Fahrenheit 451 Post 3: The Sieve and the Sand

The meaning behind the title of this chapter is this: As a child, Montag put sand in a sieve and tried to retrieve a dime. He failed, and cried. The sieve represents the human mind, and the sand represents information and truth.

After reading a bunch of the books with Mildred, Montag realizes that he has no idea what he's reading. He sets a goal to find someone who can explain the meaning behind these books. Earlier, before the time set of the book, Montag met a guy named Faber in the park. Montag saw that Faber was reading, and Faber freaked out. But Montag assured Faber that he was fine. They talked, and Faber gave Montag his contact info. Montag calls Faber to question him, but Faber cuts off the conversation because he thinks that Montag is trying to trick him. Montag then realizes that he has a copy of the Bible at home. He thinks it may be the last copy in existence! Montag takes it to Faber and the two discuss why Montag is unhappy. Montag says that it might be the books, or lack thereof. Faber explains that it's not the books. It's the words, and their meaning. Faber gives three things that are missing:

Quality of Information: "[Books are important] because they have quality. And what does the word quality mean? To me it means texture. This book has pores. ... The more pores, the more truthfully recorded details of life per square inch you can get on a sheet of paper, the more 'literary' you are."
Leisure to Digest It: "Thank God [that books aren't real]. You can shut them, say, 'Hold on a moment.' You play God to it. But who has ever torn himself from the claw that encloses you when you drop a seed in a TV parlor? It grows you any shape it wishes! It is an environment as real as the world. It becomes and is the truth. Books can be beaten down with reason. But with all my knowledge and skepticism, I have never been able to argue with a one-hundred-piece symphony orchestra, full color, three dimensions, and being in and part of those incredible parlors."
The Right to Carry Out Actions Based On What We Learn From the Interaction of the First Two

After some threats and discussion, Faber finally tells Montag how he can reprint the Bible. Faber has a friend with a printing press (score!). Montag says that he needs help facing Beatty that night, so Faber gives Montag a radio for his ear. It's like an ear plug that acts as a small walkie talkie. Montag knows that Beatty knows that Montag has at least one book. Montag decides to take the risk of giving Beatty a replacement book. Faber will be with Montag the whole time.

Montag goes home and finds his wife and two of her friends in the TV parlor. Montag and the two women engage in a kerfuffle. Montag pulls out a book (gasp!) even though Faber told him not to. Mildred says that firemen are allowed to bring home one book per year to show his/her family how ridiculous books are. This is a lie, of course, but the two women fall for it. Montag begins to read the poetry to the two women, and one of them bursts out crying. The two women leave; Montag is worried.

When Montag arrives at the House he hands the book over to Beatty. Beatty tosses it before even looking at the title. He explains that everyone on the road of life swerves off every now and then, and Beatty seems forgiving. The alarm goes off, and to Montag's surprise, they take the truck to his house!

END OF CHAPTER 2

Fahrenheit 451 Post 2: The Hearth and the Salamander

Guy Montag lives in the future. In his world, books are avoided like the plague. Censorship is at an all time high. Television rules, and books are obsolete. Any form of creative thinking is illegal. It's considered strange to go a walk. Firemen cease to exist, because all houses are fireproof. Instead of putting out fires, firemen start them in order to burn books. Fire hoses are filled with kerosene. All books must be burned. Montag is brainwashed into this form of thinking simply because of the world that surrounds him. He mentions in the first sentence of the novel that it's a "pleasure to burn." Near the beginning of the novel, Montag meets a young teenage girl named Clarisse. From today's standards, Clarisse would be considered normal, but in the future where this story takes place, she's crazy. She even admits to it. Clarisse does strange (and illegal) things, like taking walks, enjoying fresh air, and thinking creatively. She asks Montag if he's happy. Montag laughs, then returns home and realizes that he's not happy at all.

Montag's wife, Mildred, is a stereotypical member of society. She watches TV all day long, and listens to the voices in her head (said voices are actually seashells that are lodged in her ear at all times.). Mildred attempts suicide, but government workers remove her blood, and replace it with new blood. Mildred forgets everything. 

Back at the Firehouse, Montag encounters The Hound. The Hound is a mechanical dog, and it is very mysterious. When Montag approaches The Hound, it reacts violently. Montag talks to Captain Beatty about it, asking why it would react like that. Montag mentions that this is the third time it's happened to him. Montag asks if The Hound was programmed to act like that towards him. Beatty says that no one would do that to him.

That same day, the alarm goes off. Time to go burn books. An old woman hid books in her attic. She's incredibly passionate. When Montag tries to persuade her to leave, she lights a match herself and goes up in flames along with her books. Right before this happened, Montag snuck a book under his jacket without even thinking about it. 

Once Montag gets home, he hides the book under his pillow. He asks Mildred where Clarisse has been; he hasn't seen her in four days. Mildred calmly replies that the family moved away, and that she thinks that Clarisse was hit by a car and killed. Later, Montag reveals the book to his wife. In fact, it's been a whole year, and Montag reveals about 20 books that he's hidden. Mildred freaks out and tries to burn them, but Montag convinces her that they should read them.

END OF CHAPTER 1