In Harrisson Bergeron, the handicaps, though meant to be a source of equality, prevent people from having free will, stripping them of their identity. Thus showing that equality is not truly achievable. As the narrator explains to the audience how the handicap system works, he states that they are used “to keep people like George from taking unfair advantage of their brains.” The words ‘people like George’ are very telling to the kind of society this story is set in. It sets up George to be alienated from the ‘normal people’, as if he weren’t truly part of the. This shows us that in order for this society to run, people must be stripped of the essence of themselves. The word ‘taking’ also follows the same narrative, it often has connotations of greed, implying that it is morally…show more content… This allows the audience to understand how much the vague ideals of equality have tainted the people’s beliefs, going so far as to publicly humiliate people for things that might cause people to be slightly insecure. The words ‘had’ and ‘at once’ have a clear undertone of necessity, fear and urgency, showing us that this satirical line is meant to highlight the ridiculous extremities that this society runs on. The words ‘very unfair’ build an immature and childish tone, perhaps perpetuating the state of this country. After that, as the newly couple waltzed in the air, handicapper general Diana Moon Glampers “fired twice, and the Emperor and the Empress were dead.” The abrupt shift in tone from the whimsical, flowery language used earlier is quickly replaced with a sentence that only tells the bare minimum of information. This could lead the audience to conclude that it’s what should be expected, it’s obvious that in the end, nothing will change. Why should we even bother to try if the ending is always the
