Fahrenheit 451 Study Questions Part 1: The Hearth and the Salamander (pages 1-65) Section 1 (p. 1-15) 1. What was Guy Montag s job? What smelled like perfume to Montag? (4) How long has he had this job, and does he like it? (5) 2. What do the firemen actually do for a living? (6) 3. When Montag is on his way home, who does he meet? How old she she? What does she like to do? (5) 4. Read the paragraph that begins with He opened the bedroom door. and ends with The room was not empty. Explain the imagery and what it seems to foreshadow. (9) 5. Who is Mildred, and why does she need help when Montag gets home? (9-11) 6. Why did the Emergency Hospital send handymen instead of doctors to treat Mildred? (13) 7. What symbols does Montag wear on his uniform? Look up the symbols in a dictionary. What do they represent? (1-2) 8. Montag says, You never wash it off completely referring to kerosene. What could this mean symbolically? (4) 9. Explain the significance of the following quote: What does it tell us about the society in which Montag lives? I sometimes think drivers don t know what grass is, or flowers, because they never see them slowly, she said. (6) 10.Clarisse asked Montag a question. What was the question? Why did this question upset him? (7) Section 2 (p. 15-28) 11.How does Mildred react after she wakes up from her previous night s experience? (16) 12.What does Mildred do all day? (17-18) 13.Describe the setup of the Montag s parlor. (18) 14.What does Clarisse do with the dandelion? (19) Why does this upset Montag? What does this tell us about him? (make an inference) 15.What is the mechanical hound and what is its purpose? What do the firemen do with it when they are bored? (21-23) What is the hound s reaction to Montag? 16.Describe the fireman s pole. How is it different than the ones we have today? (23) 17.Who gave Clarisse most of her information about the way life used to be? (28) 18.Why did Montag read the end of Mildred s play script before leaving for work? (18) 19.Why does society consider Clarisse anti-social? What does anti-social mean in today s terms? How is the definition opposite in Fahrenheit 451? (26-27)
Section 3 (p. 29-39) 20.What are the fireman s rules of conduct? (32) 21.How did the firemen know which houses had books? (33) 22.What is the normal procedure when an alarm is called in on someone? How is this alarm different? (33-34) 23.What did Montag do in the old woman s attic? (34) 24.The woman is upset. What does she say? Copy what she says into your notebook. What is heresy? How could the woman s actions be considered heresy. (34 & 37) 25.Who started the fire at the old woman s house? (37) 26.What are the Seashells? (39) 27.How is the book that is lit on fire described? (34) How is it similar to how the author describes the book at the beginning of the novel? Section 4 (p. 39-60) 28.What has happened to Clarisse? Who tells Montag about what has happened? What is Montag s reaction to this news? (44-48) Who or what does Montag feel is outside that night right after he finds out? (45) 29.What was Montag afraid Captain Beatty would discover when he came to visit? (53) 30.Why did Captain Beatty believe books should be destroyed? (50-60) 31.What happened to Clarisse and her family? (57) Was it an accident? (make an inference) 32.What is the rule about a fireman who takes home a book? (59) 33.Who are the relatives? (41) 34. Explain Montag and Mildred s relationship based on the events in Part 1. Are they close? Why or why not? Give examples to explain. (Compare the As he stood there paragraph on page 11 and pages 40-41 When did we meet. And where? ) Section 5 (p. 61-65) 35.What is and has been hidden behind the grill of the air conditioning system? What is Mildred s first response? (62-63)
Part II: The Sieve and the Sand Section 6 (p. 67-76) 36.Who is Montag still thinking about? (68) 37.What is Mildred s impression of books? How do books compare to the parlour walls? (69) 38.Montag talks about his chance encounter with the old man in the park. Explain what happened. Why do you think that Montag never turned in the old man? (70-71) 39.What is the question Montag calls Faber to ask him? How does Faber react? (71-72) 40.What does Faber tell Montag about the books? (72) 41.What does Montag question Mildred about? (73) 42.Montag feels numb. When does he figure that the numbness started? (73-74) 43.What is a sieve? (74) 44.How is the train s radio personified? (74-75) 45.Why is Mildred worried about being caught with the books? What does this tell you of her character? (69) 46.How does the following quote relate to how Montag feels about books: Once a child had sat upon a yellow dune in the sea in the middle of the blue and hot summer day trying to fill a sieve with sand, because some cruel cousin had said, Fill this sieve with sand and you ll get a dime. And the faster he poured the faster it sifted through with a hot whispering. His hands were tired, the sand was boiling, the sieve was empty. (74) 47.Why do you think Bradbury included the Denham s Dentifrice commercial? (74-75) Section 7 (p. 76-88) 48.Describe Faber. (76) 49.Why has Montag come to see Faber? (81) 50.What are the three things Faber says are missing from society? Tell how each is indeed missing from the society in Fahrenheit 451. (79-81) 51.According to Faber, are the firemen needed? What purpose does Faber see the firemen as serving? (83) 52.What plan did Montag and Faber devise? (84-85) 53.What was Montag willing to do to convince Faber to help carry out the plan? (84) 54.What does Montag ultimately do with the Bible before leaving Faber s house? (87) 55.What is the green bullet? What is its purpose? Who made it? (86-87)
56.Why do you think that Montag describes his wife as dying? (77) 57.Faber considers himself a coward. Do you agree or disagree? Explain. (78) 58.Explain Faber s statement: Montag, go home Why waste your final hours racing about your cage denying you re a squirrel. (84) 59.How does Faber s explanation about the purpose of firemen (83) differ from Beatty s definition (59)? Section 8 (p. 88-106) 60.Who comes over to the Montag s house? Why do they come? (90) 61.Is Mrs. Bowles a good mother? What activity does she compare watching her children with? Why? (92-93) 62.The women and this society put so much value on physical appearance. How do they demonstrate how valuable an attractive person is? (93) 63.What does Montag do that is very unusual for this society? What does he insist that the women do with him? (94) What reason does he tell Faber for showing them?(95) 64.How did Mildred cover for Montag? (95) 65.Why did Montag burn the book of poetry in the wall incinerator in his home? 66.Where did Montag hide his books after the ladies left? 67.Where does Montag now hide the books? (98) 68.Who is driving the fire truck? Did this person usually drive? Why do you think that he is driving tonight? (106) 69.Where is the alarm that the firemen go to? (106) 70.Why did the women react the way they did to the poem The Sea of Faith? (96-97) 71.Why is Montag so mad at the women? (98) 72.When Montag is at the fire station, what do his hands feel like? Why? (101)
Part III: Burning Bright (Sections 9-11) Section 9: (p.107-123) 73.Captain Beatty has stopped in front of Montag s house. Montag is surprised. Beatty does not think that this should come as a surprise to Montag. Why? (107) 74.Who does Beatty think fooled Montag and caused his problems? (107-108) 75.Where is Mildred and what does she do when they arrive at her house? (108) 76.What does Beatty want Montag to do? Why? (109) What does Faber want Montag to do? Why can t Montag do what Faber tells him to do? (110) 77.What feelings does Montag have about the burning of his house? (110) 78.When Montag finishes destroying the house, what is supposed to happen to him? (111) 79.Who turned in the alarm for Montag s house? (111) 80.What takes place between Montag and Beatty? What does Beatty discover during this? (112) 81.What does Montag do to Captain Beatty? (112-113) Why didn t Montag run away instead? 82.Explain the incident with the Mechanical Hound. What happens to the hound? (114) 83.What does Montag feel he has done to Faber? Why does he think this? (117) 84.What does Montag hear on the Seashells? What does he do? (117-119) 85.What significant event does he learn of when he visits the gas station? (119) 86.Explain what happens to Montag after he leaves the gas station (119-123) 87.Why do you think Mildred turns Montag in? (108) 88.Do you think that Beatty really wanted to die? Why does Montag believe this to be true? Explain. (113) 89.What are some of the emotions that you think Montag feels in this section? Explain at least 3 of them. (107-123)
Section 10 (p. 123-138) 90. In whose house does Montag hide some books? Where does he hide them? What does he do next? (123-124) 91. Montag questions all that has happened in the last week. How does Faber feel about helping Montag? (124-125) 92. Where does Faber tell Montag he should go? Who else will he find there? (125-126) 93. Faber gives Montag a small postcard-sized TV. What is being broadcast tonight? Is this event similar to anything you might have watched on TV? (126) 94. Why did Faber decide to go to St. Louis? (129) 95. What instructions does Montag give to Faber for after he leaves? Why does he do this? (129) 96. Why did Montag take whiskey, a suitcase, and some of Faber's dirty clothes with him? (129) 97. How does the audience become involved in the drama? (131-132) 98. How does Montag get out of the city? (133) 99. What are some of the things that Montag thinks about while he is in the river? (133-136) 100. Where did this quote come from? The river was very real; it held him comfortably and gave him the time at last, the leisure, to consider this month, this year, and a lifetime of years. Why is this important now? (134). (Hint: it s from earlier in the book Fahrenheit 451 ). 101. What did the railroad tracks mean to Montag? (138)
Section 11 (p. 138-158) 102. What was different about the fire Montag saw after leaving the river? (139) 103. How do the men react to Montag s arrival? (140) 104. Why do the police stop chasing Montag? Explain thoroughly. How does Montag react to this? (141-142) 105. What had Montag been able to memorize? Why does he say that he has nothing to offer? (144) 106. Why did each man identify himself as famous author or piece of literature? (144-145) 107. What happens to Montag s city? (151-153) 108. Describe the thoughts that are going on inside Montag regarding Clarisse, Mildred, Beatty, and Faber. (151-153) 109. What did Montag and the intellectuals believe their mission to be once the war ended? 110. Who is Granger and what is his importance? (140-end) 111. How does the book end? Explain why Bradbury ends it this way. (157-158) 112. Explain the following symbols or ideas: a. the river b. burning c. senses d. fire e. book burning