"Harrison Bergeron" Response

In Kurt Vonnegut's short story, "Harrison Bergeron", the world is finally equal. In this egalitarian society, though, is a man who stands up to stand out. He is Harrison Bergeron, and he is coming to a television studio near you, whether you like it or not. As in many short stories, this one attempts to make it's commentary clear, effective, and quick. Vonnegut's short story is no exception.

Early on, it can be deciphered that Vonnegut has a point to make in his little tale of an equal world where handicaps are placed on those who think to much, masks on those too pretty, and weights on those too strong. Just by reading these observations of the handicapped, what Vonnegut is satirizing is very obvious, the dumbing down of American society. He's attacking the idea of making everyone equal, that no one is smarter, prettier, or athletic than anyone else, even if that means we have to lower the bar for everyone. He's commenting on this because he is against the idea that instead of making everything more challenging and harder to reach, that we should "dumb" everything down, this way more people can reach their goals and meet the standards of society. After reading Harrison Bergeron, it's safe to say that Vonnegut must have hated the recent No Child Left Behind program and the standardized tests that came shortly before his death.

Vonnegut gives a glimpse of the government's controlling of equality through the character Diana Moon Glampers. Diana, the nation's Handicapper General, in charge of keeping everyone equal under the law, is talked about by the Bergerons very briefly and seen on television at an equally brief rate whilst killing Harrison Bergeron with a shotgun blast. And while her characterization isn't very realistic, she need not be, for she is merely a representation of the dumbing down of society, a symbol more than anything. With her shotgun blast being her means of keeping things in check.

While the story is unique by itself, what makes "Harrison Bergeron" even more interesting is the fact that it doesn't focus on Harrison Bergeron or tell the story from his point of view. Instead, the story is told in third person and focuses on Bergeron's parents, George and Hazel. By doing this, Vonnegut is able to show us just how much the government has affected society and effectively handicapped the citizens. In showing George's pain from his ear transmitter to keep him from thinking and saying anything than what a 4th grader could conjure up and describing George and Hazel's fragmented conversations and limited vocabulary and depth, Vonnegut is more able to convey the strains put on the average citizens due to these governmental handicaps than if it were seen through Harrison's eyes only.

What could have been a simple commentary piece is given a unique touch thanks to Vonnegut's insight, and thank God for that.