Fahrenheit 451 takes place in a society that attempts to eliminate sadness by making everyone in society feel equal to others. One way the company maintains compliance is through severe penalties. The protagonist, Montag, who works as a fireman and burns books, is seen as a conformist individual. Until he meets Clarisse, an individualist, Montag tends to agree with Beatty, an extreme conformist. However, after meeting Clarisse and Faber, he becomes more self-aware and attempts to make a more active change in his life while promoting harmony. In Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury emphasizes the transformation of Montag's character from a rigid, unhappy, conformist character to a self-confident member of the community to convey the theme that the mixture of conformity and Individuality can help one become an overall happier and wiser being. , and a more satisfied person. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get the original essay Bradbury uses the characterization of Montag, thinking and acting the same way as everyone else, at the beginning of the book to show that just following conformity and not thinking for yourself can prevent you from achieving true happiness. Montag enjoys being a firefighter and feels comfortable burning illegal books for the community. He is considered a good citizen in the very conforming society in which he lives. As Montag burns a house known for having books, he thinks, "It was a pleasure to burn." It was a special pleasure to see things eaten, to see things blackened and transformed... his hands were those of an extraordinary conductor playing all the symphonies of flames and fires to bring down the tatters and ruins history” (Bradbury 1). Montag admits that “it was a pleasure to burn.” He doesn't feel bad for the homeowner whose house is burning down, all he cares about is that he does his job like the rest of the firefighters. Things “eaten,” “blackened,” and “changed” give Montag a “special pleasure.” Montag does not feel true happiness because “eaten” and “blackened” things should not cause happiness. Even though Montag feels like he feels happiness, he needs to experience individuality to achieve a higher level of happiness. After Montag sees firefighters burn a woman and her house, he becomes traumatized and tries to convince Mildred to listen to him. Montag tries to make Mildred understand that her job requires her to destroy a man's thoughts in a matter of minutes. However, Mildred does not want to face this sadness and Montag expresses to Mildred: “Leave you alone! That's great, but how can I leave myself alone? We must not be left alone. We need to be really disturbed from time to time. How long has it been since you've been really bothered? About something important, something real” (Bradbury 49). When Montag says, “We need to be really disturbed once in a while,” he means that people need to feel sadness to feel happiness. The conforming society he lives in has tried very hard to make everyone equal to eliminate sadness. On the other hand, Montag realizes that suppressing sadness will not make anyone happy. Montag tries to explain that we need to be able to think about the "important" and "real" things that cause us sadness if we want to become a better person. Bradbury uses the..