The Entrapment of Man by Their Environment

The Entrapment of Man by Their Environment

In all the short stories, novels, and poems that we have read the characters compare and contrast each other in specific ways. The men in the play A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry and the novel Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury all have similar situations that put them through struggles and challenges that they have to overcome. The problems show the entrapment of man by their environment.

Montag and Walter share the problem of feeling trapped and it causes them to react. In Fahrenheit 451Montag feels trapped in his society. In Montag's community the authority kept information limited. The government didn't want the minority to have knowledge of many things. Some people were smart enough to know what rights being taken from them. One of these people were Clarisse, she inspired Montag to see what was actually happening. Montag then wanted to know more about the world that he lived in. He felt he wasn't being told the truth about what was really going on in his society. Montag didn't care about the consequences of exploring what he wasn't supposed to see. He did whatever it took to find the truth. Montag's society or environment caused him to react to this unjust society.

Walters's environment also causes him to react similar to Montag. In A Raisin in the Sun Walter was very determined to invest in a liquor store, but it was hard because he is judged by his skin color. Walter wanted to prove that he could be better than what the stereotyped African American lower class race was looked at to be. He was stuck in the predicament of being very poor and only having just enough money to get by like most black people. It would get difficult for Walter to keep his vision on investing in the liquor store because his closest family wouldn't support his decision, but he stuck to believing he could pursue his dream, and didn't care what anyone thought. He did not want to continue being another black person working for someone else. Walter wanted the liquor store for a better life and would do anything to acquire it.

In contrast Montag's situation is a lot more serious than Walters. If Montag decides to react to the problems his environment is causing, he could be killed. In Montag's community the government tries to keep information very secrete, and if they find anyone that knows this information they will kill them to prevent the information from spreading to others. Walter can still live if he chooses to invest in a store. His decision might cause many problems but he won't be killed for trying to change his environment.

Overall Montag and Walter were affected by their environment. They felt trapped and wanted to make changes to continue a better life. The struggles and challenges that they went through to change helped them to realize things they would have never thought of