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Examples Of Dystopia In Harrison Bergeron

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A dystopia is a nonexistent place where everything is awful. Many stories written in a dystopian society tend to open up as if it was a utopia- the opposite of a dystopia. In “Harrison Bergeron” by Kurt Vonnegut the startup of the short story appears to be a utopia, and everything seems like a perfect futuristic society. However, it quickly becomes unmasked as a dystopia by the oppression and fear for this society to be “perfect” and “equal”.
"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." (Par 1). The start gives off the impression of a utopian society. Everyone wants one hundred percent equality, so this is the perfect society, right? The handicapper general creates "equality" by handicapping the qualities that manufacture …show more content…

In “Harrison Bergeron”, the characters are fearful and oppressed by the conditions of their lives. George Bergeron is smarter than average, therefore he has to wear a radio in his ear to scatter his thoughts once they became too in depth or too different (Par 3). The intense noises can get so severe that they leave George in a trembling mess without any remembrance of what he was thinking about before (Par 21). Everyone’s talents are oppressed by their handicaps. For instance, the ballerinas on the TV are weighed down with “sashweights and bags of birdshot” so they would be just as talented as the rest, or not pleasant at all (Par 10). Even when a ballerina went to read the bulletin on TV for the announcer, she squawked to hide her “unfair” voice (Par 42). George and Hazel aren’t even allowed to feel any remorse for losing Harrison years ago or even when they watch him get shot on TV due to their handicaps (or in Hazel’s case, just being her) distracting them and disposing of their thoughts (Par 82). Of course, this all goes back to the attempt to recreate everyone as

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