How Does Vonnegut Use Direct Characterization In Harrison Bergeron

Lindsey Holliday Mrs. Raven English II 1 March 2024 Creative Title Reflects Thesis Is it a good thing for people to believe that no one is better than anyone else? And why would Vonnegut make it adopt its practices of making everyone equal in brains, beauty, and brawn? It's the year 2018, and everyone is finally equal. The story focuses on the ideal of equality where strength and intelligence gets destroyed in the process.

The author Vonnegut uses syntax in the story harrison bergeron to set an emotion or set a particular mood he wants his readers/watchers to feel or experience such as he did. As he described the character harrison as a tall man about 7 feet tall and basically ugly. He was imprisoned because he was more athletic than most people and wouldn't agree to bring his abilities to the same as everyone else. He escapes later on and exposes the government on public television to let everyone know what type of evil they were letting them govern them.

"There were tears on Hazel's cheeks, but she'd forgotten for the moment what they were about" (1) George is extremely intelligent so in order to keep him from taking advantage of his brain he "had a little mental handicap radio in his ear. He was required by law to wear it at all times." (1) Whenever the buzzer sounded in his head, "His thoughts fled in panic," (1) This is a cruel thing to do. "It was such a doozy that George was white and trembling.." (2) Not only are the sounds so debilitating that it reduces George to Hazel's level, but it also, physically hurts him. Sometimes making him even pass out.

In April, the government takes away the 14 year old main character Harrison Bergeron from his parents, George and Hazel. This event does not fully impact Hazel as she possess average intelligence- a result of Amendments 211th, 212th, and 213th that causes the person to be unable to think for an extended stretches of time. Nor does it fully impact George, Harrison’s father, who has above normal

The story "Harrison Bergeron" is about George and Hazel Bergeron in future america. It was the year 2081, and everyone the the Bergeron's world are equal. The government uses "handicaps" in order to make everyone "equal", which consist of masks, clown noses, sound transmitters in the ears of citizens, and bags of birdshot tied around the necks, arms, legs, or wherever, depending on how strong or intelligent the person is. Obviously this society of total equality is wrong and taken way too far. The short story “Harrison Bergeron,” written by Kurt Vonnegut Jr., teaches its readers that total equality can be harmful! This sentence will be the last sentence of your first paragraph.

In the story it says ¨And George , while his intelligence was way above normal , had a little mental handicap radio in his ear. ¨He was required by law to wear it at all times.¨(Vonnegut 1). This proves nobody was able to have their own thought no one could think of stuff the government did want them to think. In story it says ¨He was required by law to wear it at all times. It was tuned to a government transmitter. Every twenty seconds or so, the transmitter would send out some sharp noise to keep people like george from taking unfair advantage of their brains.¨ (Vonnegut 1) This proves that if you were smarter you had to wear a metal handicap so you can be equal like everybody else and so you would not have a advantage over

The author wants to get our attention to the major differences from the present world to Harrison Bergeron’s world and examine the notable similarities in both as well. The opposition of knowledge and power versus suppression and ignorance are used by the author to satirize the society because who has the knowledge also, has the power. The more knowledge the government has and does not share it with the population, the easier is to control people and their minds. For example when Hazel watches her son die on television after performing a beautiful dance that theoretically could have brought about radical change, and instead of gaining even an ounce of understanding, she ends where she begun. When George asked her why she had tears in her eyes, her memory had already failed her, but she takes his advice to simply forget sad things, commenting that she always does.

Another aspect that Kurt Vonnegut uses extremism and radicalism within the story of “Harrison Bergeron” is the idea of conformism. This idea is expressed in a radical manner to inform the reader that conformism is not always a good quality to have. Within the story, the two parents of Harrison are conformist and accept their fate. The author uses the normality and the average lives to show that conformism is holding the society back from everything that could be accomplished. The family is missing so much by conforming to the system and accepting the way they live. Conforming to the system also causes George much pain throughout the story, through the use of the earphone to prevent thoughts. An example of how conformist the family and the

Conversely, Hazel’s husband is handicapped with forty-seven pounds of birdshot strapped to his neck, and he is obedient to the government’s handicapped system. Vonnegut uses irony to demonstrate a dysfunctional Utopia in the society. In his story, Vonnegut uses irony to depict how easily a government can control its citizens, by assaulting their senses and individuality.

Vonnegut’s emphasis on George and Hazel’s character development (in relation to the government’s complete jurisdiction and societal regulations, leading to the citizen naivete,) conveys the society’s influence upon the citizens’ lives, which makes the citizens puppets of sorts, leading a life without will. To prevent inequality, the government undermines the intelligence of the people with higher intellect: “ Every twenty seconds or so, the transmitter would send out some sharp noise to keep people like George from taking unfair advantage of their brains.” (Vonnegut 1) To prevent people like George from being too intelligent, resulting in making others feel bad, they are literally being forced to stop thinking, to stop thinking to their capability. It can be argued that they aren’t responsible for others’ feelings, so they shouldn’t be punished for their reaction.

Picture a society, far in the future, where everyone, by government control, must be on the same level. Would this be Hell or a utopia? This is the subject of Kurt Vonnegut’s short story, “Harrison Bergeron”. In this society, the gifted, strong, and beautiful are required to wear multiple handicaps of earphones, heavy weights, and hideous masks. In turn, these constraints leave the world equal, or arguably devoid of, from brains to brawn to beauty. With the constant push for equality among all people, Vonnegut reveals a world that society is diligently working toward. “Harrison Bergeron” is written as a form of satire with heavy irony, to demonstrate the clear difference between equity and equality in society. “Harrison Bergeron” is

demonstrates how good intentions of the government are slowly used to manipulate people in society. One way the idea of manipulation is shown in the story is when the Handicapper General (H-G) Men takes away perceived people to be better than anyone else, to prison for a potential revolution and give little care for it by the handicaps put on them. As Vonnegut tells us, “ And it was in that clammy month that the H-G men took George and Hazel Bergeron's fourteen-year-old son, Harrison, away. It was tragic, all right, but George and Hazel couldn't think about it very hard.”(Vonnegut Jr. 1). In the extract, the author explained that the government would take action to potentially avert danger in any way; but presents the oppressive government exerting their power to kidnap Harrison Bergeron because he was more talented than other people. Harrison’s parents, George and Hazel did not remember his son taken from because they were manipulated and not able to think long and hard about what happened to restrict the right of their choices. The other way is shown in the story, are the handicaps themselves and the way government uses it to their advantage. As the narrator introduces George, “ And George, while his intelligence was way above normal, had a little mental handicap radio in his ear. He was required by law to bear it at all times. It was tuned to a government transmitter. Every twenty seconds or so, the transmitter would send

What is it that Vonnegut wants the readers to realize? That equality in general is unnatural, because Adaption to the average might mean bringing everyone down to the lowest level and therefore confirm prejudices of stupid, fat and lazy people and lead to a loss of potential, excellence and talent. The immense state control can lead to oppression and torture of citizens if people are too busy with their personal life instead of caring for the greater good. Furthermore that our modern lives can lead to a desensitization if people spend their time in front of a TV lamenting about the chances in the world rather than standing up from the couch and do something about it. That an uncontrolled medium bears the potential of misdirected utilization

Near the opening few paragraphs of the story the reader learns that intelligence may be handicapped yet the ability to reason hasn’t been lost. Hazel tells George that she thinks he looks tired. She says,

The subject of “Harrison Bergeron” by Kurt Vonnegut is equality. The theme of this short story is that society should make an effort to value individuality and fairness, in which everyone receives what they need to prosper, instead of universal equality. The forms used to elevate this subject and theme are point of view, syntax, characterization, irony, and humor.