“Stuff your eyes with wonder. Live as if you’d drop dead in ten seconds. See the world. It’s more fantastic than any dream made or paid for in a factory.”
“The
difference between the man who just mows lawns and the gardener is in the
touching. The lawn mower might just as well not have been there at all. The
gardener will be there a lifetime.”
Everybody was in a rush, so the dew on the
grass, the sensation of rain in the skin and the sunrise were insignificant
details to most people in Farenheit 451, but Clarisse McClellan appreciated them.
She liked to go for walks and enjoyed
watching nature. She observed people. She knew interesting facts about the past.
Clarisse was spontaneous and curious, and, unlike her peers, she rejected violence,
but in the Farenheit 451 society, Clarisse was considered creepy and crazy.
Books are banned and burned. They are
considered a dangerous source of useless ideas. The liberal arts no longer
exist. Critical thinking skills, knowledge and empathy are suppressed and
disregarded. Books can ignite controversy, so those who try to read them are
arrested.
In Farenheit 451 people are dumbed and numbed
by television and technology. It is a mechanical society that has no clue about
its history, and is not even aware of the extreme poverty in other parts of the
world.
When Montag, her neighbor, met Clarisse
during her walks, he felt irritated at first. Montag thought she was a peculiar
teenager. She was not considered normal by the societal standards. Normal
teenagers in Farenheit 415 are expected to be violent.
In Farenheit 451 people kill each other for
nothing.
Clarisse enjoyed meaningful conversations, and
she was curious about Mr. Montag’s life. Why did he burn books? He was a
fireman, but technology had created fireproof homes, so firemen were hired to burn
books instead. Gone were the days when firemen were expected to put out fires
in homes, and Montag was not even aware of that historical fact.
Clarisse planted a seed of transformation in
Montag. She asked him questions that made him feel uncomfortable and kindled a
sense of wonder in him: he opened up to the idea of unlocking the hidden world
of books. Clarisse sparked a new light of awareness for him.
Montag refused to continue working as a
fireman.
Montag escaped from his stagnant existence and meaningless occupation to rescue the soul of the books, and new perspectives delineated the beginning of a different life.
What kind of life would that be?
Throughout the story multiple artists and
literary authors are referenced; they were all male. Then I realized Ray
Bradbury wrote the book in the year 1951. In those days it was normal to
highlight the works of men, not women…At least, he mentioned Emily Dickinson in
the foreword of the edition of the book published in the year 1993.
Farenheit 451 left me in awe; the book is relevant
today on so many levels…
Yes, I do make the time to volunteer
to create a space of awareness, reflection, inspiration. If you feel connected
to Clarisse McClellan in more ways than one, you are not alone. Welcome to My
Writing Life blog, and thank you for reading.
If you enjoyed
this post, you may also like to read my writing on the following posts:
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
The Handmaid’sTale by Margaret Atwood
