Captain Beatty Was Killing In Fahrenheit 451

1. Was killing Captain Beatty right or wrong? Are books worth more than human beings? Captain Beatty deserved to be killed in a way that he brought the death upon himself. The reason he was killed was because he enraged Montag to the point where he could not handle himself any longer and just threw the flamethrower at Beatty. Moments before Beatty’s death, Montag described him as someone who, “want[ed] to die so much that you let a man walk armed and then instead of shutting up and staying alive, you go on yelling at people and making fun of them until you get them mad” (Bradbury 122). It is evident that Beatty was asking to be killed, since he was threatening Montag at the scene instead of just settling things down with him later on. In a way, Beatty’s death is considered right, however book are not worth more than human beings, it is just in this one case where it is justified.

Not only do most people in Fahrenheit 451 not read, but they also don’t write. What kinds of freedom does writing provide? Writing is a remarkable tool that can give a person the freedom of expressing your thoughts visibly and allow them to share their knowledge with many others. Although it is just words on a piece of paper there are endless possibilities to what it can be about which is what gives it its value. Just like Montag said to his wife, “there must be something in books, things we can't imagine, to make a woman stay in a burning house; there must be something there. You don't stay for nothing” (51). The value of literature cannot be measured because of the freedom it gives to people that appreciate it