Thursday, February 25, 2016

Summarize Beatty's explanation of how the need for firemen arose in "Fahrenheit 451".

Beatty says that since everything was fireproof, there was no more need for firemen to put out fires. However, schools were graduating people who could run, jump, and swim. The word "intellectual" became a swear word because intellectuals made people uncomfortable. All people wanted was pleasure and books contained ideas that confused people and "caused conflict". Beatty says, "A book is a loaded gun in the house next door." People believed that everyone should be equal and equality meant that everyone should be alike. No one should be smarter than another. Books contained things that made people feel unequal. So firemen were made "guardians of people's comfort". They burned the awful books that made people unhappy. With books gone, everyone could be happy and equal.

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