1. FAHRENHEIT 451 CAPTAIN BEATTY

2. THE NARRATOR The narrator tells the story with a specific perspective informd by his or her beliefs and experiences. Narrators can be major or minor characters, or exist outside the story altogether. The narrator weaves her or his ponit of view, including ignorance and bias, into telling the tale.

3. THE NARRATOR A first-person narrator participates in the events of the novel, using “I.” A distanced narrator, often not a character, is removed from the action of the story and uses the third person (he, she, they). The distanced narrator may be OMNISCIENT (able to read the minds of the characters) or LIMITED (describing only certain characters’ thoughts and feelings).

4. THE NARRATOR Ultimately, the TYPE of narrator determines the POINT OF VIEW from which the story is told.

5. BRADBURY’S FAHRENHEIT 451 Bradbury employs a third-person limited narrator in Fahrenheit 451. We only know Montag’s movements and thoughts. The narration follows Montag like a camera, and the reader is never allowed into the lives of other characters, except for what they say to him. This inevitably increases our sympathy for Montag.

6. DISCUSSION Beatty holds the view that school cultivates anti-intellectual sentiment. Do you think this statement accurately depicts our school? Do books violate the idea that “everyone is made equal?”

7. A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE How might this story be narrated in the first-person from the point of view of a government official that believes burning books protects society? Brainstorm a new version of Part One written this way. What would be some of the big differences?

8. BLOG POST #2 Homework due before next class: Five significant characters have been introduced: Montag Clarisse Mildred Beatty Faber (Part Two) Make lists of what motivates each of these characters in your blog post. Be sure to list them specifically by name.