farenheight 451
Most humans are unaware of their inner-selves and their emotions, they accept this artificial feeling that their day to day life induces. Most people are not at a level of understanding for what makes them truly happy. Happiness is something one seeks to find to make the mental side of life a greater quality. It creates a sense inside one to relieve the day to day societal stress bombs dropped on every individual. The one thing that increases happiness within one’s mind is increasing its state, the strength, and the level of superiority compared to others.
Bradbury shows in his novel, Fahrenheit 451, through the dialogue, and internal thoughts of Main Characters, that knowledge holds the key to unlock the physiological gates of true happiness in life. The key aspect exposed by Bradbury through the internal thoughts of Montag, shows that the knowledge of books lets one catch a glimpse of genuine happiness. If risking the burning of your own home to find some happiness within books in an anti-literature society is what it takes, Montag will do it. Ideas in his mind, such as when he was contemplating the comparison of his fingers: “Fingers were like ferrets that had done some evil and now never rested, always stirred and picked and hid in pockets, moving from under Beatty’s alcohol-flame stare”(Bradbury 101) shows the inner growth he was experiencing. When Montag exposed himself to and absorbed the ink filled pages, it sparked the sense of wonder and made him question his societal views and expand his individual mental processes (70).
He was finally beginning to learn and embrace the constructed words that were named books. He was finding what it meant to be truly happy (71). He was changing, and evolving into a man who can think for himself. Happiness was a rare find in such a close minded dwindling society. Another essential point is when Bradbury shows the value of information gained through the dialogue of Faber and Guy Montag when they join powers to furthermore promote the growth of personal knowledge. When the meeting of Guy Montag and Faber occurs, there was an automatic click.
The amount of people in their world who knew and appreciated the physiological value of literature was little to none. When Guy Montag proposed the idea of “This afternoon I thought that if it turned out that books were worthwhile, we might get a press and print some extra copies-“(81), he showed how he wanted to join mental forces and spread the happiness they call literature. They were all or nothing, conversing and proposing new plans, new ideas, and finally becoming partners to fight the societal expectations together (81-85). In their world, this society they live in, the mental processes of humans lacks to make an appearance besides the select few such as Faber. The ones that stand out in this book use the twists and the turns of the pages and the meanings behind the words to produce this feeling of wonder and curiosity, all to produce this sensation that is happiness.
People such as Faber can produce complex sentences containing devices and structure such as “I’ve lived alone so many years, throwing images on walls with my imagination”(86), or “my cowardice is of such a passion, contemplating the revolutionary spirit that lives in its shadow”(86). Faber and Montag have gifts, minds that actually think. And that is what sets them apart, they want to expand the knowledge of their brains just for the sheer sense of personal gain. And through this personal gain of knowledge is where the happiness spawns. The idea that knowledge is power, and that mental power leads to one’s happiness is what Montag and Faber strive off of. Furthermore, when Montag finally begins his escape from the closed minded city, through his and Faber’s dialogue and internal thoughts during the escape, it shows the value of wisdom.
The escape for Montag was no easy task, his and Faber’s final conversation left them wishing good luck and final goodbyes.(129-130). His thoughts were constructed of nothing but wanting to escape, wanting to be able to finally live. Finally be able to live without undergoing the sense of fear. Always having to watch your back, second guessing every move.
His life became basically pointless up until now in the novel. The time when Guy Montag thought “left the great seance and all the murmuring ghosts”(133), or finally when he thought “After a long time of floating on the land and a short time of floating in the river he knew why he must never burn again in his life”(134). His life was filled with excitement, not burning or sadness. All for the risk of what? Wisdom, a sense of intelligence. Montag knew this was worth it after he succeeds and is able to read and grow. Not just Montag, yet humans as a whole.
Knowledge and wisdom is among the most important things in life, and through Montag and Faber’s dialogue and internal thoughts shows the true meaning of why knowledge is such an essential point in the happiness throughout one’s inner self. To sum up, life is what you make it. Only when one breaks the barriers of their normal doings to find what infringes happiness upon them, is when life can be fulfilled. Everyone is on a clock, dwindling down with every second. And when you fill the falling numbers of your clock with knowledge, only then can life be fully experienced. Bradbury showed through many cases in the novel that when one seeks knowledge to find fulfillment, true happiness is created.
When true happiness is created, the equation to a happy life is finally finished.
