Harrison Bergeron Character Analysis Essay

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Part One: In the short story Harrison Bergeron by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr, the government takes fourteen year old Harrison Bergeron away from his parent George and Hazel. This all occurs during the year of 2081, and amendments 211, 212, and 213 are in play during this time period. Hazel is only allowed to have average intelligence, and her husband George wears a helmet on his head, which limits his thinking. Hazel and George are watching the television as two ballerinas dance, but they are wearing radios, which restrict them and make them dance the same. Hazel said if she was a handicap general she would make chimes ring on Sunday to make it religious. Hazel tells George to take a nap because he look tired from wearing the handicap bag that weighs in at forty pounds. She suggests he takes some weight out but for every weight he takes out he goes to jail for that many years. Also everyone would go back to his or her competitive ways in the community, and he doesn’t want that. As they’re watching television a reporter comes on with a speech impediment, he isn’t able to speak clearly and passes it over to a ballerina with a beautiful voice but ugly face. Hazel was proud of the reporter for trying to talk with what God gave him and thinks he should get an award. The ballerina is reporting that Harrison Bergeron had escaped from jail. He is 300 pounds, wearing metal, a red rubber nose, shaved off eyebrows, and his handicaps. An image of Harrison appears on the television as he has taken over the newsroom. He says he is the emperor and everyone must obey him. He takes off all of his handicaps, and tells the first women to arise will be his empress. A ballerina rises and he takes her up in his arms as they defy gravity while kissing. He dem... ... middle of paper ... ...ubber nose, one of the ballerinas must wear a mask to hide her beautiful face to make her look ugly. The intelligent must wear helmets that disrupt their thoughts and the strong must wear weights to keep them weighted down. The government already supplies equality but freedom will cost you a price if you want it. Television is another symbol of the story because its releases all of the important info needed to know about Harrison, and what’s going on with him. Irony plays a part when Harrison is shown to be a stronger person as he wears his handicap gear. The weights were actually supposed to weigh him down, but instead made him stronger. Also his parents George and Hazel don’t react much when the government takes over their son to make him the same as everyone else. Also Hazel forgets how their son dies because her intelligence and memory isn’t good. Part Five:

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