Burning Bright

"Burning Bright" - while one of my favorite songs by Shinedown, it is also the title of Part III in Fahrenheit 451.  As we near the end of the novel, you will need to write one more blog post discussing this part of the novel and/or the novel as whole.  Remember that you need to write at least 250-300 words in your post and that you need to use good writing conventions.

Blog Prompts for "Burning Bright"

1. Clarisse describes a past that Montag has never known: one with front porches, gardens, and rocking chairs. What do these items have in common, and how might their removal have encouraged Montag's repressive society?
2. How does Montag feel when the bomb drops on his city?
3. How are the books being saved?  Is this the best method, considering the situation?
4. Why doesn’t the government pursue Montag outside of the city?
5. What does Montag start to quote from at the end of the novel?  Why is that important?
6. Does this novel end with hope? Explain.
7. Why doesn't Bradbury let Faber survive? Explain
8. Montag turns to books to rescue him; instead they help demolish his life -- he loses his wife, job and home; he kills a man and is forced to be a nomad. Does he gain any benefits from books? If so, what are they?
9. Do you believe, as Montag did, that Beatty wanted to die? If so, why do you think so?
10. Since the government is so opposed to readers, thinkers, walkers, and slow drivers, why does it allow the procession of men along the railroad tracks to exist?
11. Once Montag becomes a violent revolutionary, why does the government purposely capture an innocent man in his place instead of tracking down the real Montag? Might the government believe that Montag is no longer a threat?
12. What does Granger mean when he says, "We're going to go build a mirror factory first and put out nothing but mirrors for the next year and take a long time to look at them?" Why would "mirrors" be important in this new society? (Note: In Part 1, Clarisse is said to be "like a mirror.")

The Sieve and the Sand

Happy part two of Fahrenheit 451!  As you've surely noticed, this is an ironic dystopian novel.  The question is, what does Bradbury want us, as the reader, to realize?  What is the purpose of this novel?  Now, this is hopefully readily apparent, but it is important to find support for this (these) purpose(s). The following blog prompts will help us in this endeavor.  Remember that your blog response needs to be 250-300 words and demonstrate complete thoughts and good writing conventions.

 Blog Prompts

1. Why would society make "being a pedestrian" a crime? (Clarisse tells Montag that her uncle was once arrested for this.)
2. One of the most significant of the many literary allusions in Fahrenheit 451 occurs when Montag reads Matthew Arnold's poem "Dover Beach." What is the response of Mildred's friends, and why does Montag kick them out of his house?
3. One suicide and one near-suicide occur in this book. One woman, who shuns books but loves TV and driving fast in her car, anesthetizes herself,; "We get these cases nine or ten a night," says the medical technician. Another woman, who cherishes her books, sets herself on fire with them; "These fanatics always try suicide," says the fire captain. Why would two people who seem to be so different from each other try to take their own lives? Why does suicide happen so frequently in Montag's society?"
4. Beatty tells Montag that firemen are "custodians of peace of mind" and that they stand against "those who want to make everyone unhappy with conflicting theory and thought." How well are the firemen accomplishing these objectives? Are conflicting ideas the only source of unhappiness in their society? What other sources might there be? Can conflicting ideas exist even without books that have been destroyed and outlawed?
5. Captain Beatty quotes history, scripture, poetry, philosophy. He is obviously a well-read man. Why hasn't he been punished? And why does he view the books he's read with such contempt? How can Beatty's knowledge of and hatred for books be reconciled?
6. Why do you think the firemen's rulebook credited Benjamin Franklin-- writer, publisher, political leader, inventor, ambassador--as being the first fireman?
7. Why does Beatty program the Hound to track Montag even before Montag stole the book? Do you believe Beatty had seen him steal books before? Or is it that Beatty had detected a change in Montag's attitude or behavior? Cite incidents in the book that support your answer.
8. This part of the book is aptly named.  Discuss the symbolism of the "sieve and the sand."  Be sure to include examples as support (Faber offers quite a few).

Fahrenheit 451

"It was a pleasure to burn." What a great opening line.  This is right up there with "Call me Ishmael" and "It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen" - such wonderful openings!  As you know by now, we are reading Fahrenheit 451 in English 10.  When Ray Bradbury first published this extraordinary tale, many of the things he writes of could only be dream - from the 'parlor walls' to the 'bullet cars' to the 'seashell radios.'  It's amazing to think that he predicted many things that are commonplace in society today.

I realize that some of you may forget (or possibly intentionally leave) your book at school.  Good news: the text to Fahrenheit 451 is readily available online.  I recommend the following link as it is the easiest to read: http://kisi.deu.edu.tr/murat.goc/451.pdf.

Now for the fun part.  As you know, you will need to write a blog post about each of the three parts of the novel.  For the first part, "The Hearth and the Salamander" you need to choose one of the following prompts.  Remember that your posts need to be 250-300 words and demonstrate good writing conventions.  And it goes without saying that your analysis needs to be well thought out.  A final note: you may want to discuss more than one of the prompts.

Prompts

1. Montag comes to learn that "firemen are rarely necessary" because "the public itself stopped reading of its own accord." Bradbury wrote his novel in 1953: To what extent has his prophecy come true today? 
2. Clarisse describes a past that Montag has never known: one with front porches, gardens, and rocking chairs. What do these items have in common, and how might their removal have encouraged Montag's repressive society?
3. What do the firemen “do” for a job?  According to pages 3-4, what does Montag think of his job?
4. During his conversation, Montag tells Clarisse that "You never wash it off completely" referring to the kerosene. What could this mean symbolically?
5. Why do you think that Bradbury would introduce Clarisse before Montag's wife, Mildred?  How is Clarisse different than Mildred?
6. What is the mechanical hound and what is its purpose?  What is the hound's reaction to Montag?  What does this foreshadow?
7. On page 40, Beatty reveals something very important about himself and his knowledge. What is it?
8. Who is Mildred's "family"?  How does she spend her days?  How does she fall asleep at night?
9. What has happened to Clarisse? How did it happen? What is unusual about the way Mildred told Montag about Clarisse?
10. Read pages 55-62 very carefully. They contain great truths about our world. List three things Beatty talks about in his speech to Montag that are true about our world and elaborate on those topics.