Fahrenheit 451 Themes
Theme Chart Notes
Theme Topic: Knowledge vs
Ignorance
• Firemen destroy knowledge (books)
• Government promotes ignorance
• What is critical thinking?
– Challenging ideas rather than accepting them
• Look for the contrast between Faber and Captain
•
Beatty
Look for Montag’s journey from ignorance to
enlightenment
– What is enlightenment you say?
Theme Topic: Government Control/
Conformity
• Government Control – The government
seeks to control the people by making them
ignorant of their history
– How could this be a form of control?
• Conformity – In this fictional world it is
highly prized to be the SAME.
– No one is allowed to have individual thoughts
– Interestingly this is SELF-ENFORCED by the
citizens...hmmmm, sound familiar?
• What are some similarities to our modern
society?
Theme Topic: Over-reliance on
Technology
• TV and electronics are the enemy (even though they
•
seem like amazing advancements that we’d all
enjoy)!
The argument for the advanced technology is that
people are HAPPIER when they DON’T have to
THINK!
– Sound familiar? I love a good Kardashian episode...don’t
you?
• What are the problems with becoming too overly
reliant on technology?
– Look for these for your theme chart
Theme Topic: Man vs Natural
World
• Think about “There Will Come Soft Rains”
– Who won? Man or the Natural World?
– Who ultimately has more control?
• Man = Technology/government/conformity
• Natural World = engagement/truth/living
• What is our life cycle? How does
technology work to eliminate the natural
cycle of life?
Theme Topic: Dissatisfaction
• Are you really happy?
• Everyone in this novel seems to be
happy...they have what we all want! The
best that money can buy in technological
advances!
– Watch TV all day, have food made for them at
any time, drive cars as fast as they want
• Sounds like a dream right? Or is it?
Theme Topic: Violence
• The futuristic world of Fahrenheit 451 is
violent
– They have no respect for human life
– Violence is an outlet for pent-up emotions
• Why do you think this is? As we read, and
consider how the other themes relate to
this theme...is there a problem here?
Theme Topic: Censorship
• No one is able to think independently
• If they have an original idea, it is quelled
immediately – They may be put in jail or
sent to a doctor for psychological help
• This is connected to books....but don’t let
that bother you (even if you don’t love to
read)...the problem is NO ONE IS ABLE TO
SPEAK HIS/HER MIND! (Books are merely
symbolic of this problem!)
Theme Chart pgs. 3-14
Main Points
•Montag is a fireman that sets fires
Setting
Characters
He’s on a Montag – a
•Montag meets street
fireman and
Clarisse and
and it’s
the
she asks him if
dark
protagonist
he’s happy
•Montag finds
Montag’s Clarisse – 17
his wife has
House
& crazy,
tried to
commit suicide and a war insightful
is
Mildred beginning
Relation to
Theme
Violence –
Montag seems
obsessed with
burning
Dissatifaction –
mildred’s
attempted
suicide and
Guy’s
admission that
Theme Chart pgs. 14-28
Main Points Setti Characte Relation to Theme
ng rs
•Mildred
gets her
stomach
pumped
•Montag
sees
Clarisse
(dandelion
test)– He’s
not in love
•The
Mon Midred
tag’s Montag
Hou Clarisse
se
On
the
stre
et
Captain
Beatty
Dissatisfaction –
Mildred’s denial of her
suicide attempt and
Montag is not in love
Violence/Government
Control – The hound
kills people to show
the power of the
government over the
community (Over
reliance on
Theme Chart pgs. 28-42
Main Points Setting Charact Relation to Theme
ers
•Clarisse explains why she’s
“antisocial”
•Montag
steals a
book
•The
woman
commits
suicide by
burning
herself
On the street
Clarisse and Montag
The
burning
woman’
s house
Captain
Beatty,
Stonem
an and
Black
Violence – Clarisse’s classmates hurt each other, Fun
Parks
Conformity – Everyone is expected to be the same
(high school)
Knowledge vs
Ignorance –
Montag is moving
towards
knowledge
Woman Violence/Dissatisfa
ction – woman kills
who
burned herself
Theme Chart pgs. 42-53
Main Points Setting
Characters
•Montag
Mildred and Overrelianc
Montag
e on Tech –
Mildred
Dissatisfacti
on –
Montag
Violence –
Clarisse has
been hit by
a car
feels like
Mildred’s
TV family is
more
important
to her
•Montag
finds out
that
Clarisse is
Montag’s
house
Relation to
Theme
Theme Chart pgs. 53-68
Main Points Setting
Characters
Relation to
Theme