What is the true meaning of equality? Everyone has their own perception of the definition of equality, and the short story, “Harrison Bergeron”, by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr., is no different. However, it is set in a dystopic future, where equality means that everyone is handicapped down to the same level. If you are intelligent, then you will receive a handicap that will destroy your thoughts just as quick as you came up with them. If you are incredibly attractive, you are forced to wear a hideous mask over your face to hide your exterior beauty, etc. The author also uses numerous literary devices to illustrate the handicaps in place. The government sabotaging your abilities is normal in this society. In other words, whatever sets you apart from
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The author writes, “The year was 2081, and everybody was finally equal. 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, 1) What the author is conveying in the passage is that everyone is “equal” in this society. The introduction is not all that chaotic yet, as the rest of the story is. Later in the passage, the author writes, “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) In this text, we see that things are getting a bit odder, as we see that people who are better than anyone in some aspect have their abilities sabotaged, to say the least, and have a handicap to prevent them from being better. The author, Kurt Vonnegut Jr., depicts the intensity of the mental handicap in George’s case; he writes, “A buzzer sounded in George’s head. His thoughts fled in panic, like bandits from a burglar alarm.” (Vonnegut, 1) The author uses personification and a simile to describe the feeling that George has when his mental handicap recuperates. Overall, in this society, equality is something that has been taken completely too far, and in the strive for equality,
The author writes, “The year was 2081, and everybody was finally equal. 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, 1) What the author is conveying in the passage is that everyone is “equal” in this society. The introduction is not all that chaotic yet, as the rest of the story is. Later in the passage, the author writes, “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) In this text, we see that things are getting a bit odder, as we see that people who are better than anyone in some aspect have their abilities sabotaged, to say the least, and have a handicap to prevent them from being better. The author, Kurt Vonnegut Jr., depicts the intensity of the mental handicap in George’s case; he writes, “A buzzer sounded in George’s head. His thoughts fled in panic, like bandits from a burglar alarm.” (Vonnegut, 1) The author uses personification and a simile to describe the feeling that George has when his mental handicap recuperates. Overall, in this society, equality is something that has been taken completely too far, and in the strive for equality,