Editor's Choice
Why was the alarm at the old woman's house inconvenient in Fahrenheit 451?
Quick answer:
The alarm at the old woman's house was inconvenient because the woman was still present, unlike typical cases where occupants were already removed by the police. This forced Montag to confront the human aspect of his job, making it personal rather than just a task of destroying objects. The woman's refusal to leave and her subsequent self-immolation deeply affected Montag and his crew, prompting them to question the morality of their actions.
In this scene from Fahrenheit 451, it is not the alarm that is "inconvenient" for Montag. Rather, it is the fact that on arriving at the house, the woman is present and able to talk. As Montag explains in the next few lines, it is usual practice for the firemen to arrive after the police. As such, the police have already arrested the victim, "bandage-taped" his or her mouth, and taken the victim to the police station. So, when the firemen arrive, the house is empty and all they have to do is burn the place.
On this occasion, however, Montag arrives to find the victim still in the house. It is "inconvenient," then, that he has to face the old woman, to listen to her side of the story, and therefore to literally confront the realities of his profession.
Usually, before the firemen arrived at the house, the occupants had...
Unlock This Answer Now
Start your 48-hour free trial and get ahead in class. Boost your grades with access to expert answers and top-tier study guides. Thousands of students are already mastering their assignments—don't miss out. Cancel anytime.
Already a member? Log in here.
already been arrested and taken away. However, in this call, Mrs. Blake was still at home. Montag found this inconvenient because it made it more personal. Before it was all about "things," not people. It was simply "janitorial work."
Even worse, Mrs. Blake refused to be taken away. She soaked herself with kerosene, lit a match, and set herself on fire. It affected the entire fire crew. They began to question, if only temporarily, the virtue of their job. For Montag it would be one of the events that eventually lead him to open rebellion.
In Fahrenheit 451, why does Montag call the old woman's house "inconvenient"?
This section of the novel comes at the beginning, as we see Montag and his colleagues go off to a house, following a tip from a neighbour, and burst in to find a secret stash of books and magazines. However, what is crucially different with this episode is that the police have not already been round and taken away the person responsiible. Montag explains that normally when they arrive, the house is empty and all they have to do is burn it down. This time, however, they have to contend with the old lady herself and her reactions at having such an unwelcome intrusion. Note what Montag says:
How inconvenient! Always before it had been like snuffing a candle. The police went in first and adhesive-taped the victim's mouth and bandaged him off into their glittering cars, so when you arrived you found an empty house. You weren't hurting anyone, you were hurting only things!
Thus it is inconvenient for Montag to face a human response to his job, and to cope with his guilt and sadness at what he does by having to do it in front of another human being, like himself.