Characters & Setting
Who is the book’s protagonist, introduced in the opening pages, a firefighter whose job is to burn books?
Guy Montag
What action begins the novel’s first scene (The protagonist is doing this at the very start)?
Burning a house of books / performing a book-burning on a woman.
What common household object is used to show Mildred’s dependence on technology (name it)?
“Seashell” earpieces (parlor walls/TV walls are also acceptable)
Explotation
the unfair use of someone or something for one’s benefit
Based on the first 28 pages, what can the reader infer about the government or social order? (short answer)
The government censors information and enforces conformity; citizens are pacified by technology.
Name the young woman who appears on the street and later becomes important to the protagonist’s thinking.
Clarisse McClellan (the young neighbor)
What does Montag take from the woman’s house after her books are burned?
A book (Montag hides a book in his ventilation grille/ or later reveals he has taken a book).
Fire is a central image in the novel. In the opening pages, list one way fire is represented (literal or figurative).
Fire as cleansing/destroying; it’s both spectacle and tool of censorship.
Incriminate
to make someone seem guilty of a crime
Why might the author introduce Clarisse (the young woman) so early in the novel? Provide a two-sentence rationale.
Clarisse is introduced to contrast Montag’s complacency and to spark his curiosity; she functions as a foil and catalyst.
What is the historical-sounding setting in which Montag lives (describe the society briefly in one sentence)?
A near-future, dystopian, highly controlled society that bans books and promotes conformity.
How does the woman react when the firemen arrive to burn her books, and what choice does she make?
The woman chooses to stay and burn with her books rather than leave them; she lights the match and dies in the flames.
Explain the symbolic significance of the woman choosing to burn with her books rather than live without them.
The woman’s suicide symbolizes the value of literature and personal choice over state-mandated uniformity; it shows books carry meaning worth dying for.
Invigorate
To fill with energy
Montag shows subtle emotional changes after the woman’s death. Identify one line of evidence (a behavior or thought) that indicates his inner conflict.
Evidence: Montag’s heart pounding, his sleeplessness, his stealing/hiding a book, and his questions about happiness.
Describe Montag’s job duties and one key irony about what firefighters do in this society.
Montag burns books for a living; it's ironic because firefighters are supposed to stop fires, not start them.
After returning home from the call, what troubling discovery about Mildred is revealed?
Mildred has overdosed on sleeping pills; technicians revive her but show indifference and emptiness.
Identify and explain the meaning of the “seashell” devices (how do they function symbolically for society?).
Seashells symbolize constant, numbing entertainment and the erosion of independent thought.
Luminous
Bright; full of light
Discuss how the novel’s opening sets up the central conflict between conformity and individuality—give one concrete example from the text.
Example: The book-burning scene shows conformity enforced by law; Clarisse’s questioning shows individual thought; this juxtaposition sets up the central conflict.
Identify Mildred and explain her relationship to Montag, and one detail that shows her state of mind.
Mildred is Montag’s wife
She is emotionally detached/addicted to entertainment and the “seashell” radio devices
evidence: overdose/attempted suicide and immersion in wall‑TVs and seashells.
Describe the sequence of events that leads Montag to the next character who will influence him (include the aftermath of the burning and his emotional state).
After the burning, Montag feels unsettled; he meets Clarisse, who asks questions that disturb him and make him doubt his happiness.
The mechanical hound is introduced early. Describe one symbolic reading of the hound as it relates to control or fear.
The mechanical hound represents technological enforcement, surveillance, and the sinister, dehumanized policing of society.
Oblivion
the state of being completely destroyed, forgotten, or unaware
Evaluate the ethical question raised by the opening scene: is destroying books defensible if the stated goal is social stability?
Defend your idea...