In the year 2081, everybody was finally equal. They weren’t equal before God and law. They were equal every which way. Nobody was smarter than anybody else. Nobody had more money then anyone else. George Bergeron was a man who wore 47 pound weights around his neck and had a mental radio in his ear. Hazel Bergeron is the wife of George, she is “perfectly average intelligence”. Harrison Bergeron is the son of George and Hazel, he also wore the 47 pound weights around his neck just like George, he also to wear a big red clown nose and had a mental radio in his ear. People always made comments about Harrison. The government describes him as “a genius and an athlete”. Harrison is seven feet tall and burdened by 300 pounds of handicaps.…
Kurt Vonnegut reveals to the readers that the society in which Harrison Bergeron lives in is dysfunctional, by using the character of Diana Moon Glampers to show us that it is impossible to “make everybody finally equal”[59] without making society corrupt. Firstly, the character of Diana Moon Glampers, the handicapper general, was one of the main people who caused a disturbance throughout the society. Diana Moon Glampers was the handicapper general that was focused on making every person in society equal, ironically forgetting about herself who was unequal to the rest. Secondly, Harrison Bergeron’s valiant attempt to free himself from equality caused him to rebel against society. Harrison was “crippled, hobbled, [and] sickened” [63] yet determined as ever to break free from the absurdity.…
Kurt Vonnegut’s dystopian story, Harrison Bergeron, is set in the year 2081, when everyone has been made equal. The means used to create this equality are not in any way unthinkable, although we may like to turn them away and think of them as such. Examining the first 50 years of the 20th century, you will notice a trend of reliance, trust, and general obedience to the government and the way things are. In the 60s however, with the anti-war protests and movements, citizens of the US became more aware of their impact on the government, and the fact that the government does not necessarily know best. In the following decades leading up to now, those thoughts have faded to the back of many people's minds, which may be a terrible mistake. If citizens are not conscious of the world they live in, it opens the door for scenarios, not unlike the happenings of 2081 and dictatorships, which have happened in many parts of the world already. These scenarios are in our past and present, and the similarities between 2081 and 2015 cannot be ignored.…
Harrison Bergeron Setting Essay “Harrison Bergeron”, by Kurt Vulger is a story about a teenager who discovers the problems with the handicapped equality of his dystopian world and tries to speak out about it. Throughout the story a common theme is how nothing new has been invented or changed, everybody and everything is kept at a controlled medium. In this essay we will be exploring the depth of how the setting has affected the kids growing up in it and how the setting caused Harrison to speak out. The setting is important at first because it is the world that Harrison grew up in and it is the world that formed his ideals.…
1. Select a topic, which is a problem of current interest that requires your audience to TAKE ACTION. Avoid overworked topics with which most audiences are already familiar with. Pick what you are or will be passionate about. As you choose your topic, made sure you select an issue that you believe in enough to do something about yourself AND something that you would like others to believe in and do! Keep in mind that you have to PERSUADE us to take ACTION – not just: “believe” in your topic. Try to pick a charitable organization or something that need help by your community.…
In “Harrison Bergeron,” written by Kurt Vonnegut, it is the year 2081 and every American if completely equal due to new amendments to the Constitution. The Handicapper General mainly makes sure that these laws of equality are enforced in that if someone is “above average” in society, they will be handicapped in some way, shape or form. George and Hazel Bergeron have a son named Harrison and the government takes him away from his parents when he was just fourteen years old for the reason that he is “above average.” Eventually, Harrison escapes and pronounces himself Emperor and tells everyone, “I am the Emperor! Everybody must do what I say at once!” (220). Harrison knows that equality is wrong and tries his very best to show everyone a non-handicapped society. He is violent in doing so…
The short story, Harrison Bergeron, was written by Kurt Vonnegut Jr. In the story, we see many uses of different literary devices that help us understand the world they are living in. Similes introduce us to the loud, distracting sounds that go off in George’s head every time he is about to take advantage of his brain. The handicaps that certain people are chosen to wear symbolize their strength, intelligence, and beauty. Vonnegut uses allusions to reference a Greek god and the Constitution. I chose this story because I was fascinated by this world where everyone was “equal” and by Harrison’s fearlessness in challenging the laws and his desire to be free.…
A society of perfectly equal individuals may sound like a world worth living in to some. However, “Harrison Bergeron” by Kurt Vonnegut disproves this idea. In the story, the government attempts to create a population of completely equal beings. In order to create this society, those who are born smarter, stronger, or prettier are required to wear handicaps of some sort to compensate for their upperhand in life. Vonnegut uses multiple literary devices to portray the theme of this story. The irony, symbolism, and resolution utilized in “Harrison Bergeron” work together to prove that total equality is not attainable, nor is it worth striving to achieve.…
The story Harrison Bergeron takes place in the year 2081 and everyone is equal by their physical and mental qualities due to enforcement by the law. A married couple named George and Hazel can only think in short bursts because of Hazel’s low iq and George’s small radio in his ear. The two of them have a son named Harrison who smart and strong and is taken away from his parents. Complications arise when Harrison escapes and people worry that he may take over the government and change society itself. The theme of this story that the most unique people in life are the most important, yet they are looked as bad to others and society refuses to accept them.…
In the short story, Harrison Bergeron by Kurt Vonnegut Jr., Harrison is a super-human who tries to overthrow a corrupt government in which they put people in harm's way in order to create an equal society. The government convinces the citizens of the United States that equality is ideal and society and society should have no competition. The government officials tried to create a perfect, utopian world, yet it backfires into a fearful dystopia. Harrison is considered a threat by the government, but is he really? Harrison is a hero because he could save the people from their handicaps and make it so there would be healthy competition.…
“The year was 2081, and everybody was finally equal.” No one is more intelligent than anyone, no one is faster, beautifuller or event different from anyone else. In the short story Harrison Bergeron Kurt Vonnegut explains a lot of hardships and restraints in talents and personalities. The author uses symbolism, descriptive language and similes to show restraint through handicaps.…
“Harrison Bergeron,” written by Kurt Vonnegut focuses on the idea of physical and mental equality, which is controlled by the government in the year 2081; the strong are forced to wear handicaps which hinder their abilities, the intellectual are forced to be unintelligent due to a radio transmitter that won’t allow the individual to think. Vonnegut uses satirical tone and places this story in the future, to show how total equality would not work. Not only does total equality sound absurd it removes the ability for individuals to be different. Individuality means having a quality that separates one individual from another. This means that by having total equality, there is a loss of individuality. In Kurt Vonnegut’s story “Harrison Bergeron”, Vonnegut’s satirical, dystopian society in which everyone is average, presents the idea that handicaps that constitute equality also eliminates individuality, along with self-worth.…
The story "Harrison Bergeron" is a story about equality. Being equal to one another is not always the best way to live. Everyone is different for a reason and when you are equal, life is boring. Also, when there is a ruler who controls everyone in the world and punishes those who do not listen and do not want to be equa, how the government makes laws or amendments for people to follow helps the world stay in order but causes some problems too.…
In “Harrison Bergeron”, Kurt Vonnegut explores the theme of forced equality in American society in the future. Vonnegut creates a world in which all living people are equal in all ways. He focuses on creating equality by altering beauty, strength, and intelligence as opposed to dealing with race, religion, and sex, the true issues of equality in society. Although Vonnegut writes this story to teach the lesson that all people are not equal, he forces equality on America in the areas of beauty, strength, and intelligence.…
In “Harrison Bergeron” by Kurt Vonnegut the year was 2081 and everyone was finally equal. The story's theme is that total equality is not an idea worth trying to accomplish. This mistaken goal would be dangerous in execution and outcome. Equality would not make everyone one perfect, but everyone as weak as they could be.…