[PDF] Youre not sick said Mildred. Montag fell back in bed. He reached

"You'renotsick,"saidMildred.Montagfellbackinbed.Hereachedunderhispillow.Thehiddenbookwasstillthere."Mildred,howwoulditbeif,well,maybe,Iquitmyjobawhile?""Youwanttogiveupeverything?Afteralltheseyearsofworking,because,onenight,somewomanandherbooks--"5"Youshouldhaveseenher,Millie!""She'snothingtome;sheshouldn'thavehadbooks.Itwasherresponsibility,sheshouldhavethoughtofthat.Ihateher.She'sgotyougoingandnextthingyouknowwe'llbeout,nohouse,nojob,nothing.""Youweren'tthere,youdidn'tsee,"hesaid."Theremustbesomethinginbooks,thingswe10can'timagine,tomakeawomanstayinaburninghouse;theremustbesomethingthere.Youdon'tstayfornothing.""Shewassimple-minded.""ShewasasrationalasyouandI,moresoperhaps,andweburnedher.""That'swaterunderthebridge."15"No,notwater;fire.Youeverseenaburnedhouse?Itsmoldersfordays.Well,thisfire'lllastmetherestofmylife.God!I'vebeentryingtoputitout,inmymind,allnight.I'mcrazywithtrying.""Youshouldhavethoughtofthatbeforebecomingafireman.""Thought!"hesaid."WasIgivenachoice?Mygrandfatherandfatherwerefiremen.Inmysleep,Iranafterthem."20Theparlorwasplayingadancetune."Thisisthedayyougoontheearlyshift,"saidMildred."Youshouldhavegonetwohoursago.Ijustnoticed.""It'snotjustthewomanthatdied,"saidMontag."LastnightIthoughtaboutallthekeroseneI'veusedinthepasttenyears.AndIthoughtaboutbooks.AndforthefirsttimeIrealizedthata25manwasbehindeachoneofthebooks.Amanhadtothinkthemup.Amanhadtotakealongtimetoputthemdownonpaper.AndI'dnevereventhoughtthatthoughtbefore."Hegotoutofbed."Ittooksomemanalifetimemaybetoputsomeofhisthoughtsdown,lookingaroundattheworldandlife,andthenIcamealongintwominutesandboom!it'sallover.""Letmealone,"saidMildred."Ididn'tdoanything."30"Letyoualone!That'sallverywell,buthowcanIleavemyselfalone?Weneednottobeletalone.Weneedtobereallybotheredonceinawhile.Howlongisitsinceyouwerereallybothered?Aboutsomethingimportant,aboutsomethingreal?"Andthenheshutup,forherememberedlastweekandthetwowhitestonesstaringupattheceilingandthepump-snakewiththeprobingeyeandthetwosoap-facedmenwiththe35cigarettesmovingintheirmouthswhentheytalked.ButthatwasanotherMildred,thatwasaMildredsodeepinsidethisone,andsobothered,reallybothered,thatthetwowomenhadnevermet.Heturnedaway.Mildredsaid,"Well,nowyou'vedoneit.Outfrontofthehouse.Lookwho'shere.""Idon'tcare."40"There'saPhoenixcarjustdrivenupandamaninablackshirtwithanorangesnakestitchedonhisarmcomingupthefrontwalk.""CaptainBeauty?"hesaid,"CaptainBeatty."Montagdidnotmove,butstoodlookingintothecoldwhitenessofthewallimmediatelybeforehim.45"Golethimin,willyou?TellhimI'msick.""Tellhimyourself!"Sheranafewstepsthisway,afewstepsthat,andstopped,eyeswide,whenthefrontdoorspeakercalledhername,softly,softly,Mrs.Montag,Mrs.Montag,someonehere,someonehere,Mrs.Montag,Mrs.Montag,someone'shere.Fading.Montagmadesurethebookwaswellhiddenbehindthepillow,climbedslowlybackinto50bed,arrangedthecoversoverhiskneesandacrosshischest,half-sitting,andafterawhileMildredmovedandwentoutoftheroomandCaptainBeattystrolledin,hishandsinhispockets.(ExcerptfromFahrenheit451byRayBradbury,1953)Page 2 sur 6

READING COMPREHENSION Please read the whole passage first and then answer all the questions in full sentences. Part 1: Setting the scene 1. Where does this scene take place? ............................................................................................ 2. Say how the three main characters are related to each other: Characters Relationship Montag and Mildred Montag and Captain Beatty 3. Give four pieces of information about the fourth character who is mentioned but not named in this passage: .............................................................................................................................................. ............................................................................................................................................... Part 2: Montag and his job 4. Look for information in the passage to fill in the chart Where is Montag for most of this scene? Why is he there? Where should Montag be at that time? 5. Quote a line from the text to show that Montag didn't sleep well and explain why. ............................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................ 6. Complete the chart with information about Montag's job. (Use your own words or quote from the text.) What is Montag's profession? In lines 24, 25, 28 and 29, Montag talks about what his job involves. Summarize this in your own words. (What does Montag have to do?) How does this compare to your expectations of this profession? How long has he been doing this job? Why did he choose this profession? Page 3 sur 6

Part 3: Mildred 7. What nickname does Montag give Mildred? ................................................................................. 8. What is Mildred worried about? ............................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................... 9. "That's water under the bridge" (line 15) • Which figure of speech does Mildred use here? ......................................................................... • Explain what Mildred means when she says this and what it shows about her personality. .......................................................................................................................................... .......................................................................................................................................... .......................................................................................................................................... • Explain the irony in this quote. ................................................................................................. .......................................................................................................................................... .......................................................................................................................................... 10. "Tell him yourself!" She ran a few steps this way, a few steps that, and stopped, eyes wide, when the front door speaker called her name . . . (lines 47 - 48) • Explain Mildred's emotional state in this passage. How does she feel and why? ............................... .......................................................................................................................................... .......................................................................................................................................... Part 4. The society in which Montag and Mildred live. 11. Why is Montag hiding a book under his pillow? ........................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................... 12. Where do you think this book might have come from? .................................................................. ............................................................................................................................................... 13. "We need to be really bothered once in a while." (line 32) What does this quote suggest about Montag's character compared to other people in the society? ............................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................... Page 4 sur 6

14. Which definition best fits their society? Tick the appropriate box and then justify your choice. □ a utopia: the idea of a perfect society in which everyone works well with each other and is happy □ a dystopia: an imagined state or society in which there is great suffering or injustice, typically one that is totalitarian or post-apocalyptic. WRITTEN EXPRESSION Choose ONE subject and write approximately 300 - 350 words. The mark you will be given will take into account the quality of your writing as well as the content of your answer. Please do not write your name anywhere in your answers. A. Do you think that books and reading belong to the past? Give arguments to justify your answer and include your own personal experience and opinion. B. What happened next? Continue the story, imagining the conversation between Captain Beatty and Montag and also the following events of that day. .......................................................................................... ....................................................................................... .......................................................................................