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Mildred is one of the few characters in the novel who seems blissfully unaware of the dehumanizing conditions that make up her life. Her memory proves to be extremely limited, and she repeatedly engages in risky behavior and dismisses all of Montag’s existential concerns. From the government’s perspective, she represents the ideal citizen because of her inability to grasp how tightly controlled her world truly is. Instead of asking questions, as her husband does, Mildred readily accepts the conveniences and mindless entertainment that dominates modern life. The intention behind these inventions is to ensure constant happiness, but as Mildred’s character reveals, they simply drain people of the ability to feel real emotion. Her first appearance in the novel serves as a literal illustration of this effect as she attempts suicide by overdosing on sleeping pills, an act which requires a machine to clean out her stomach and her blood. She later acts completely cold and distant toward Montag despite their marriage of ten years, and she berates him when he musters up the courage to reveal his book collection to her. As a result of her addiction to antisocial activities, Mildred essentially becomes a shell of a human being, devoid of any sincere emotional, intellectual, or spiritual substance. The effects of this transformation are on full display when, in a moment of terror, Mildred alerts the firemen about the hidden book collection in her house. She brutally betrays Montag by inviting his coworkers to destroy him, and because the only people she feels attached to are the “family” from her soap opera, she feels no regret for doing so. In this moment, Mildred perfectly functions as a pawn in the government’s attempt to gain control over the populace.
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