Fahrenheit 451
Part 2: The Sieve and the Sand
Pages 67-88
Discussion Questions
1. What did Montag expect to happen after he read from the
books, and why is he disappointed when he does begin reading?
(p. 70)
Montage expected that the books would offer the key to a
richer, fuller, more meaningful life. However, even after
rereading some pages several times, he cannot make sense of
what he is reading. Montag admits to himself: “Poor Montag,
It’s mud to you, too” (p. 70). He has no concept of intellectual
enrichment because he has never experienced those things in his
noisy, fast, unfeeling, instant-gratification society. He realizes
he lacks the skills to comprehend what he is reading and
asks,”…where do you find a teacher this late” (p. 70)? It is clear
that Montag still has a long way to go on his path to
enlightment.
2. What does Montag mean when he says to Mildred, “Maybe the
books can get us half out of the cave. They just might stop us
from making the same…insane mistakes”! (p. 70)
Montage wants to drastically change his and Mildred’s way of
life, which would remove them from the metaphoric “darkness”
in which they have been living their entire lives. Montag also
seems to feel that his society never learns from its mistakes, but
rather uses brute face (via the military) and luxuries (via
lighthearted, inane entertainment) to perpetuate a cyclical,
meaningless way of life.
3. What is the significance of the jets flying overhead? (Read 11, 30
and 69)
One level, the ominous sound of the jets increases suspense and
injects a sense of danger, which intensifies throughout the
novel. Take note on page 11 of the novel Montag hears the jets
but too upset about Mildred’s overdose to think about them, on
page 30 the firemen pay no attention to the sound by crying out,
“Every hour so many…things in the sky!...Why doesn’t someone
want to talk about it!” The jets are a reminder of the neverending war going on in the backdrop of the novel. Montage
even makes the comment, “We’ve started and won two atomic
wars since 2022” (p. 69)! This gives the reader a clue about the
novel’s futuristic setting. Students should also not that Bradbury
was writing Fahrenheit 451 at the dawn of the “atomic age” and
shortly after World War II.)
4. Why do you think Bradbury hints at Montag’s stash of books and
meeting with Faber but does not elaborate on either until later
in the novel? (Read 8 and 17 to help you answer)
The “teasers” on page 8 and 17 of the novel help create a sense
of suspense regarding the ventilator grill and the meeting with a
mysterious man, but neither situation is clarified until later in
the novel. Montag seems realize that both keeping books and
not reporting Faber were wrong. Perhaps earlier in the novel,
Montage was not yet ready to admit his interest in literature,
but later, as he strays further from the mindless existence he
occupied before, he draws on both his hidden books and Faber
for support.
5. Why do you think Faber risked giving Montag his address when
they first met in the park? (Read page 21 to help you answer)
Montag does not arrest or accuse him right away, which gives
Faber the confidence to keep talking to a fireman. He seems to
realize that Montag is not the typical fireman, much as Clarisse
did, telling just doesn’t seem right for you, somehow” (p. 21).
Perhaps Faber also could sense that Montag was a certain type
of fireman—one who might eventually question his job duties
and turn to literature for answers. Faber trusts Montag—a
startling act in a society full of mistrust and paranoia. Faber
might have wanted to read and preserve literature.
6. When do you think Montag began feeling “numb” to his wife
and other important things in his life? (p. 73)
Montag seems to think it was “the night (he) kicked the bottle in
the dark, like kicking a mine (p. 73), which was the night Mildred
overdosed on sleeping pills. Note that this is the same night
Montag first spoke to Clarisse. It seems that once Montag
became aware that there were people like Clarisse and Faber in
the world, he began questioning his own life. Another possible
answer is also seeing the woman burn with her books changed
Montag profoundly and that could have been the moment he
realized he had been “numb” to the world for a long time.
7. What is the significance of the name Faber? (p. 85)
The name comes from the Latin word “faber,” meaning
ingenious or skillful and usually referring to a master craftsman.
In Montag’s world, a man like Faber stands out as a creator
rather than a destroyer. As Faber says, “Those who don’t build
must burn” (p. 85). Also note that Faber, though an intellectual,
creates small electronic devices, as evidenced by the wires and
other parts on the table in his home. Also, Faber was once a
master of his craft—literature—and to Montag, he is certainly
skilled at analyzing literature.
8. Compare Faber’s and Beatty’s opinions about current society.
Upon which significant points do they agree and disagree? (p. 59
and 79).
The two men both seem to agree that mass entertainment is
bland trivial, that books do not inherently possess special power,
that modern people lack the leisure to think, and that people
stopped reading books because they wanted to—not because
the government forbade it. Disagree: Beatty believes books
make life difficult, whereas Faber feels books give life meaning.
Beatty believes “ books say nothing” (p. 59), whereas Faber
insists that books truthfully record life in vivid detail, showing
the “pores in the face of life” (p. 79). Beatty condemns books for
encouraging differences of opinion, whereas Faber condemns
mass entertainment (parlor walls) for its sensory overload and
manic pace. Beatty believes that books will leave people “lost,”
whereas Faber believes books will help people find truth.
9. Do you consider Faber a coward? Why or why not?
This answer is an opinion questions. You must make a
statement of whether you consider Faber a coward and then
support it with details from the story. Possible answers: Faber
has high expectations of bravery and what this says about him is
that his moral oppose those of his society. Unlike Montag, Faber
has never been a man of action. Rather, he has always been an
intellectual. Yet he feels guilty because he hardly protested
when books began to be destroyed. He also conspires with
Montag to print a new Bible and provides the set of earbuds for
communication. However, Faber sees the earbuds as further
proof of his cowardice, since his electronics hobby was a safe
one that never put him in any real danger.