In the current state of society, the government has made books illegal, and fire fighters destroy the books, and can even kill. Beatty thinks that books can make people unhappy, and he does not feel guilt or remorse. Beatty says “Not everyone is born free and equal, as the constitution says, but everyone made equal.” Pg. 55-56. This shows how Beatty is ignorant and content with the society because he understands that people are not equal, but he will not do anything to change the society. Beatty may have also been brainwashed because in the novel it seems like he is very knowledgeable about books, but it really feels like he has no regard for human life. When Beatty was in the house burning the books, he said to the old lady “you know the law”, but what if a law is unjust, henry David Thoreau one famously said, “one has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws. Burning books gives Beatty a sense of pride, a sense of power. Beatty has changed throughout the novel, first he is known as a destroyer and burner, but now overtime he has started to second guess himself. the reason beatty gives for burning books is because, books are like a gun, if you have knowledge it an be very dangerous towards the government and society. Many people in this dystopia think that they are happy and everyone is either not wanting to, or scared of change. in the novel there is no democracy because without freedom there cannot be democracy.