Fahrenheit 451 Beatty Quotes

When one fears what one does not understand, he often becomes defensive, avoiding it at all costs. This is the problem facing Guy Montag; his society absolutely deplores challenge. Anything that can be perceived as offensive is banished. In their eyes, books are cursed objects which make people think. Without literature, the public’s thought is suppressed, and they live mindless lives. In the book, Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, Beatty is the captain of the firemen. As a fireman, Beatty acts as the controlling arm for this suppression. He is the one harshly guiding the public towards apathy by burning their books. However, when seen as just a man, Beatty is not important. He is one fireman against millions of books. He is important because of what he represents to Montag, which is: the censorship of information, an impetus to learn, and what

Montag has grown against.
Brought on by Beatty’s deletion of books, an overwhelming problem in Montag’s society was their lack of knowledge. The citizens of his world prefer to live mindlessly. Instead of thinking for themselves, citizens like Mildred prefer to be spoon fed entertainment on their TV’s. Because this is how they were made to live, when faced with something that challenges them, like poetry, they break down. The narrator describes the scene when they saw Mrs. Phelps crying in Montag’s living room, “They sat, not touching her, bewildered with her display” (100). The intensity of her outburst shows how brainwashed she was. She could not handle even the mildly provocative poetry, which made her burst into uncontrollable sobs. Rejecting the challenges that come with the knowledge in books is what they were told to do by the firemen their whole lives. As a man who burns books, Beatty is important because he represents this guiding censorship. He justifies his destruction by saying, “‘Don’t give them any slippery stuff like philosophy or sociology to tie things up with. That way lies melancholy’” (61). Beatty is convinced that he is doing a public service. He has a point, Mrs. Phelps bursts into tears after listening to poetry. However, he must be stopped. He is burning away the free will of the people to decide what is and what is not good. While he has a good point that philosophy and true questioning of one’s existence may lead to melancholy for some, its existence is vital because it helps people understand their lives. Beatty is important because he is taking away the chance for people to think deeply.
Beatty is important because he brings up a vital argument against books, challenging Montag to learn more about them. In this way, he is essential for Montag’s growth. Initially, he tries to convince Montag that books are harmful by saying, “Colored people dont like Little Black Sambo. Burn it. White people don’t like Uncle Tom's Cabin… Burn the book. Serenity” (59). After that, Beatty allowed Montag 24 hours to read. Beatty brings up a good point in his argument. In order to create the perfect society, one should remove anything that could trigger anyone’s unhappiness. Books like Uncle Tom’s Cabin are offensive and can hurt people, so why have them? Despite his point being partially true, Beatty is wrong, and it shows in his society. The Narrator describes life without books as worthless. Mrs. Bowles nonchalantly talks about ditching kids as soon as they leave the womb, throwing them away to school. Without books, the value of people decreased. They just existed, unappreciated. Fortunately, this talk, instead of stopping Montag, had the consequence of making him even more curious about books. Beatty accidentally made Montag more curious about books, so he spent the next 24 hours reading as much as he could.
Beatty is important because he highlights the differences in response to adversity between himself, who is the establishment, and Montag, the rebel.

When arguing against Montag in the firehouse, Beatty quotes many books. One line he remembers is, “The devil can cite scripture for his purpose!” (106). It is interesting how Bradbury uses this quote from the bible, the word, “devil”, represents Beatty, who is the one citing odd books to prove his point. Not only that, the fact that he remembers specific quotes like this proves that he once sought to learn and think for himself. Unfortunately, for whatever reason, he was swept back into social norms and now burns books. This is notable because it shows a lot about Montag. Montag will not fall into the same trap Beatty did. When Beatty sets the mechanical hound to be outside his house, Montag says, “Let’s get back to work” (72). His first reaction is to read more while facing a threat. This shows that he is willing to learn no matter the risk. It is important for the story, because, without this strength, he would never meet Granger and have the chance to bring books

back.
Fahrenheit 451 is the story about one man, Montag, rising up against the world around him. The citizens of Montag’s world fear what they do not understand, and thus avoid it. Beatty is odd because he does understand books, and uses that knowledge to destroy them. The Captain’s censorship of all conflicting knowledge provides something for Montag to grow against. Beatty is the driving force which led to Montag showing his strengths. If not for Beatty, Montag may not have develops as a thinker. Because he inadvertently gives Montag the skills and reason to rebel, Beatty is important.