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Diannah Halim

Meyer

English I

15 May 2017

A Character's Illness

Are characters always what they seem? In the book Fahrenheit 451, the main character

Montag had Schizophrenia. What is Schizophrenia? Schizophrenia is, a mental illness that

affects one's ability to think feel and behave properly. defined by the National Institute of

Mental Health (Nimh.nih.gov) Patients are also disguised as being out of touch with reality. In

the book I believe Montag had Schizophrenia because he showed strong symptoms which

include hallucinations and strong mental confusion as well as common anxiety.

The first piece of evidence that led me to believe Montag had schizophrenia, was that he

showed signs of hallucinations. In the book he brings up something about hearing monsters and

how he can hear them communicate, Did you hear them, did you hear these monsters talking

about monsters?(Bradbury 94) This shows an example of the symptom of hallucinations as he

hear things that do not exist in reality. He also talks about this event to people as if they really do

exist and shows how severe it really is. According to WebMD the definition of hallucination is

explained, Hallucinations (hearing or seeing things that arent there) (WebMD.com) This

defines one of the symptoms of schizophrenia and this defines his case very well.

Another example evidence of his schizophrenia is when he kills someone and tries to

convince himself that they wanted it,He lay where he had fallen and sobbed, his legs folded, his

face pressed blindly to the gravel. Beatty wanted to die.(Bradbury 122) This example shows
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how he simply tries to deceive himself into thinking that not only he killed a person but that

person wanted to kill him. This shows perfectly how his mind is mentally confused and post

killing he upheld extreme anxiety that made him almost crazy. This was my overall diagnosis of

why I think Montag is experiencing schizophrenia.

Although my reasoning many people do not believe Montag has schizophrenia. Despite

the evidence against Montag's Schizophrenia, many people believe he doesn't have this illness,

they also fail to see much of the evidence present. They believe where Montag stated in his

thoughts, It was going away not. He hadn't wanted to kill anyone, not even Beatty(Bradbury

123) that this was his true thoughts and what he really felt. Many try to connect and believe if

they went through the same crisis they maybe would have reacted the same way. Although,

aspects of this argument are enticing, it ultimately fails to be a stronger argument because the

symptoms are very present and can prove one's craziness and their illness symptoms. Although

he did admit to the murder he was still experiencing uncommon hallucinations. Montag states in

his thoughts that He tried to piece it all together, to go back to the normal pattern of life a few

short days age before the sieve and sand, Denhams Dentifrice, moth voices, fireflies, the alarms

and excursions, too much for a few short days, too much, indeed, for a lifetime.( Bradbury 123)

showing that he still contains the thoughts of hallucinations as well as hallucinations that can not

lead back to reality or common events. Overall, People who don't believe or underestimate the

symptoms of this mental illness don't really know how severe it can be and how much it can

affect these people's lives.

All in all, Montag has shown signs and symptoms of schizophrenia which made him do

things he should have not done. People who have these symptoms should be treated and helped
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as well as taken seriously. These signs are very important to find in characters personalities. Next

time you read look for these symptoms, will you find any?

Works Cited

National Institutes of Health. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Web. 14 May

2017.

Bradbury, Ray. Fahrenheit 451. N.Y.: Simon and Schuster, 1950. Print.

"Schizophrenia Center: Types, Symptoms, Medications, Causes, and Tests." WebMD. WebMD.

Web. 14 May 2017.