Armie Hammer

Is it possible to have equality and maintain freedom? Kurt Vonnegut’s “Harrison Bergeron” is a satirical science fiction short story that takes place in the American future of the year 2081. Vonnegut’s story is seemingly a utopia from the opening line that “everybody was finally equal” but is quickly revealed to be a dystopia due to the severe limitations placed on civilians in order to maintain equality. Vonnegut mentioning of the specific traits to which every American is equal is reflecting the American values. “Harrison Bergeron” ironically conveys that the concept of equality in the culture of American ideology is fundamentally flawed and is corrupted by the misunderstanding of opposing political philosophies like communism and socialism. The types of traits, and qualities that a culture deems important has a huge influence on the level of equality of that society. Vonnegut specifically satirizes intelligence, aesthetics, and physical ability as “Nobody was smarter than anybody else. Nobody was better looking than anybody else. Nobody was stronger or quicker than anybody else.” It is important to distinguish these properties are specific to the individual, not integral to overall societal governance and are subjective. The focus on these almost superficial qualities as important enough to create amendments to the constitution is a jab at what Americans deem important. Important characteristics of equality that are absent from the story are equality in education, income…

In the story, “Harrison Bergeron” by Kurt Vonnegut, the author writes about a strict society where a hero, Harrison Bergeron, stands against it. Harrison breaks harsh rules for the people of this society who could have had the freedom and thrived for some amount of time. Harrison makes many daring actions for the people that are stuck in the strict society. Harrison is demonstrated to everyone that he is the only one who can save society because of the danger he displays. For example, the news…

Symbolic Acts Imagine what life would be like if you got the threw rocks at people or you lived in a world where people weren’t really alive, they were just doing their job with no care. People seem like they’re dead. That wouldn’t be the best society to live in would it? In the book, Harrison Bergeron, people had to be equal in order to have the perfect utopian like society. In another book, The Lottery, was about people who would be thrown at by rocks (if you…

“‘And I say to you, that if it is GREATNESS we must destroy, then let us drag our enemy out of the darkness where it has been hiding! Let us shine a LIGHT...so that AT LAST, ALL THE WORLD CAN SEE!’” (Tuttle 2009). This quote creates a huge change in the main character than we see in the short story “Harrison Bergeron.” In both the short story “Harrison Bergeron” and the movie “2081” there are many similarities and differences. One similarity that stood out to me was that Harrison announces a…

Harrison Bergeron is a short story written in 1961 by Kurt Vonnegut, it is set in 2081, in a dystopian version of the U.S. The government feels that everyone should be equal, so they put handicaps on above average people. Harrison was smart, fast, and strong, he also threatened the government, who thought he was under handicapped, he eventually broke out of jail, but was killed shortly after. The Great Awakening occurred in Colonial America, from the 1730’s-1740’s. One of the main ideals of the…

“The ultimate tragedy is not the oppression and cruelty by the bad people but the silence over that by the good people.”-Martin Luther King Jr. “Harrison Bergeron” is a short dystopian novel portraying a bleak future. In this view of the future everything is equal. Although this is a fictional story it has a very strong underlying message. The theme of “Harrison Bergeron” is a government with too much control leads to an oppressed society, and a dismal situation. One can see this theme in the…

Lizabeth a character from the story Marigolds. Lizabeth is 14 edging towards 15 years old. In Between those two ages you can become confused, and feel out of place with many mixed emotions. Lizabeth’s family does not have a lot of money, and when she overhears her parents arguing about their problems with money her emotions get the best of her. All of theses emotions are what develops Lizabeth’s character. She is childish because only a child would not think before their own actions and destroy…

Harrison Bergeron versus 2081 We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Thomas Jefferson. We in the United State hold this line of the Declaration of Independence to be a pivotal part of our country. We have went to war many times to uphold the right that everyone to be equal. Many men and women have died to help ensure that…

Harrison Bergeron and American Documents “Harrison Bergeron” by Kurt Vonnegut, is a short story which takes place in the year 2081 in a "perfectly equal world." This story was made as a way to interpret the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights. The ideas that were interpreted from the bill of rights and the declaration in this story were put in a way that often messes with our other rights or does not look at every aspect of the right affected. The story's main…

People have different opinions on whether everyone was or was not truly equal in Harrison Bergeron. Harrison Bergeron is a short story about everyone becoming equal in the year 2081. In 2081, society is made “equal” by putting handicaps on the more talented people, and making them have consequences if they take the handicaps off.I believe that people aren’t truly equal in Harrison Bergeron. I believe that people aren’t equal in Harrison Bergeron because of handicaps, handicaps on certain people,…