Have you ever wondered what the future might be like? Would society be civil or savage? Would we be controlled or would we be free? Well, a theoretical version of a futuristic society can be found within Kurt Vonnegut’s short story, “Harrison Bergeron.” Vonnegut writes about an equal civilization, that takes place years from now, where the government has gained power over the people to the point where society is controlled beyond measure. The author uses specific elements of style to express and build onto his tale. Vonnegut uses details of dictatorship, his choice of diction, and somber imagery in order to develop his dystopian version of an “equal” society. To begin with, Vonnegut makes use of his futuristic and vicious details in order to convey a message that warns …show more content…
To sum up the story, the year is 2081 and the government has gained control over society to the point where everyone is forced to be equal. In other words, no one is better than anyone else, and whoever is, is a threat. The author uses modernistic details when describing the timeline of the tale. The story is set in the future where there is only full equality, “Nobody was smarter than anybody else. Nobody was better looking than anybody else. Nobody was stronger or quicker than anybody else. All this equality was due to the 211th, 212th, and 213th Amendments to the Constitution…” (Vonnegut 1). The fact that everyone is equal in this time, and also that there are up to 213 Amendments compared to the 27 that we currently have, signifies that this story is set very far into the future. Vonnegut also uses violent details to explain how the government gains and stays in power. In the story, when things aren’t going her way, “The
You must not lose faith in humanity. Humanity is an ocean; if a few drops of the ocean are dirty, the ocean does not become dirty (Gandhi). The power society has over citizens is explored in the two texts Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury and “Harrison Bergeron” by Kurt Vonnegut. The story Fahrenheit 451 depicts firemen who start fires instead of stop them. In this society censorship is valued and books are a main reason firemen burn. Books give you knowledge and knowledge is power which is what this society tries to prevent. In the short story “Harrison Bergeron” the topic similarly is about censorship in a more extreme way. People must wear masks and handicaps to prevent them from being different or unique. Intelligent people get a sharp noise in their ear every twenty seconds to prevent people from taking unfair advantage of their brains.
The theme of the text “Harrison Bergeron” is equality has its pro’s and con’s,the author's use of similes and metaphors helps develop the theme.First off,one element that help support this theme is honor. Humor helps support the theme because in the text,”Harrison Bergeron” it shows how employees can’t even do their jobs because they have their handicaps on,but Know one earns a better profit because they're the same.Another type of element the author uses is similes .In the text it says,”but Harrison looked like a walking junkyard”.That helps support the theme because if the leader or government puts handicaps com people they will get mad and try to escape their state or country.The theme in the article is equality has its pro’s and con’s this
The future entails breakthrough technology and unknown leadership. The harsh rules of the government in, Harrison Bergeron, causes the protagonist, Harrison Bergeron, to come up with the dangerous idea to overthrow the government which leads to the violent behavior of the antagonist Diana Moon Glampers. The author, Kurt Vonnegut Jr., uses character development to show the theme of the harsh government through the eyes of the protagonist, antagonist, and the foil characters Hazel and George Bergeron in this futuristic society.
In a reality where the government strives to establish total equality, there are bound to be an immense amount of rebels and protesters who questions the newly established system. It is expected for the mass majority of individuals to be demeaning the so-called “equality” and demanding for change. However, this interpretation is far from the case in the fictional text “Harrison Bergeron”, where there appears to be daily brainwashing of the population, as well as law enforcement through putting bullets through people’s heads. The allegory attempts to depict a world where the government’s primary focus is to ensure that each and every individual is absolutely equivalent to one another. Taking place in 2081 America, there are several
Vonnegut and Jackson, through the use of well written short stories, have managed to address concerning issues in today’s societies. Through the use of Harrison Bergeron Kurt Vonnegut was able to address the growing issue of equality, this is a very important issue as many people in modern societies view the idea of equality to be incredible. Shirley Jackson through The Lottery addressed the concerning issue of societies blindly following religions and traditions due to superstitions and the unwillingness to change. These dystopian texts demonstrate the inevitable outcome these problems will eventually cause.
Science fiction stories are a very effective way of conveying a strong point. In “Harrison Bergeron” the strength of this short story is its ability to make you think. Not just about the societal structure, but also the abuse of power, and repression. The intentional significance of this story is if people accept oppressive measures in the name of fairness. No one really benefits from these foolish attempts to enforce equality. The tyranny of the majority stifles any sort of freedoms, gifts, individualities, and strengths. If an action must ...
The handicaps are to people as the cage is to the bird. This simile describes how Caged Bird and Harrison Bergeron are alike. Harrison Bergeron and Caged Bird are very alike in many reasons. They both reference limitations on freedom. In Caged Bird the limitation is that the bird is in the cage and cannot fly or go wherever it pleases. In Harrison Bergeron the limitations are all the handicaps. In Harrison Bergeron there are limitations to the citizens. These are called handicaps. When you are more capable at something then other people are then you receive handicaps that limit your abilities so that everyone is equal. Some handicaps are earpieces that stop you from thinking with a ringing sound, masks for those that have superior beauty, and
...y are not prisoners, they are mere citizens that must constantly live lives of punishment in order to achieve equality. They can not think for themselves, or excel at anything in life, because they are all equal. Each of them is just like the next citizen. In Vonnegut’s “Harrison Bergeron,” the United States in 2081 are not a society, but a Panoptic prison where the citizens are held and guarded like inmates, and this is no way to live.
The danger and the risk that comes with enforcing something, like total equality, is an idea Vonnegut presents as a picture-perfect proposition not worth striving for. Peter Reed, author of The Short Fiction of Kurt Vonnegut claims the time era in which Vonnegut wrote Harrison Bergeron was the time of the cold war,
Kurt Vonnegut, a modern American writer, composed stories about fictional situations that occurred in futuristic versions of today’s world. His stories included violence, both upon oneself and one another, and characters who sought out revenge. In “2BR02B” and “Harrison Bergeron”, Vonnegut conveys physical violence most likely experienced while a prisoner of World War 2, as a way to show how war brings pain and destruction.
When rules are taken too far, the people’s freedom is revoked. During the course of the story, the narrator mentions the 213th Amendment to the Constitution (pg. 1). This means that at least 186 rules have been added to the Constitution since our current time. Going through the story, the people have very few rights, such as the lack of right to express themselves, dislike the government, or even think differently than the government wishes you to. All of this, the narrator says, is because of the new Amendments. The Amendments should have made the people equal, but instead took away the people’s
In the story Harrison Bergeron, Kurt Vonnegut clearly shows the consequences of the society which lacks the power to oppose
... book is important because, it makes the reads to question the idea of equality in the society. In addition, it makes the reader compare what is happening in the world today, with the rise of equality issues, and the effects it can have in the society just like the people in Harrison Bergeron were affected. Vonnegut suggests that, total equality is not the best thing to strive for through his writing. He wants his readers to know its effects, and that the quest for equality is disastrous. Harrison Bergeron is a valuable piece of literature that should be read world wide, so that everyone can be able to know what we are getting into with the issue of equality, and the effects of an authoritarian government.
In conclusion, the complete freedom and absolute equality have been a goal of innumerable societies throughout human history. However, these two ideal cannot exist together in their most perfect forms because the perfect forms of either freedom or equality represent total chaos or total oppression, as we can see in “Harrison Bergeron,” the consequences of sacrificing freedom for perfect equality. The author uses the story of this imaginary perfect world where everyone is happy to demonstrate that a society in which total equality exists is not only oppressive, but also inert and unproductive. Using his futuristic scenario, the simplicity of the society, and the actions of his characters, Vonnegut makes his point of view of a repressive society. In addition, societies that try to create total equality have almost always proven to be oppressive, such as China.
Merrill, Robert and Peter A. Scholl. “Vonnegut’s Denunciation of Tralfamadore.” Social Issues in Literature: War in Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse-Five, edited by Claudia Durst Johnson, Gale Cengage Learning, 2011, pp.89-98.