Equality In Harrison Bergeron

Words: 361
Pages: 2
Open Document
“Harrison Bergeron”, although satirical, bares resemblance to the events of 1961, and the cold war, when it was written. “Harrison Bergeron” plays on the themes of forced equality in socialism, and communism, which was seen as the enemy of America during the cold war. The text demonstrates this through the quote, “...everybody was finally equal. They weren't only equal before god and the law. They were every which way. Nobody was smarter than anybody else.” this citation shows the play on the ideals of equality in communism, where economic equality is achieved through the elimination of private property. The story parallels communist ideals, because to achieve total equality they took away talent, beauty, and intelligence by handicapping people.
Show More

Related Documents: Equality In Harrison Bergeron

Equality In Harrison Bergeron

Freedom and equality are good things, but sometimes, people can take them too far. In the story "Harrison Bergeron" by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr., a man by the name of Harrison Bergeron lives in a society in which people are the same and everyone is equal to each other. Harrison luckily escapes and finds his way out. Harrison escapes from the society to not become equal with everyone else. He is smarter, faster, and stronger than anyone else in the society. The result of total equality is shown as horrible…

Words 381 - Pages 2

Harrison Bergeron Equality

Believing that equality is everything in the world, might have been proved wrong. Kurt Vonnegut’s short story Harrison Bergeron is based on communism. His story is all about the gifted being handicapped to be made dumber or ugly and where the not gifted are not made smarter. The story is about the government being in charge and everyone being equal, so no one would say or think that someone else was prettier or smarter than them. Many people believe that equality is everything and everyone should…

Words 680 - Pages 3

Equality In Vonnegut's Harrison Bergeron

Vonnegut shows the society a new insight through the theme of equality in “Harrison Bergeron”. He demonstrates how everyone’s goal is to be equal, but no one can truly strive to achieve this. In the beginning, he represented this point by showing the unfair applications that George has in order to be “on the same level”. George is in constant “Pain and torture” trying to achieve equality using the handicaps authorized by the government. In comparison to hazel, George is in always in troubling situations…

Words 293 - Pages 2

Harrison Bergeron Essay On Equality

Initially, the thought of equality sounds appealing to most anyone. The feeling of inferiority drives individuals to compete, to fight for the chance to be the best. Those who are unable to keep up will complain that life is unfair, that they weren’t given the same chances as others, and they are completely right. While there is a certain degree to which everyone should have equality, there should be an understanding that not all people should be identical in abilities. In Kurt Vonnegut’s futuristic…

Words 505 - Pages 3

Equality In Vonnegut's Harrison Bergeron

The concept of equality is often seen as a foundation to ensure freedom within a society. Vonnegut’s “Harrison Bergerson” challenges this idea by illustrating that using an extreme method to pursue equality can lead to an unrealistic and dystopian society, where freedom is actually severely restricted. Equality in society doesn’t guarantee freedom, especially when taken to extreme lengths. The Handicapper General, Diana Moon Glampers, serves as an example of how enforced equality can lead to bad…

Words 347 - Pages 2

Examples Of Equality In Harrison Bergeron

Society of Equality Imagine a utopia were every human being is equal in every way. Would people act different than the normal in society today? More importantly, how would people live in that sort of society? In “Harrison Bergeron”, Kurt Vonnegut creates a futuristic setting in which the protagonist, Harrison Bergeron, helps show how having a strictly equal society provides an injustice to the people. While it may seem like having an equal society would be ideal, Harrison Bergeron proves how…

Words 695 - Pages 3

Harrison Bergeron Fair And Equality

Equality and Fair are two different things. Equality is the state of being equal in things like rights or opportunities but fair is the meaning of being in the accordance to standards or rules. When people think of these two terms they think they are the same but this is false because like in Harrison Bergeron all equality is not possible because by making something fair you could be taking another person’s rights which is what they did in the story. In the story the ballerina’s rights were taken…

Words 134 - Pages 1

Equality In Kurt Vonnegut's Harrison Bergeron

short story “Harrison Bergeron,” by Kurt Vonnegut, the world is equal and everyone is handicapped in some way to create said equality. But one day, a man named Harrison Bergeron breaks free from his hindrances and plans to overthrow the government. Harrison is eventually killed and the world is restored to normality. Although he is only alive for roughly 125 words, Harrison still has some personality to him. To start off, Harrison is considered a handsome individual. In the story, Harrison is first…

Words 492 - Pages 2

Equality In Kurt Vonnegut's Harrison Bergeron

The short story,”Harrison Bergeron” by Kurt Vonnegut Jr. paints the troubles of a society believing in equality among all. This short story speaks of a time in the year 2081 when people must wear handicaps to bring the more talented people down to the level of average. These ideals of justness result in problems such as Harrison, an extremely gifted young man who shakes the world for a few minutes by invading a studio and proclaiming himself to be the “king”. This ultimately results in him, the…

Words 577 - Pages 3

Equality In Kurt Vonnegut's Harrison Bergeron

Vonnegut’s “Harrison Bergeron” entails the story of the journey of equality in the future, which is spreading all around in many nations. This story is very powerful; it describes how equality can have horrible impacts on society and people’s individuality. The entire story revolves around Harrison Bergeron, who throughout the story is the symbol for defiance and individuality. He represents the citizens who will stand up and rebel against the government. Through the characterization of Harrison and the…

Words 636 - Pages 3