How are the titles of Fahrenheit 451's three parts significant to their respective actions?

Part 2 is titled "The Sieve and the Sand," which refers to Montag's childhood memory of attempting to fill a sieve with hot sand at the beach. The faster Montag attempted to pour the sand into the sieve, the faster the sand would fall through the bottom. Montag is reminded of the episode while riding the subway to Faber's home as he's trying to read the Bible. Montag is continually interrupted by loud advertisements on the train and struggles to memorize what he's read. The sand symbolically represents the knowledge Montag desires to attain while the sieve represents his mind failing to comprehend the information.

Part 3 is titled "Burning Bright," which represents several key incidents in the final section of the story. Burning bright could refer to Montag being forced to burn his home before pointing the flamethrower at Captain Beatty and burning him to death. The title could also refer to the bright atomic blast, which flattens and burns the entire dystopian city. The title could also reference Montag's intellectual enlightenment and his burning desire to rebuild the ruined city into a literate, tolerant society.

What is the significance of the title Fahrenheit 451 to the book?

At the opening of his science fiction story of a dystopian society in which books are banned because of the knowledge they contain -- knowledge that could pose a threat to the stability of this repressive society -- Ray Bradbury notes: "FAHRENHEIT 451: The temperature at which book-paper catches fire and burns"

In Fahrenheit 451, firemen are not employed to extinguish fires; they are employed for the purpose of carrying out the government's edict against the possession of books.  As Bradbury's story begins, he describes the exhilaration experienced by firemen as they torch literature.  Montag, the story's protagonist, is busy at work:

"With his symbolic helmet numbered 451 on his stolid head, and his eyes all orange flame with the thought of what came next, he flicked the igniter and the house jumped up in a gorging fire that burned the evening sky red and yellow and black."

The relationship of the book's title to the story is the emphasis placed by the ruling regime on controlling the population through criminalization of literature.  The irony inherent in vesting in firemen the authority and responsibility for locating and burning books is at the core of Bradbury's novel.

What is the significance of the setting in Fahrenheit 451?

Fahrenheit 451 is a dystopian novel by Ray Bradbury.

While Bradbury intended the story to be about the growing influence of television over that of literature, most interpretations focus on the themes of censorship and social adjustment. The setting is a dystopian future United States, with its television-addicted citizens largely content and unaware of the vast ongoing global war. Montag, the protagonist, is uneasy with his life, even though it is exactly the life he pursued as a child. His happiness is marred by his exposure to a free spirit in Clarisse, his wife's unexpected suicide attempt, and his growing obsession with saving and hiding books.

"Didn't firemen prevent fires rather than stoke them up and get them going?"

"That's rich!" Stoneman and Black drew forth their rulebooks...

"Established, 1790, to burn English-influenced books in the Colonies. First Fireman: Benjamin Franklin."

RULE 1. Answer the alarm swiftly.

2. Start the fire swiftly.

3. Burn everything.
(Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451)

History itself has been rewritten to force a new worldview on the populace, and as each new bit of incorrect history appears, the reader realizes that most of the characters simply don't have the imagination to question. Scenes that should be simple and positive are instead claustrophobic; the reader sees what the characters do not, creating sympathy with Montag, whose slow transformation arc is defined by a need to question authority. The cheerful, suburban society is therefore exposed as useful idiots without ambition or motivation; the plot of the novel then continues, as it must, to their inevitable destruction.

What is the significance of the title Fahrenheit 451?

Fahrenheit 451's title reflects the temperature at which paper burns, which obviously ties into the novel well. It conveys the different society and setting in which the story takes place. In this world, books have been made illegal, and television has taken over as the main source of information for society. Montag, the protagonist, is a firefighter, except in this society everything is fireproof, so the job of the fireman is to burn books, which are illegal.

They have been made illegal because the government doesn't want the people thinking. Montag becomes obsessed with books, and his boss realizes it. He gives him ample opportunities to give back books he has stolen, but when he doesn't he becomes an outlaw.

Overall, the meaning behind the title is the temperature at which paper burns, pushing the plot of the story.

Hope that helps. For more information about the book see the link below.

How is the title of Fahrenheit 451 significant?

Opinions differ on where Ray Bradbury came up with the temperature of 451 degrees Fahrenheit as the definitive temperature at which paper burns. A scholarly text (cited below) gives the general autoignition temperature of paper to be 450 degrees Celsius, which would be about 840 degrees Fahrenheit; it is possible that Bradbury misremembered Fahrenheit for Celsius. Regardless, the temperature and number are used in the novel to symbolize firemen and their job, which is to burn things rather than extinguishing them. Fireman helmets, jackets, and kerosene canisters are all marked with 451, to show their purpose; the repetition of the number serves to remind firemen of their job, and to show the citizens of the city that they are at the government's mercy, even to the point of non-court-sanctioned killing in the pursuit of burning books.

In Fahrenheit 451, what is the significance of the title?

The direct connection between the title and the book is that the book is about a fireman, Guy  Montag, whose job it is to burn books, instead of put out fires.  It is a scenario where, due to the evolving process of society, books are forbidden and banned, and so anyone caught with books gets their entire house--books included--torched.  And, Bradbury states, that the temperature of Fahrenheit 451 is the temperature that books burn.

So, there are several "book burning" events in the book that relate to that temperature, where Montag goes in and burns people's houses, all at that temperature.  The book opens with him at the scene of a fire, greatly enjoying himself; in fact, the first line of the book is "It was a pleasure to burn."  Later, he burns the house of an older woman, Mrs. Blake, who chooses to burn with her house and books.  And then at the end, the most shocking burning of all.  So, the events in the book tie to the title in that very literal way.

I hope that those thoughts help a bit; good luck with the book!  It's well worth the read.

Why is the setting in Fahrenheit 451 important?

Because of its deep themes of censorship and oppression, it is fitting that Fahrenheit 451 takes place in a modern, future city. Cities are often thought of as hives, stacking people upwards with less focus on quality of life and more focus on keeping the city functioning; because of the book ban, the people in the city are not individuals, but members of a collective.

"...they all say the same things and nobody says anything different from anyone else. And most of the time in the cafes they have the jokeboxes on and the same jokes most of the time..."
(Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451, Google Books)

The government controls the news and entertainment through television, and the people take it in and become defined by it. Just as a city is a homogeneous structure, largely composed of similar buildings that serve similar purposes, the people inside it are all the same. The city also serve to showcase the alienation that bothers Montag; even though people live so close together, they have almost no interpersonal relationships, instead treating the false people on their television screens as a surrogate family.

What does "Fahrenheit 451" signify?

Fahrenheit 451 is the temperature at which paper burns. Set in the future, Bradbury's novel flips the role of the fireman, who now burns books and the houses of those who harbor books instead of saving things that are on fire. This novel is a commentary about what could happen to society if we allow the government to take away our right to think for ourselves or not be influenced by the imaginative and creative thoughts of others. Book burning is a major symbol for censorship, especially hearkening back to the days of the Nazi regime and its insistence on quelling the voices of its citizens. In fact, this novel is still used today as a symbol to combat censorship in schools and elsewhere.

How do the section headings in Fahrenheit 451 correspond to the story?

In Fahrenheit 451, each of the three section headings acts as an allusion to the events that it covers. Part one, for example, is called "The Hearth and the Salamander." The hearth is symbolic of Montag's home life, and in this chapter, the reader learns that Montag is becoming increasingly frustrated with this part of his life, as we see through the strained relationship with his wife, Mildred. Similarly, the salamander is symbolic of Montag's occupation as a fireman, because this is the name they give to their fire trucks.

Part two is called "The Sieve and the Sand," and this is an allusion to an incident that happened in Montag's childhood. Montag's cousin promised him a dime if he could fill a sieve with sand. Obviously, Montag failed in this task because it is impossible to stop the sand from falling through the sieve. Montag is reminded of this incident on his way to Faber's apartment. When he realizes that the messages contained in books are important, he wonders if you can retain the words in the books if you read them quickly enough.

Finally, the third section of the novel is called "Burning Bright," and this relates to the destruction of the city at the end of the story. The use of the word "bright" not only provides a visual image of the destruction, it also has positive connotations, suggesting that there is some hope for creating a new society that values books and education.

What does the title of Fahrenheit 451 refer to, both literally and figuratively?

Literally, the title of this book refers to a temperature.  At the beginning of the book, Bradbury says that this is the temperature at which the paper that books are made of can catch on fire and burn.

Figuratively, the answer is less clear.  I think that the main figurative meaning is that this is a society that wants to destroy all of the things that books stand for.  The title, then, stands for the idea that books are unable to exist (either figuratively or literally) in their society.

The society in the book does not like people to think.  It wants them always to be busy doing mindless things.  Being mindlessly busy and reading books are really opposites that cannot be reconciled.  So I think that the title figuratively refers to a society in which it is impossible for books to exist.