a bouquet of autumn flowers, a packet of chestnuts and so on. They speak after his work and he is stunned by her words each time. Clarisse points at common details of life and muses on them like seeing something like that for the first time. She mentions her being an outcast at school, because she is quite different from other kids. She does not like car races and amusement parks, she does not like conversations about nothing, she does not like contemporary art.

At the same time the work goes its course, and every day brings more teasing on Montag’s relations with the Mechanical Hound.

After a week Clarisse disappears. Montag is anxious but has no ability to find out what happened. He continues to doubt his work, for Clarisse told him that in the past firemen were fighting fires instead of starting them, but when he mentions it to colleagues, they just laugh and remind him the Statute of a Fireman, stating that the fire service was founded in 1790 for burning the pro-English literature, and Benjamin Franklin was the first fireman. This is when they receive a call.

This call involves the sacking and further burning of old lady’s house. Its attic is stuffed with books, so when firemen start to take them down, it looks like a waterfall. Montag uses this vast quantity of books to steal one. The old lady refuses to leave the house and her library, so she waits for firemen to spread kerosene and lights the match.

On their way back to the station, Montag tries to remember the old lady’s words, and, shockingly, Captain Beatty is not only quoting them correctly, but also states the author, date and circumstances at which these words were said.

Montag arrives home feeling guilty and ill. Mildred chatters about something but he’s too lost in thoughts about old lady’s suicide and stolen book to pay any attention to her words. Later at night he watches Mildred suffering from insomnia: she uses “Seashells”, radio-ear-plugs and barely hears anything else. Suddenly Montag asks her if she remembers when and where they’ve met for the first time. She does not, she merely laughs and heads to the bathroom to take more pills.

This sets Montag thinking about her addiction to pills, interactive TV and speed driving. She is not interested in anything else, her “relatives” from TV walls and “Seashells” are the essence of her life.  These thoughts return him to Clarisse, being a complete contrast to Mildred, with her vivacity and curiosity. He asks Mildred, if she didn’t seen Clarisse in last four days, and Mildred, distracted from radio-translation, nonchalantly says that Clarisse is dead. Hit and run accident. Her family left the city. She just forgot to tell. Then, while Mildred returns to her “Seashells” and starts humming along, Montag hears a strange sound outside and suspects that the Mechanical Hound is watching him.

Next morning he feels ill and feverish. Mildred is not too helpful, she is constantly distracted by “relatives” and keeps forgetting to bring him aspirin or lower the volume of TV-walls. Guy tries to explain the reason of his condition, to tell her about the old lady’s suicide, about books and everything else, but Mildred remains unimpressed, she just does not listen. She reacts only when Montag suggests quitting his job – she is horrified.

Captain Beatty arrives. He’s well experienced in problems that each firemen faces from time to time and gives Montag and Mildred a profound lecture on history and attitude to books, a strangely emotional review of contemporary culture development. During his almost uninterrupted monologue Mildred tries to comfort her husband and eventually finds the book hidden under his pillow. Luckily, she seems not to understand the meaning of her finding and soon is distracted by something again. Beatty goes on, mentioning Clarisse McClellan and her family; they were suspicious, clever, so nothing was found. At the end of this “enlightenment” Montag finds out that any fireman can take any book for 24 hours and after that he has to burn it, or his colleagues would do that, with the well-known consequences. Beatty leaves and Montag is lost in thoughts again.

He decides to show Mildred his books, collected within the last year. This was his secret kept behind the ventilation grate. Mildred is shocked, almost hysterical. It takes serious efforts to make her not to burn books immediately and listen to what her husband says. While they are discussing this issue, somebody is at the door, but they do not open it. Montag proposes at least to try to read something.

Part 2, “The Sieve and the Sand” starts with a day dedicated to reading. Mildred is anxious and bored: all devices in the house are turned off, including her precious TV walls. While Montag painstakingly tries to understand what he is reading, his wife complains about not being able to understand a thing. Something is scratching at the door and Mildred think that this is a common dog, but Montag suspects the Mechanical Hound.

Mildred’s day is saved when a friend calls her. Montag thinks that he lacks knowledge and guidance, so he has to find himself a tutor. He remembers an accidental encounter a year ago, in a park, when he met an old man, Faber, a former English professor. A trained fireman’s eye recognized that the man hid a book under his coat, but Montag had no intention to inform on him, he just wanted to take a seat and have some rest. They’ve spoken for an hour, and now Montag thinks that Faber can help him.

He calls Faber and asks how many copies of the Bible remain in their country. Faber is scared, knowing who Montag is, and interrupts their conversation. Mildred is chattering joyfully, she expects to have guests for the evening program. Montag takes the Bible and heads to Faber. He tries to read in the subway, but an aggressive advertisement of Denham’s Dentifrice leaves him no chances to concentrate on the text. Montag raves and scares other passengers.

Upon his arrival Faber is actually excited at the sight of a book, all senses involved. They speak about books and their significance for humankind, ways of perception, lack of time to think. Montag is eager to take some action, to change the order of things, he makes some offers, but Faber calms him down, pointing out that the war will soon take place and their civilization is racing to its end. Seeing that Faber is old and scared, Montag uses Faber’s love to books as a tool of blackmail: he starts to tear pages from the Bible, one by one. Bewildered, Faber agrees to help him. Maybe there will be even a possibility to make another copy of the book. Montag mentions Captain Beatty who has obviously read and memorized a lot and is quite a speechmaker, able to persuade our protagonist to come back to his lifework. Faber is interested in Montag’s support and gives him a modified radio ear-plug with two-directional operation, so he is able not only to speak, offering Montag his hints, but to listen too. Now Faber and Montag are able to support an endless dialogue.

While Montag goes home, he overhears news about mobilization. Faber offers him several suggestions and proposes to read aloud from the Book of Job. After the supper Mildred’s guests arrive, two bubble-headed women with several bottles of martini. Their pointless conversations, voices and general behavior annoy Montag and he proposes to read them a poem. Mildred is shocked, Faber tells him to stop, but Montag is determined. The desperate attempt ends in one woman’s hysterical fit, the second one just leaves the house, not willing to deal with a mad fireman.

Montag puts his books into another hiding place and heads to the firehouse. Faber continues to talk to him, trying to explain the reactions of the women, and to prepare him to confrontation with Captain Beatty.

Beatty makes yet another speech, welcoming Montag’s comeback. He scoffs at his deeds and attitude, spicing his insults by quotes of classical literature, showing his familiarity with the subject. Two other crew members, Stoneman and Black, keep playing cards, as usual. Beatty finishes his speech by describing his dream, where he and Montag were fighting, shouting classic quotes at each other, but eventually came to an agreement and got in the fire track, “Salamander”, to drive back to firehouse.

They receive a new call. A special case, as Beatty put it. After a drive thought the night city Montag finds “Salamander” parked in front of his own house.

At the beginning of Part 3, “Burning Bright”, Montag is completely confused. He sees Mildred, departing, unaware of his presence. Her call was the third one; two friends of hers had already called about books in a fireman’s house. Beatty insists that Montag should do the burning himself. Surprisingly, the burning still gives Montag a pleasure. Captain Beatty cannot stand temptation to insult Montag more, telling that it was him who tampered with settings of the Mechanical Hound, that he knew about each eccentricity of Clarisse McClellan; he is passionate in his anger. Being confused, Montag unwillingly reveals the presence of radio ear-plug, so Beatty takes it out and boasts that they will eventually find a man who made it. Threating Faber makes Montag point a flamethrower at his boss. Beatty continues his taunts, so Montag burns him alive. Stoneman and Black watch this, stunned. Montag knocks his colleagues off, prepares to run, but here comes the Mechanical Hound. It attacks the fireman and even bites him, injecting an incomplete dose of procaine. Montag destroys the Hound by flamethrower, picks the remaining books from the garden and leaves.

The manhunt has begun. Without Faber’s aid Montag is nearly helpless. He wanders through the city, trying to look like one of those strange men who prefer walking. Montag is only thirty years old, he’s a strong and healthy man, but procaine injected by the Hound is acting, making the walking difficult. At some point he even falls, stricken down by the drug and sudden understanding that Beatty actually wanted to die, being torn inside by his knowledge and thoughts.

He is chased by police helicopters and another Mechanical Hound now, and sooner or later they would track him down. He is almost hit by a car packed with teenagers. On his way to Faber’s Montag leaves the remaining books in the house of his colleague, Black, and gives a call to the firehouse. Meanwhile, the war begins.

He arrives to Faber, gets some rest and together they develop a plan of escaping. Faber directs Montag to countryside, to find other exile book-lovers. He mentions that he will take an early bus to St. Louis, so they can meet there later. Faber also gives Montag his old clothes, hoping that his odor would divert and confuse the Hound.

After a long chase, Montag manages to escape and floats down the river. He finds a group of exiles led by a man called Granger, and joins them. They watch the end of the manhunt, a real spectacle, where an innocent pedestrian unwillingly plays a role of Montag and is killed by the Mechanical Hound. Granger tells Montag about their way of living: each group member had memorized a book, so they turned themselves into a walking library. They are not alone, there are thousands of drifting people, and every one of them is a book. Granger also muses about building of a large mirror factory, so each man can see his own face and reflect on his life.

Meanwhile the city is annihilated with nuclear weapons. Every city dweller, including Mildred, dies, but Faber is on his way to St. Louse, so he has some chance to survive. Exiles and Montag manage to survive the shock-wave.

In the morning, while they prepare to return to the city, Granger tells the legend of the Phoenix, a bird, who burns itself and then is reborn from ashes. He points out that the man is smarter than Phoenix, so he can be reborn and remember his mistakes and probably would not repeat them.

Exiles are on their way to ruined city, hoping to help possible survivors and eventually to rebuild the whole society. Now they are the memory of mankind.

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