"If This Goes On..." Technology, Truth, and Happiness in Fahrenheit 451

Lesson 9
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ELA

Alternate Unit 1

10th Grade

Lesson 9 of 21

Objective


Analyze how Bradbury uses imagery and figurative language to characterize Faber and his relationship with Montag.

Readings and Materials


  • Book: Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury  pp. 67 – 89 — "Part 2: The Sieve and the Sand"

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Target Task


Discussion & Writing Prompt

How does Bradbury characterize Faber as a complex character? Provide specific evidence from the text to support your ideas and carefully explain your thinking.

Criteria for Success

  • Identifies that Faber is a wealth of knowledge and information.
  • Identifies that Faber is a mentor to Montag.
  • Might also identify that Faber is intelligent and innovative.
  • Identifies that Faber is also cowardly and has hidden himself from society rather than rebel and get caught.
  • Might also identify that Faber and Beatty are contrasting characters.

Sample Response

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Key Thinking


Close Read Questions

How does the image of the sieve and the sand symbolize Montag's conflict on the train? Provide specific examples and carefully explain your thinking.

What imagery and figurative language does Faber use to describe books, and how does that develop Bradbury's theme of the importance of books and literacy to society? Provide specific examples and carefully explain your thinking.

Read the following quote on page 87: "I'm the Queen Bee, safe in the hive. You will be the drone, the traveling ear." What two objects are being compared here? What does the metaphor reveal about each man's role in the plan they have hatched? Provide specific examples and carefully explain your thinking.

Vocabulary


Text-based

suffuse

v.

(p. 72)

gradually spread through or over

sieve

n.

(p. 74)

a utensil consisting of a wire or plastic mesh held in a frame, used for separating wanted elements from unwanted material

saccharine

adj.

(pp. 77 - 78)

excessively sweet or sentimental

profusion

n.

(p. 79)

an abundance or large quantity of something

perish

v.

(p. 79)

suffer death, typically in a violent, sudden, or untimely way

insidious

adj.

(p. 82)

1. proceeding in a gradual, subtle way but with harmful effects 2. treacherous; crafty

contemptible

adj.

(p. 87)

despicable

Homework


  • Book: Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury  pp. 89 – 106

While reading, answer the following questions.

  • Who arrives at Montag's house? For what purpose?

  • What topics do the women discuss? Why do you think Bradbury has them discuss those topics in particular?

  • What does Montag leave to get during the dinner party? How does Faber react?

  • How does Mildred explain Montag's behavior?

  • How do the women react to Montag's poetry reading?

  • What does Faber call Montag after his outburst?

  • What realization about himself does Montag have on his way to the firehouse?

  • How does Montag feel about his hands? Why?

  • What dream does Beatty say he had? What is he trying to prove to Montag during his recollection of his dream?

  • Where does the firetruck stop at the end of this chapter?

Annotation Focus

Note moments that show how Montag is feeling during and after the dinner party scene.

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Standards


  • RL.9-10.3 — Analyze how complex characters (e.g., those with multiple or conflicting motivations) develop over the course of a text, interact with other characters, and advance the plot or develop the theme.
  • RL.9-10.4 — Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in the text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the cumulative impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone (e.g., how the language evokes a sense of time and place; how it sets a formal or informal tone).

Supporting Standards

L.9-10.1
L.9-10.6
RL.9-10.1
RL.9-10.2
RL.9-10.10
SL.9-10.1
SL.9-10.6
W.9-10.9
W.9-10.10
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Lesson 8

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Lesson 10

Lesson Map

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