Equality In Harrison Bergeron, By Kurt Vonnegut

In the story “Harrison Bergeron”, Kurt Vonnegut is trying to tell his readers that equality is not always good. Equality is meant that everyone is happy and no one is better than the other, but in the story, it is the complete opposite when it comes to equality. Vonnegut writes this story based on his point of view about the government and how he thought that the government was in control of its citizens. Vonnegut was a radical who thought that the government should not interfere with people’s lives. This story is set in the year 2081 where the government makes its citizens equal by torturing them by either using brutal force for lawbreakers or physically or mentally making the people weaker to fit within the society. Force is not a way to

Harrison has adapted from the equal society that the government enforces on its citizens and is able to break away from prison after being there for six years. Harrison’s escape becomes a big news headline because according the government, he is considered dangerous and every time his father, George, tries to recollect the memories about his son being taken away, he hears sharp noises from his handicap radio to make him forget. So his father does not recollect any memory of his son or him being taken away and his mom, Hazel, does not even know that her son was ever gone because she is not as smart. Harrison wants to make his own government by being the emperor and he declares himself the emperor because he does not want to live in a society where the government controls everything its citizens do. In the story, Harrison declares, “‘I am the emperor!’… ‘Do you hear? I am the Emperor! Everybody must do what I say at once!’” (Vonnegut 198). That shows how much he was fed up with the government mistreating its citizens, that he just proudly declared himself as the emperor and told the people that they should follow his commands. As usual, anyone who tries to go against the government will get some kind of consequence, and, in this case, Harrison is calling for his death when he escapes prison and takes off his