1. An analysis of Fahrenheit 451 characters by Adriana Garties
Brains
An analysis of Fahrenheit 451 characters by Adriana Garties
Faber
Firemen
Clarisse
Mildred

2. Clarisse Self Curiosity Others Montag
Unlike most of her peers, Clarisse thinks other people more than herself. When they first meet, Clarisse really seems to be interested in what Montag has to say. He, “felt that if his eye itched, she might blink. And if the muscles of his jaw stretched imperceptibly, she would yawn long before he would” (Bradbury 11). Much of herself is affected by others.
Clarisse
Montag asked Clarisse, “What do you do, go around trying everything once?”(p.21) Beatty finds it strange that, “She didn’t want to know how a thing was done, but why” (Bradbury 60) From the things she does, it seems like she is always trying to discover new depth in her world.
Self
Curiosity
Others
She seems like a very considerate, selfless person. Clarisse is also interested in why their society is the way it is. She reveals to Montag, “I like to watch people….I just want to figure out who they are and what they want and where they’re going” ( Bradbury 30). She makes many observations about Montag, other firemen, and people in general.
Montag
“’Because I like you,’ she said, ‘and I don’t want anything from you. And because we know each other’”(Bradbury 28). Clarisse pointed this out when Montag wonders why, “I feel I’ve known you do many years,” (Bradbury 28). She and Montag have a connection. She enjoys talking to him and thinks about how he is unique.

3. Mildred
self
Montag
Entertainment/luxuries
friends
Click on a region

4. Firemen FIRE Right-brain control + self guilt
Some people derive pleasure from cacophonous parlor programs, or speeding cars, but the firemen get their high from burning. Destroying a house gives the men a snatch of the emotion that has become so hard to find. Bradbury explains, “ It never went away, that smile, it never went away as long as he remembered” (Bradbury 4).
Firemen
Most of the citizens in the book seem to have forgotten how to imagine. Creativity hasn’t totally disappeared from the minds of the human race though. It still exists, but the part of the brain that dreams and questions has been sealed off. As a result, most people only use part of their brains. Lessons are just useless facts. Beatty explains, “’Cram them full of noncombustible data…Then they’ll feel they’re thinking, they’ll get a sense of motion without moving’”(Bradbury 61)
FIRE
As shown in Lord of the Flies and Macbeth, humans enjoy control. Montag feels like, “some amazing conductor playing all the symphonies of blazing and burning to bring down the tatters and charcoal ruins of history” (Bradbury 3). When the other firemen are making gladiator games with the hound, Montag hears, “the piano-string scurry of rat feet, the violin squeaking of mice” (Bradbury 25).
Right-brain
control + self
Every fireman, at one point, must feel some guilt. Even if they don’t realize it, there is probably guilt buried somewhere. Montag’s guilt eventually caught up with him. As he said, “how can I leave myself alone? We need not to be left alone. We need to be really bothered once in a while” (Bradbury 52)
guilt

5. Faber self memories rebellion books
Living alone in such an empty life, Faber might begin to live in memories more than the present. He has memories of happier times when he could read and feel emotion. He reminisces, “‘I loved to smell them when I was a boy. Lord, there were a lot of lovely books once, before we let them go’” (Bradbury 81). His mind easily wanders back to happier times.
memories
rebellion
Like most, Faber’s first priority is his life. He is afraid to challenge the system alone, or to stand up for his beliefs. He explains, “when finally they set the structure to burn the books, using the firemen, I grunted a few times and subsided, for there were no others grunting or yelling with me, by then” (Bradbury 82).
Just barely outweighed in his brain by selfishness, is rebellion. Faber wants to do something about the society, but he lacks the courage to go beyond furtive plots and reading. When describing himself, Faber says, “My cowardice is of such a passion, complementing the revolutionary spirit that lives in its shadow” (Bradbury 90). Coward or not, he felt rebellious enough to build technology that could help bring about changes in the system.
books
Faber must think about books often, because he uses many metaphors. When speaking conversationally, “He said something to Montag, and Montag sensed it was a rhymless poem” (Bradbury 75).

6. self
The one thing that matters most in Mildred’s life is herself. She shows almost no emotion towards anyone else. When Montag mentions Clarisse, she says, “She’s dead. Let’s talk about someone alive for goodness’ sake” (Bradbury 72). She often tells Montag that he should care more about her.

7. Montag
Montag is one of the least important things in his wife’s life. She sees him only a source of money, and only thinks about him when his actions are directly affecting her. Even though he is the one holding her life together, she has almost no interest in him. When Montag is reluctant to spend a third of his year’s wages on a new wall, she says, “It’s only two thousand dollars…And I should think you’d consider me sometimes.” (Bradbury 20).

8. Entertainment/luxuries
Mildred is entirely dependent on technology for both her happiness and her everyday needs. It helps to provide a structure for her life, a schedule that allows her to spend blissful days without thinking. The toaster in the kitchen dips the toast in butter and brings it right to her hands. She almost never caught without her seashells, and about every waking moment is spent in the parlor. The conversation between Mildred and Montag when he is sick shows how technology has taken over her life.
“’will you turn the parlor off?’ he asked.
‘That’s my family.’
‘Will you turn it off for a sick man?’
I’ll turn it down.’
She went out of the room and did nothing to the parlor.”(Bradbury 48-49

9. friends
Mildred’s “friends” are just another way of keeping her happy. When watching the parlor walls gets a little too monotonous, she gets together with other women and watches the walls with them. She needs occasional human contact to stay happy. When her friends are coming over, “Mildred’s face was suffused with excitement” (Bradbury 76). Although entirely dependent on technology, Mildred requires a few actual humans to laugh with and show off her house to. However, when “ the ladies” come over, all they do is watch the parlor shows just as if they were at home.