Symbolism in Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury Essay example

Throughout English literature there are a number of authors who use symbolism to get a point across to the reader. Symbolism is a chance for the author to show the reader instead of tell. The futuristic book Fahrenheit 451 is a novel based around symbolism and ulterior meanings. Water and fire are symbols commonly used in all types of literature. These elements are especially apparent in mythology. Also, within the novel the parlor walls proved themselves to be more than what was initially apparent. These symbols give this book a very specific tone and mood.

An author often uses symbolism in order to give the reader a clue into a deeper meaning behind the story. A symbol is an object, person, place, or experience that represents something else, usually something abstract. Symbols challenge the readers simple explanation while relating to the everyday experience. In order to add depth to their stories, authors often use symbols to help the reader gain a greater understanding of the story.

Fahrenheit 451 is a dystopian work of fiction that occurs in the twenty-fourth century. It follows the journey of the protagonist, Guy Montag, a fireman who starts fires instead of putting them out. Montag's world is turned upside when one night after work, he meets Clarisse McClellan. She is Montag's seventeen-year-old neighbor who has a different idea about the function of the society the two live in. Before his unexpected meeting with Clarisse, Montag is content, even happy with his life and an occupation. After parting ways with her that evening, Montag examines his life and comes to the conclusion that he is actually not happy (“Fahrenheit 451: A Christian Perspective" 1). Montag is nauseated with the disillusionment of his life and is

“Firefighters never die, they just burn forever in the hearts of the people whose lives they saved” (Susan Murphree). In our society firemen extinguish fires and stop them rather than burning houses by starting fires. Fireman have dogs to find the people that are in the fires and help them out, however in the book they have mechanical hounds that have proboscis senses where the hound hunts down people who are going against the law. Another difference from real life and the book is the comparison between the firemen hoses. In real life water comes out of the hoses to stop the fires; kerosene comes out of the firemen hoses to start fires in people’s homes.

For the Fire conveys the themes the violence of nature or survival of the fittest. The Poems theme is displayed through the violent and aggressive descriptive language for example in the third stanza “kookaburra hacks with it’s axe-blade beak”. The language in this quote gives a visual image of the violence in nature that occurs. In the fourth and fifth stanza enjambment is placed to create a sense of violent imagery and emphasise the violence for example “ it’s legs arched; and claws clutching at the air”. In both of the quotes John Foulcher uses alliteration to focus the audiences attention to the more violent words generating further visual imagery.

Fire is a symbol that cannot be described in one word. Fire represents destruction, death, hostility, unpredictability, and the potential for limitless violence. Fire, however, also has a good side to it. Fire can be health, hospitality, control, food, shelter, light, and strength. With these characteristics in mind, fire has a number of different connotations. Many of these connotations can be found in one book. Fire, in William Golding’s book, Lord of the Flies, is a complex symbol, representing anarchy and the darkness inside of us, civilization and the light in all of us, and hope, the constant motivator for our survival.

In the book Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury, the author, uses many motifs. Some of the main ones are, Fire, Mirrors, and being both alive and dead. Fire is used to burn books, but Montag- the dynamic anti-hero, who is also the main character- also finds that it can be used for construction. Mirrors play the role of, in a way, of helping you find yourself, or understand yourself. In this novel being both alive and dead means that you are alive but you are emotionless and don’t feel anything towards anyone or anything.

In an interesting thought Montag comes upon an idea about burning that states "the sun burnt every day. It burnt time…So if he burnt things with the firemen and the sun burnt Time, that meant that everything burnt! One of them had to stop burning" (141).

In the novel, The Road, by Cormac McCarthy uses a wide range of symbols in The Road that helps the reader foster and construct new ideas about the novel as a whole. Some of these symbols are the fire and religious imagery that helps add substance to the story and help the reader think and understand the overall message of the novel. Insert thesis… In the novel fire In different cultures, fire symbolizes many things such as power, love, destruction, hate, hope, and desire. In the novel, I think fire symbolizes having the strength to maintain the qualities that makes people human such as hope, resilience, and perseverance because these qualities will help them face the hardships in their journey.

In the movie version of Fahrenheit 451, Francois Truffaut uses an apple to highlight knowledge. In the movie, apple symbolized the knowledge the characters shared. For example, the group of people that Montag was with shared same knowledge as they shared the same apple. However, at the beginning of the movie, one of the firemen couldn’t eat a leftover apple from a bookkeeper as Captain Bettay snatched it. Furthermore, this incident illuminates how the firemen were prohibited to read or gain any knowledge. While obtaining knowledge, the characters have risked their lives, and they had to face many obstructions. For instance, the Montag almost lost his life while escaping as he was among the bookkeepers. Knowledge is one

The hearth, or fireplace, is a traditional symbol of the home (Sparknotes Editors). The salamander is one of the official symbols of the firemen (Sparknotes Editors). Firemen also name their fire trucks after the salamander (Sparknotes Editors). Both of these symbols involve fire which is a big part of Montag’s life. The hearth contains the fire that heats his home and the salamander because they believed that salamanders live in fire and are unable to burn.

For example, he had told Beatty “don’t face a problem, burn it.” (115) after he had murdered him for the security of Professor Faber and himself. His actions were of self-defense and had only been done in the spur of the moment for it was the way to assure the safety of himself and his loved ones. Also, the fire “was not burning, it was warming”(139) which was extraordinarily rare because Guy had never appreciated a fire that did not destroy anyone’s life or property. Mr. Montag was astounded and flabbergasted because he speculated fire was for destruction not to be helpful. Furthermore, “its warmth… would give not take” from the people for they had been innovative. It had been a time to grant a pardon to the destruction and trauma fire had left. In conclusion, the fires have proven themselves useful other than burning books and knowledge to Guy Montag by guarding and securing

A Look into Notions of Conformity and Consensus in the Material Abundance of 1950s America

The next usage of symbolism that the audience is able to identify is that of the hearth. In the novel the hearth symbolizes fire and is commonly used to

The signal fire, one type if symbol, was made to catch the attention of passing by boats but it overpowers the young boys and brings destruction. At the assembly the conclusion to start a signal fire comes relatively as means of rescue. However, as the feed the fire it is evident that they cannot control it. The fire blazes out of hand and consumes everything, living or not, in its path. When things settle it is clear how overpowering the fire was and how weak the boys were to stop. Its destructive becomes clearer as Piggy states, ‘“-him with the mark on his face, I don’t see him. Where is he now”’ (Golding 46). Here Piggy is struggling and gasping to explain to everyone that the boy with the ‘Mulberry Face’ has been engulfed by the fire. The severity of the situation never dawns on them and he is nearly forgotten by the end of the story, they never speak of the Mulberry boy again. Fire, in the book and out, it very much like a dual blade,