Theme Of Literary Devices In Harrison Bergeron

“Harrison Bergeron, “a short story by Kurt Vonnegut Jr., takes place in a totalitarian society where everyone is equal through handicaps forced on them by the government. Harrison, the main character, attempts to save the broken society, but ultimately fails to change anything. Vonnegut uses Harrison as a Christ figure in his novel ironically, to make a statement about our own society today and how we are blind to many political things happening around us. These ideas can be explored through analyzing Thomas Foster’s novel How to Read Literature like a Professor.

The story “Harrison Bergeron” written by Kurt VOnnegut Jr. explores the idea of a perfect society. A life where you are completely oppressed to be like everyone else. A young boy known as Harrison Bergeron seeks to have change in society and for everyone to be free.

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

If you have ever read the stories “Harrison Bergeron” and Fahrenheit 451 I’m sure you would recognize the similarities and differences between the two. For example, one of the similarities between the books would be how the main characters from Fahrenheit 451, Guy Montag and Mildred Montag are very similar to the main characters Harrison and Hazel from “Harrison Bergeron.” The other example of similarity between the two stories would be how the government realized the desire for equality that people have and use that to keep society at below average intelligence levels. One difference that I found between the two stories was how different the restrictions were in each of the stories.

In the story Harrison Bergeron in the year 2081 everyone is equal, no one is smatter, better looking, stronger, faster, etc. than anyone else, but rather everyone is “average”. This story raises the idea of tall poppy syndrome. A derogatory term used to describe a social phenomenon in which people are resented, attacked, put down, and criticized by society because their talents or achievements place them above and distinguish them from their peers. This is evident in the characters Harrison Bergeron, George Bergeron, and the ballerina whose talents are being hindered by the government (handicapper general) in the story. Harrison Bergeron is and absurdly handsome, strong, genius who outpaces his peers.

Imagine a world where an oppressive government captures what many call diversity. Where ugly is known as beauty and intelligence is insignificant. “They weren't only equal before God and the law. They were equal every which way. Nobody was smarter than anybody else. Nobody was better looking than anybody else. Nobody was stronger or quicker than anybody else.” (Vonnegut) This is the future that Harrison experiences, in the short story “Harrison Bergeron,” by Kurt Vonnegut. It is the year 2081 and the government handicaps every citizen with make up or weights to create equality. Where there are over than 200 amendments and the government has full control of all citizens, this is indeed against what America had been

Do you think society would improve if everyone was equal? Even though people may argue with me, I say that everyone isn’t truly equal in the story, Harrison Bergeron. I say this due to how people that are naturally born with above average intelligence, strength, and looks gorgeous has to wear handicaps to hide their unique abilities. Another reason is that some people are either respected or disrespected because of their special talents. Thirdly, some people in the story does not need to follow the law, even if they are a citizen of the United States, which means that everyone does not have equal rights.

In this story a man and woman, George and Hazel Bergeron, have a son whose name is Harrison. In this futuristic world, people are meant to all be treated as equals, which is where the theme of the story comes from. It is much like the movie Equilibrium. If you are too intelligent, they dumb you down, as with George Bergeron they have an earpiece implanted that randomly makes noises in order to distract his thought process. Those who are too beautiful are made to look disfigured and those who are graceful or strong have to weight themselves down in order to have less appealing stature. Harrison had been taken away from the Bergeron parents, and when they were sat down watching television, an announcement came on

Have you ever been told you can’t do something because you are too qualified? In Vonnegut’s short story “Harrison Bergeron” this is what America has turned into in 2081. Vonnegut uses characters in his story to show the effects of a truly “equal” society with what happens when they want everyone equal and what happens to some of their health. Some of the characters he uses are Harrison, George, and the ballerinas.

The future can be a strange and scary thing to think about, especially when its predictions are not good. Dystopian authors don’t necessarily predict the future as much as they warn against what the present could become. They warn readers by using something called satire. Satire in dystopian novels is when authors exaggerate society’s current situation so that readers learn from their actions. Authors like Ray Bradbury and Kurt Vonnegut use satire to warn against rules of society like conformity, equality, and censorship.

The desire to be different in a world full of people trying to be equal, is a challenge most people have encountered. In the short story “Harrison Bergeron,” by Kurt Vonnegut, the main character, or the character which the story is based upon, lives in a futuristic society, which the government has tried to make equal. Harrison is forbidden to use his above average intelligence and physic to stand out, or to become anything more than equal to the average person. The reader becomes aware that Harrison has been imprisoned due to rebellion against the government, which controls his every move or action. Harrison escapes from prison, breaks rules, and is ultimately killed for his actions. Harrison’s character development and desire to be different

As a tool for social commentary, oftentimes a writer will employ the use of a biting satire. Through precise writing and exaggerated concepts, Kurt Vonnegut is clearly a skilled user of satirical storytelling. As one of the most famous and widely read short literary tales of all time, Vonnegut’s Harrison Bergeron is certainly his best example in this genre. In Harrison Bergeron, Kurt Vonnegut proposes that true equality is not an ideal worth striving for, as many people believe, but a mistaken goal that is dangerous in both implementation and consequence. To achieve physical and mental equality amongst all Americans, the government in Vonnegut's short story subjects its citizens to “handicapping” through the use of crude means, such as canvas sacks of lead balls worn to impede physical ability, or more sophisticated technology, like the miniature radio used to mentally incapacitate the intellectually adept. This has rendered the dystopian future presented both bland and uneventful through its enforcement of equality for all. Vonnegut expertly engineers his story to capture the essence of an utterly broken and depressing future. Calibrating the specific aspects of literature, Vonnegut is attune with the exact parameters he so desires for his tale. Like a true master of his craft, Vonnegut in Harrison Bergeron welds together poignant imagery, vague setting, rich symbolism, and a detached tone to build a stunning tour de force of American literature.

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.

In a dystopian universe, “The year was 2081 and everybody was finally equal. They weren’t only equal before God and the law. They were equal in every which way.” The government has passed the 211th, 212th, and 213th Amendments to the constitution and diversity between people was taken out of society. Anyone who is different or better in any way will be given a handicap to be made equal again. Like Harrison, the son of George and Hazel. He exemplifies perfectly the type of abnormally special individuals the government is trying to take out of the community.

Through the use of their bodies, the performers told the stories of not only, Nora, Miss Julie, and Hedda Gabler, but of every relationship, even though the storyline gets lost somewhere in the middle, during a performance using the trapeze bar, they soon get back on point finishing with and scaringly beautiful piece where the three leading ladies are left in a spotlight performing on a set of uneven poles as snow falls on top of them. The vision is haunting as the bruises on the legs of the performers are clear to be seen by everyone and the slowness of the act is breathtaking leaving the audience in silence. Every movement was finished graceful and strong both at the same time, before easily flowing into the next creating a form of wild, erratic and magical dancing. The ultimate message from this performance is that love is a battlefield, and no matter how hard we fight sometime we have to let