Fahrenheit 451 - 4

4) Who is the "hero" in this book and what are some of his/her traits?  What does he/she accomplish, and how is he/she portrayed?  Does the hero represent an abstract idea such as goodness, truth, courage or evil?

The protagonist in Fahrenheit 451 is definitely, by definition, Guy Montag.  Guy Montag is individual, free-thinking, open-minded, brave, and respectful of literature.  The individualism of Montag is not as prominent as the story commences, but as you follow his thoughts and actions, you begin to see that he is not as much of a follower as you might have thought.  He listens and adapts to Clarisse's individualism, which brings his open-mindedness up from the darkness (Bradbury 73).  As he takes in information from Clarisse and other characters, thoughts are provoked and he begins to ponder what his life and world is really coming to.  These thoughts bring out his free-thinking trait.  More and more ideas and questions come up in his thoughts.  He obtains information through observing people and situations, and he knows that this world is wrong.  He finally cracks, and the bravery that I mentioned earlier is finally revealed!  He rises up, takes down Captain Beatty and the others and escapes the town that once held him back (Bradbury 185).
Everything he did was out of respect for literature.  As soon as he found out that the books actually meant something, he was sure that what those men were doing was wrong.  All that he is able to accomplish comes from this respect.  He is essentially able to free himself of his binds which conform him to society's wrongdoings and rise against it.  He is portrayed as the man who is about to start a revolution.  Although he does not represent an abstract idea, he is inspirational in that same sort of way.  
One of the traits that is often overlooked in Montag is that he is very passionate and even sensitive.  He tends to get irritated rather easily.  He becomes irritated when his wife asks about his happiness (Bradbury 10).  He even gets so frustrated at the women's ignorance during their gathering that he begins to read them poetry (Bradbury 100).  Due to his passion and intense questioning of society, being discovered was inevitable.  His feelings were so strong that he just could not let them go, which is something that I admire very much about him.  

Bradbury, Ray. Fahrenheit 451. New York, NY: Ballantine Books, 1954