Summer Reading Project - Blog 1

Fahrenheit 451
By: Ray Bradbury
Page: 1-78
Prompt:
- When and where does what you are reading take place? How do you know?
- Describe a character you would like to meet. List 3 questions you would ask
- Do you like what you are reading? Why or why not?


               The setting in Fahrenheit 451 mainly takes place in the future. The author has so far not revealed the exact year or location in the book, but context clues in the story help you to figure it out. One context clue was that when one of the characters, Clarisse, was talking to the main character, Montag, she asked him, "Is it true that long ago firemen put firesout instead of going to start them?" That made me realize that the book was in the future, because today firemen put out fires instead of starting them. One other clue was Clarisse stated that sometimes she is ancient and that she is afraid of children her own age because the kill each other. She then said, "Did it always use to be that way? My uncle says no.". She also said,"My uncle says his grandfather remembered when children didn't kill each other. But that was a long time ago when they had things different." This also lead me to believe that the book takes place in the future.

               A character I would like to meet is Clarisse. She is a seventeen-year old girl who is differentthan most kids her age. People say that she is anti-social because she doesn't want to do the same thing other kids her age do. She thinks that she is very social depending on the meaning of it. To me, Clarisse sounds like the only normal person in the book. She acts like how any person today would act. Three questions I would ask her follow this. Have you ever read a book?(in the book it is illegal to read a book) Who taught you all of the sayings that you believe? Would you consider Montag your friend?

               I like what I am reading because it is a challenging and interesting book. There are a lot of new words in the book, which I am learning. The storyline is also a little hard to understand and I sometimes have to read it over. This helps me because I get to improve my comprehension skills. I like that it is challenging because I get to expose and expand my knowledge to new things that might help me in the future. I found it interesting because firemen start fires instead of putting them out, books are illegal to read and have to be burned by firemen, and Clarisse's uncle was arrested for being a pedestrian.