During the first card game at the firehouse, Montag is
already beginning to think about his job and his life, and how the world came to be the
way it is. He asks Captain Beatty if "it was always like this".
In other words, if firefighters had always started fires, if books had
always been banned, etc. This is a direct result of Clarisse's influence, as her
friendship has prompted Montag to question his world.
The
other men are shocked when Montag asks this. They point to the established history, the
one they were taught growing up, and which they have swallowed without doubt. They bring
out their rulebooks and show Montag the code of the firefighter, and laugh at his
audacity. To them, he's just a troublemaker. They're content with their lives, and they
don't like anyone threatening that. Like Mildred, they're not willing to admit
unhappiness or any kind of discontent. But Montag is different. It is this
willingness to question authority that will lead Montag done the path to
rebellion. Eventually, he will be forced to embrace his dissent and
escape from the authoritarian society.
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