Read the excerpt from "harrison bergeron." hazel had a perfectly average intelligence, which meant she couldn't think about anything except in short bursts. 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. it was tuned to a government transmitter. every twenty seconds or so, the transmitter would send out some sharp noise to keep people like george from taking unfair advantage of their brains. how could this excerpt serve as a warning about the consequences of forced uniformity?

This excerpt serves as a warning about the consequences of forced uniformity because through it we can see that these two characters lose their very essence, their different characteristics that make them who they really are, to become what the government expects them to be. They are, basically, like forcefully remodeled clones of each other, accomplished through the use of different means to equalize all people.

Explanation:

"Harrison Bergeron" is a short story that was written by American author Kurt Vonnegut and it was published in 1961. This story narrates the experiences lived by the Bergeron family, and particularly to Harrison Bergeron, the son of the family, who decides, in the America of 2081, to oppose the new norms and regulations given by the government. As part of the story, the author narrates the way that the different characters are "equalized" through a series of devices and other actions, and their essences as people, with different characteristics, are erased. Harrison Bergeron is killed by the Handicapper General because he decides to oppose this, and restore his differences, his very essence, against what the government has said.

This excerpt serves as a warning about the consequences of forced uniformity because the government forced all of the citizens to be equal. They forced highly intelligent people like George to wear a mental handicap radio in his hear, in order to stop them from taking advantage of their brain.

EXPLANATION

The excerpt above is from a book titled Harrison Bergeron. It is a short story, which is considered as dystopian science-fiction, written by Kurt Vonnegut. This short story was first published in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction. Later on, it was republished in 1968, as the Welcome to the Monkey House collection from the author. Harrison Bergeron achieved 2019 Hall of Fame Award, that’s from the Libertarian Futurist Society.

The story’s main character is Harrison Bergeron. He is a fourteen years old teenager who is athletic, good-looking, and intelligent. Harrison is taken away from their parent, George and Hazel Bergeron. They are all forced to be equal. No one should be smarter, more physically able, or even better-looking than anyone else.  

The government forces equality laws, by forcing all citizens to wear “handicaps”. The “handicaps” include masks for better-looking people, heavyweights for the physically able person and loud radios for intelligent people.  

The plot of the story is focusing on George and Hazel watching the television for news, while the television suddenly shows that Harrison escapes from prison and let go of all his handicaps.  

The ending shows that Harrison was killed for doing the escapade. George does not realize what is happening on the television because his radio interrupts his mind, and Hazel does not remember what happened on the television because she has average intelligence.

LEARN MORE

If you’re interested in learning more about this topic, we recommend you to also take a look at the following questions:

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KEYWORD: Harrison Bergeron, handicaps, government

Subject: Social Studies

Class: 10-12

Subchapter: Harrison Bergeron

a bad leader