“Life is about family and technology” (Mark Goddard). This quote was chosen because family and technology both play a vital part in both stories Anthem and Harrison Bergeron. A dystopia is the opposite of a utopia and is usually characterized by a totalitarian society. Totalitarian society is a society in which nearly every aspect of public and private behavior is regulated by the state. Both stories: Harrison Bergeron and Anthem are pieces of dystopian literature with similarities and differences between family and technology.
Although “Harrison Bergeron” by Kurt Vonnegut Jr and Anthem by Ayn Rand are both pieces of dystopian literature, thier portreyal of family differs greatly. George and Hazel can live with each other, their society has restrictions for people to be equal but not with marriage nor love. The novella Anthem has people being scared to fall out of line with society, therefore Equality is required to live in groups with his brothers and is not allowed to have he option to marry or to love someone. Following yourself is important in today’s envronment because you are taught to be yourself and not someone who you’re
Harrison Bergeron by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. was published in 1961 and this sotry is a normal case of the author’s capability to blend science fiction and satire. It is the best useful story of regulation of absolute equality ever composed. In this paper, I will be highlighting the Harrison Bergeron as a picture of socialism and communism, considering the equality rule of the teachings to uncover the absurdity (Joodaki & Mahdiany). Harrison Bergeron tell the satire of the misconception of what equality involves. Vonnegut has written this story to tell that all people have strengths and weaknesses which make each of them uniquely individual (Gradesaver.com).
Both 1984 and Anthem have very oppressive governments, but their laws are completely different from one another. In 1984, the government is strange when it comes to rules, there is nothing that is illegal, the people are allowed to do whatever they want, but if they do anything or even look slightly suspicious, the “Thought Police” will kidnap, torture, and kill anybody who has gone against the government. The government believes that if people are allowed to have emotions, they will become angry at the government, and revolt, and that’s why emotions are illegal (I will call it illegal because even though there are no laws, doing certain things will get you in trouble, so to avoid confusion, I’m going to continue saying it’s “illegal”), including emotional attachments to other people. People having sex for the purposes of procreation is perfectly legal, but having sex because you love the
The story “Harrison Bergeron” conveys the conflicts between the needs and ideals of society and the realities of individuals by showing that individuals feel ruled out of society. Of course, this creates an “idealistic” society by countering out individuals. This is shown by “they were equal every which way” ( Vonnegut 101). This shows that nobody had any individuality. Therfore creating the conflict in this”utopia”.
Anthem by Ayn Rand is the story of how a man broke free from a society where singularity and being different was evil. Anthem deals with the topic of communism and how everyone is supposed to be equal and the same. This is shown in the book where in Equality 7-2521’s society, the use of the word “I” is non existent. Instead they use the word “We”. This is because that in this world, no man is alone and does everything alongside his brothers. Throughout the book Equality 7-2521 challenges the idea that everyone is and must be the same. Instead he acts on his own.
In the book, “The Anthem”, the government has found a way to maintain peace and harmony in society by instilling fear into its constituents. The members of this society are taken from their parents at birth and thrown into a world where differences are frowned upon and sameness is put above all other things, brainwashing each child with the notion that everything the government says is true. When children are born, they are denied bonding time with their parents and placed in the “Home of Infants” with other children their age and the idea of sameness is stressed. By doing this, they take away the emotion of love, among other things, and in turn, create a society of seemingly identical individuals.
Harrison Bergeron is a novel where the author is expressing what he thinks society is leading to and what the problems are. Harrison Bergeron is the main character and his points of view and thinking matters are interesting to investigate. This author made everyone the same. Societies are pressuring people to become the same and making people think that if they don 't look or act some sort of way, they don 't matter or serve to our world, causing many people to go to certain limits and even causing suicide as a solution. In the story, everyone thinks the same, everyone walks the same, hears the same. This government made everyone became handicapped so that everyone is the same and equal and no one is better than the others.
Equality comes when each person has the same opportunities and rights as every other in their country, state, et cetera. Some authors in their writing like to challenge the idea of equality and the boundaries of how far some governments, fictional or not, are willing to go for their own idea of equality. The societies in Anthem and “Harrison Bergeron” can be compared in their “successes” by making everyone think they are equal, and their failures in which they are not able to keep everyone contained. The novella Anthem provides a better criticism of government because it goes into more depth about how the citizens are not held back physically by the state, but mostly by their own upbringing and beliefs.
The collectivist society created in Anthem by Ayn Rand, rules with a strict hand condemning anyone who chooses to speak out against it to harsh punishment, or worse, death. Equality 7-2521 lives his early life without understanding what individuality is and being entirely oblivious to emotions that are meant to be present in each human life. Through recounting his life, Equality 7-2521 is able to recognize how he always had an inner voice that was suppressed by his society because it was telling him to be an individual and put his personal wants above the wants of his fellow brothers. In a world where no one is able to think privately, Equality 7-2521 breaks away from the only moral belief system he has ever been taught and
In Ayn Rand’s Anthem, a man named Equality struggles to accept the way people live in his town. His brothers are brainwashed into believing their lives mean nothing. Anthem is an Anti-Utopia and Ayn Rand describes what a world would be without individualism. In Anthem, Equality’s major decisions lead him to freedom from his brothers, being able to be independent, and the right to make his own choices.
A Dystopian society between the real word and the book “Anthem” have a unique set of differences and similarities. In North Korea it’s structure is known as SongBun, a society as to which their ruler is the person they must worship and make all living sacrifices to please their “God”, however in the book “Anthem”, by Ayn Rand, they must live in a society where they must love all brothers as one and only one whole. In one law that’s unique in their own that they share is that they must obey or be given death as punishment. Nor shall they question what they are given as their career. The people in the society between them are different, yet the amount of love they believe is the “right belief” is equal. Though they are both considered as a
“No two leaves are alike, and yet there is no antagonism between them or between the branches which they will grow”(Mahatma Gandhi) The book Anthem by Ayn Rand and Harrison Bergeron by Kurt Vonnegut are both dystopian pieces which display equality in different ways. Although Harrison Bergeron by Kurt Vonnegut and Anthem by Ayn Rand are both pieces of dystopian literature their portrayal of family differs greatly.
In several ways the novella Anthem can be compared to the modern day communist dictatorship North Korea. Although they are similar in some places they are completely different in other ways. Ways they are able to be compared and contrasted are the forms of government, the state and mentality of the citizens, and development or progress as a civilization. Although it is often said that anywhere can be better than a certain place, such as people saying that school is the worst place that exists for a relatable example, there are various different factors that play into the overall condition of something that it can be extremely difficult to tell. To finish the previous thought, school can be hated because people are put up to endure hours upon
Collectivism is the idea that a group 's needs must be put before the needs of oneself and the society functions as “we” rather that “me”. Throughout the stories one sees how each author portrays the use of a collectivist society though uniqueness, equality, and transgression. There are many similarities between the novella Anthem by Ayn Rand and the story “Harrison Bergeron” by Kurt Vonnegut Jr.