"Harrison Bergeron" is a satirical and dystopian science-fiction short
story written by Kurt Vonnegut and first published in October 1961.
Originally published in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction,
the story was republished in the author's Welcome to the Monkey
House collection in 1968.
The story was written as a satire to offer a critique on people's claims
that we should all be equal. It has been embraced by those critical
of egalitarianism as an allegory of caution against socially enforced
equality, more specifically the dangers of enforcing equality by virtue
of leveling.
Leveling is a social process in which the uniqueness of the individual is rendered non-existent by assigning
equal value to all aspects of human endeavors, thus missing all the intricacies and subtle complexities of
human identity.
HARRISON BERGERON
The Literature Web
The Literature Web is a model designed to guide interpretation of a literature selection
by encouraging a reader to connect personal response with particular elements of the
text. The web may be completed independently and/or as a tool for discussion.
Recommended use is to have students complete the web independently and then share
ideas in a small group, followed by a teacher-facilitated debriefing. The web has five
components:
Key Words: interesting, unfamiliar, striking, or particularly important words and phrases
contained within the text
Feelings: the reader's feelings, with discussion of specific text details inspiring them; the
characters' feelings; and the feelings the reader infers the author intended to inspire
Ideas: major themes and main ideas of the text; key concepts
Images and Symbols: notable sensory images in the text, "pictures" in they reader's
mind and the text that inspired them, symbols for abstract ideas
Structure: the form and structure of the writing and how they contribute to meaning;
may identify such features as use of unusual time sequence in narrative, such as
flashbacks, use of voice, use of figurative language, etc.; style of writing
Notes: The Writer's Humorous Tools
Writers are at a disadvantage when it comes to humor. They, unlike the comic, do not have voice inflection
or physical movements to cause laughter. They do, however, have the following:
Understatement or Meiosis, Hyperbole , Comic Irony, Dialect, Satire.
Define the terms above and provide example of each.
REVIEW YOUR NOTES!!! Use to complete chart on Analyzing Humor in Literature (on next slide)
Irony: The irony is obvious–dancers who can’t dance, announcers who can’t speak, smart people who can’t
think. Everyone has an artificial handicap, except for the Handicapper General who enforces laws.
TYPES of IRONY
• Verbal irony
• Situational irony
• Comic or dramatic irony
Satire: Vonnegut pokes fun at government policies that punish the gifted and successful, redistribute
resources, and encroach upon civil liberties. The tone is satirical; the theme is serious.
Analyzing Humor in Literature
Specific Example from
Harrison Bergeron
Method
“And George…had a little
mental handicap radio in
his ear. He was required by
law to wear it at all times
... 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.”
Satire
Explanation of method of humor
This example of satire highlights one of
the important themes in “Harrison
Bergeron,” the absurdity of trying to
make everyone equal. Society only
thrives when individuals receive equal
treatment under the law and are able
to reach their full potential as citizens.
Re-READ THE STORY
UTOPIA BOOKS pg13 (white book)
pg.50 (red book)
Basic Summary
The year is 2081, and everybody was finally equal…in every which
way, thanks to the 211th, 212th, and 213th amendments to the U.S.
Constitution. George and Hazel are watching TV, unable to think
about their son Harrison being taken away, Hazel because she’s
stupid and George because he has a transmitter in his ear that plays
loud noises to disrupt his thinking.
Masked ballerinas stumble on stage, weights strapped around their
neck, and announcers with speech impediments broadcast the
news.A picture of Harrison Bergeron appears on the screen. He has
escaped from prison. Moments later Harrison breaks into the studio,
claims himself emperor and anoints the first ballerina to step forward
queen. The two perform a graceful dance, followed by the entrance
of Diana Moon Glampers, Handicapper General of the United States
government, who shoots and kills Harrison and his queen.