Hudgins 1 Name:Kate Hudgins Ariail English 9A January 2016 The Many Meanings of Fire in ​
Fahrenheit 451 Guy Montag is a man who makes a living burning books. In ​
Fahrenheit 451​
,​
the engulfing flames of the fire not only burn the books but education, independence, and emotion the books bring to the citizens in Montag’s society. As the fire burns away at Montag’s heart and soul we watch him transform as a character and fight for what is right. Continuously throughout the book fire is not only represented as a curse, but a blessing. The symbol of fire with its red and orange blares has the power not only to leave behind charred memories, but also a sense of comfort and warmth. Fire takes on many contrasting roles throughout the novel. In the novel ​
Fahrenheit 451,​
Ray Bradbury uses a fire motif to represent multiple and contradictory themes throughout the novel including: destruction and power, peace and comfort, and finally purification. Throughout ​
Fahrenheit 451, ​
Bradbury uses fire as a motif of power and destruction. A primary theme in the novel is the effort for society to control the independant thinking of its citizens. The role of the firemen is to use the power of fire to eliminate and destroy books which lead to independent thinking. The firemen are initially portrayed as taking delight in the power of burning books. In the first sentence of the novel, Bradbury writes: “It was a pleasure to burn” (Bradbury 1). Bradbury introduces the reader to the fireman Montag, who is grinning as he uses his hose of fire, like serpent, to burn the books. The action of burning the books is described as “burning to down . . . the ruins of history” (Bradbury 1). By destroying history, the fire is destroying knowledge and independent thinking. An even more disturbing scene in the book describes how the firemen’s power has grown to even accept that they can kill people in their quest to destroy knowledge. Bradbury describes how even an ordinary kitchen match can be exciting and powerful in a scene in which a woman who has books is burned alive in her house. “An ordinary kitchen match. The sight of it rushed the men out and down away from the house”(Bradbury 37). Later in the novel as Montag begins to question society’s rules and the Hudgins 2 burning of books, Captain Beatty tries to encourage him to embrace the power of controlling the actions and knowledge of different and diverse people through using fire to burn books. “Colored people don’t like ​
Little Black Sambo​
, burn it. White people don’t like ​
Uncle Tom’s Cabin​
, burn it” (Bradbury 57).​
​
This sentence shows that there is a mind set that fire and burning things is the solution to all problems. Although fire is a motif toward power it also shows weakness as its blares weaken and eat away at whatever it is destroying. Contrary to the theme of power and destruction, Bradbury also uses fire as a motif of peace, comfort and hope for human beings. Fire is reminiscent of the feeling of sitting by a fire on a cold night. When Montag first meets Clarisse, who herself is almost like a light of fire in the darkness, he recalls his childhood when he was comforted by his mother lighting a candle in a power outage. He recalls the sense of security he had by the light of a candle: “ One time, as a child, in a power failure, his mother had found and lit a last candle and there had been a brief hour of rediscovery, of such illumination that space lost its vast dimensions and drew comfortable around them, and they mother and son alone” (Bradbury 5). Fire as a contrast to destruction is used as a symbol of hope later in the novel. Specifically, the woman who burns to death with her books bravely speaks of the power of independent thinking as symbolized by the light of a candle. The quality of independent thinking in mankind is likened to a candle that can not be put out. “Play the man, Master Ridley; we shall this day light such a candle, by God’s grace, in England, as I trust shall never be put out”(Bradbury 34). In the final section of the novel, Montag has abandoned the society which burns book and is fighting for the freedom of thought that comes from learning and reading. He realizes the power of fire as comforting and warming when he wanders in the wilderness outside of the city which is now burning. He is comforted and warmed by fire: “That small motion, the white and red color, a strange fire because it meant a different thing to him. It was not burning, it was warming” (Bradbury 143). Warmth is a comforting feeling, without warmth from fire we would die from the cold wraths of winter. Warmth and comfort are shown to be the positive side of fire throughout ​
Fahrenheit 451. In ​
Fahrenheit 451, ​
the burning of fire also represents a purification of society in several ways. Early in the novel, fire is a motif of almost a perverse purification of society through the burning of books. Captain Beatty, and other firemen, work to rid society of all independent Hudgins 3 thinking and individuality by cremating all the knowledge and history of mankind contained in books. When Captain Beatty visits Montag and Mildred at their home, he remarks: “Burn all, burn everything. Fire is bright and fire is clean” (Bradbury 58). In this moment, Captain Beatty is trying to reinforce to Montag his duty as a fireman. Beatty seems to sense that Montag is beginning to doubt the purpose of his work. As the novel progresses and Montag has left his city, Bradbury again uses fire to symbolize purification, but this time in a more positive sense. The sun, which is actually a ball of fire, represents the opportunity to start each day off with a clean slate as time passes. Montag describes the sun as burning “Time”, which really means that each day in a sense we are purified and always have a chance to start over: “The sun burned every day. It burned Time. The world rushed in a circle and turned on its axis and time was busy burning the years and the people anyway” (Bradbury 139). Finally, fire and burning symbolize purification as an opportunity for total rebirth. Toward the end of the novel, Montag meets Granger, a professor who had tried to keep literature alive through memorization. As the city is being bombed behind them, Granger compares civilization to the Phoenix, a bird that rises up out of the ashes. In this case, Bradbury again uses fire to symbolize purification in its most complete form, rebirth. There is hope in civilization rising up out of the ashes like the Phoenix, and starting over. Granger hopes that man will now be able to learn from his mistakes so the world does not repeat the tragedy. Granger states: “ There was a silly little bird called a Phoenix back before Christ: every few hundred years he built a pyre and burned himself up. He must have been a cousin to Man. But every time he burnt himself up he sprang out of the ashes, he got himself born all over again” (Bradbury 161).This is saying that there’s always another day, there is always a fresh start, so when you make mistakes you mustn't worry. “New beginnings are often disguised as painful endings”, the painful ending being fire, and the new beginning being a clean slate. Fire is a powerful motif throughout ​
Fahrenheit 451​
. It represents multiple themes which seem to contradict each other including: power and destruction, peace and comfort, and the purification of society. Throughout ​
Fahrenheit 451​
the reader begins to connect fire to broader issues which have a lasting impact on life and society. First, fire represents the power struggle to control man’s independant thinking. Fire also can symbolize the warmth and loving nature of Hudgins 4 mankind. Finally, fire offers an opportunity for hope and rebirth just as the Phoenix rises out the ashes. Mankind must learn from his mistakes, like fire, man is very destructive when he is out of control; but when he works for good as when the power of fire is used for good, he can comfort and offer opportunities for hope and renewal. Hudgins 5 Works Cited Bradbury, Ray. ​
Fahrenheit 451.​
New York: Simon & Schuster, 2013. Electronic (kindle).