1984 #6

The characters of 1984 correlate with the characters of Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451, which is about a futuristic society where books have been banned. Winston is very much like Montag because both have jobs that they are opposed to; however, they have to deal with them due to social pressures. Julia represents to Winston what Clarisse represents to Montag. Both female characters provide as escape for the protagonists. Clarisse gives Montag the courage to move away from the lifestyle that he is being forced to live with by challenging his thoughts and opening his eyes to new ideas. Winston undergoes the same process with Julia as he says, "'Would you believe [...] that till this moment I didn't know what color your eyes were?'" (119). Noticing the small details about Julia shows that he is becoming more observant and taking into account that her eyes have a unique color. Likewise, Clarisse makes Montag become more observant as she points out the minor details in nature and poses questions which make him think. The idea of thinking is important because in both novels the people are taught to listen and follow without questioning or making any assumptions of their own. Katherine, Winston's wife, and Mildred, Montag's wife, have been conformed to such a degree that they no longer think. All of Katherine's actions are based on her "duty to the Party" (132). Katherine is completely uninterested with the details surrounding her because she has not been taught to observe: "Look, Katherine! Look at those flowers. That clump down near the bottom. Do you see they're two different colors?" (134).  Mildred is completely obsessed with technology, which is what society endorses. She has ultimately become a robot. When Montag shows her his books, she reports him to the firemen because that is what she has been taught to do.