Moral Development In Fahrenheit 451

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Pages: 2

Throughout the course of Fahrenheit 451, Guy Montag, the protagonist, undergoes a major change in retaliation to the destruction of works of literature surrounding him, as well as to the drab life that he had once considered his normal life. A majority of Guy’s moral development is due to his pivotal encounter with Clarisse, since it is her who causes Montag to begin questioning the harsh reality of the morally inept world that he inhabits. The effect that Clarisse's encounter has on Guy is accentuated by the fact that before meeting her, Guy used to live, walk and talk as if he was numb to the denouncement of one’s personal freedom that surrounded him. He himself would burn books since it was his duty as a “fireman,” yet, after Clarisse talks to him, she awakens in him something he never thought he possessed before and instead of being part of the problem, Guy was now being part of the solution, or at least the solution that was thought of by those with the same ideology like Guy. …show more content…
Both Guy and the others can no longer tolerate the state of affairs enforced on them due to the government as well as others in the society who are afraid or unwilling to question why things are the way they are. Thence, Montag’s encounter with Clarisse plays a major role in Guy’s moral development as she sets him on a path that he never wishes to leave as it makes him feel alive & more motivated to cause further change in his morally bankrupt society, which is a drastic moral development for Guy since rather than burning books and destroying them as he once did, now he was memorizing and preserving them, in an attempt to bring them back to