Free Essay : Freedom Requires Sacrifice

It is commonplace for individuals to envision a perfect world; a utopian reality in which the world is a paradise, with equality, happiness and ideal perfection. Unfortunately, we live in a dystopian society and our world today is far from perfection. John Savage, from Brave New World by Aldous Huxley, V, from V for Vendetta by James McTeigue and Offred, from The Handmaid’s Tale by Margret Attwood, are all characters in a dystopian society. A dystopia is the vision of a society in which conditions of life are miserable and are characterized by oppression, corruption of government, and abridgement of human rights.

At the beginning of Henry’s speech, he was aware of the fact that not every delegate supported his idea of fighting British rule; some wanted America to make peace and reconciliation with Britain. He politely acknowledged “different men often see the same subject in different lights”[5] and that his aim was to express his sentiments unreservedly regarding the debate on whether Americans should fight for their freedom or remain enslaved by the British rule. Henry hoped his fellow delegates would not see his sentiments as disrespectful. He also told his audience that they had a responsibility towards America and God to seek the truth and that if he held back his opinions for fear of offending others; he would be

America is the universal symbol of freedom. But is it really free? Does the history of the United States stay true to the ideas of our forefathers? Or has the definition been altered to fit American policies? Has freedom defined America? Or has America defined freedom? I believe America was at first defined by freedom, then after time, America defined freedom, altering the definition to fit the niche it fits in, but still keeping key components so it still seems to be staying true to the ideas of America’s founding fathers.

Throughout history freedom has had many different meanings and definitions; based on race, gender, and ethnicity. According to the dictionary freedom means the state of being free or at liberty rather than in confinement or under physical restraint (“freedom” def. 1). Freedom may seem like something given to everyone however it was something workers had to fight for. Not everyone believed that workers’ rights needed to be changed, which led to a long battle between workers, employers and the government. To the working class people freedom meant making higher wages, having regulated hours, workable conditions and the right to free speech.

Harrison Bergeron is a valuable story that has underlying themes, which are very relevant in our current society. The theme of equality can be seen throughout the book, and it is the principle that is enshrined in America’s constitution now, whereby they claim that all men are equal. Kurt Vonnegut demonstrates the issue of equality in a Utopian society. Vonnegut in his story, cautions Americans on the dangers of creating a truly equalitarian society, whereby citizens go to an extent of sacrificing their freedom, and individuality to the state, to create a place where all people are equal. Vonnegut creates a society whereby, all people are made equal. The beautiful are forced to wear hideous masks to disfigure their beauty, those considered intelligent are to wear radio calls, and ear splitting noises that are supposed to impede their thinking, and the strong are forced to wear weights around their necks throughout the day. The author uses masks, and the weights as symbols to symbolize

The American Civil War claimed the lives of over 700,000 people. The war was fought from 1861-1865. The results of the war were described as; a union victory, abolishment of slavery, territorial integrity preserved and the destruction and dissolution of the Confederate States. The twelve years that followed were called the Reconstruction Era, 1865-1877. The purpose of the Reconstruction Era was to restore National Unity, strengthen the government, and guarantee rights to freed slaves. The reality of reconstruction though was; violence (260,000 dead), newly freed slaves suffered the most, and Lincoln's hopes of trust and rededication to peace were lost when he was assassinated on April 15th, 1865. It is these realities of the Reconstruction Era and beyond that this paper will address and how those realities affected the newly freed slaves. Life in post-bellum America for African - Americans was violent and filled with fear because of white supremacy, lynching, and the brutal mutilations of blacks.

A common theme emerged for the African American people; the government may say that everyone is in this fight together but we, as African Americans, now this is not true. From the segregated military to the non-willing acceptance of African American workers in wartime factories the African American people felt that they fought a two-sided war. This two-sided approach to war took a name for itself, The Double V Campaign. African Americans joined the fight for freedom just like all other Americans, but many thought this to be the time and place to advocate for civil right,

Imagine a place where there are no decisions to make throughout the day. In this place, everyone’s career gets chosen for them, and their hopes, dreams, and aspirations are given to them. There are none of those difficult life decisions to make because they will be made for everybody. Now despite all these seemingly terrible things, we do get something great from all the sacrifices: equality. In this world everyone is equal; no one person smarter, more athletic, more talented, or better than any other. Everyone in this place completely equal, and all thanks to the government, the authorities, the higher-ups, “the man,” or whatever these enforcers’ wish to be called. The world of Harrison Bergeron functions like this. Now while it may seem

The power or right to act, speak or think as one wants without hindrance or restraint. A word created by man to escape the bonds of tyranny to express the idea of what it means to persist one's own ambitions. Freedom. Freedom is not the absence of confinement but the will to achieve freedom when imprisoned. After carefully concluding the reading done over this semester one is able to clearly understand the confinement these early Americans felt and their decision to achieve a form of freedom. Freedom has always existed but it is the history of this nation that will define what actions freedom takes.

Throughout the short story, Harrison Bergeron, written by Kurt Vonnegut, Vonnegut tries to spread a general theme. In Harrison Bergeron, the audience meets several characters in a utopian society. In this utopian society, everyone is equal. If someone had an above average intelligence, they were handicapped. These handicaps were not to be taken off, but to be worn at all times. They all had to be on the same level. In the end, people try to break free, and the government did not want the society to be like this, so they killed them. Today our society is trying to equalize, but we have not been successful. The theme in the short story Harrison Bergeron is that equalizing is not always good to do in a world like we have today.

A society with absolute equality is perceived by many people as a perfect society, but it isn’t always as good as it ought to be. In Vonnegut’s “Harrison Bergeron,” the author depicts Harrison as a recalcitrant, bright 14-year-old boy who publicly defies the law that leads to a disastrous outcome. In the year 2081, everybody is finally all equal. Vonnegut compares how Harrison is unlike those other people. Harrison Bergeron may be intelligent, however, his bold act initiates a turn of events.

In “Harrison Bergeron” the reader gets a sense of miserableness. Life seems to be dragged out for these characters. Vonnegut portrays a society that is something we couldn’t imagine. However, this society would essentially be ideal to all humans. In this society, anyone who was more intelligent than another would wear a handicap helmet. No one person would be better than, or worse than the other. Once, being more advanced and intellectual was considered an asset and a plus for the society we live in. Now, it’s considered more of a liability and was thought to hurt you. Harrison Bergeron was considered dangerous because of how intellectual he was. He was thrown in prison and kept away from society in fear that he would create an unbalance. A consequence of this society is that people were not exactly equal because they

In the movie, The Freedom Writers Mrs. Erin Gruwell (Hillary Swank) plays a role of a dedicated teacher who did all she could, to help her students learn to respect themselves and each other. She has little idea of what she's getting into when she volunteers to be an English teacher at a newly integrated high school in Long Beach, California. Her students were divided along racial lines and had few aspirations beyond basic survival. Mrs. Gruwell was faced with a big challenge when a group of freshmen students showed her nothing but disrespect which made it hard for her to communicate, teach and understand them. However, Erin Gruwell was determined that no matter the cost she would teach her students not only

Awakening or to awake means “to wake up; to be or make alert or watchful” (Webster 23). This is what Edna Pontellier experienced in The Awakening.

What is the price for FREEDOM? It's obvious that the price for freedom is not free but that it is rather large. After obtaining freedom, we look back and wonder was it worth it? Was freedom overpriced? In other words, did we sacrifice and pay too much to be free?