How Is Harrison Bergeron A Dystopian Society

Kurt Vonnegut’s dark and futuristic short story, “Harrison Bergeron” expresses through theme and plot a futuristic dystopian society where freedom of thought, intellectual ability, physical beauty and strength, and creativity have been manipulated through pervasive and coercive technology and by government decree. He opens the story with this descriptive Orwellian narrative about social equality in the future,

“The year was 2081, and everybody was finally equal. They weren’t only equal before God and the Law. They were equal in every which way. Nobody was better looking than anybody else. Nobody was stronger or quicker than anybody else. All this equality was due to the 211th… Amendents to the Constitution, and to the unceasing vigilance of

agents of the United States Handicapper General” (Gioia and Kennedy 232).

On a symbolic level, Vonnegut, depicts the enforcer of constitutional equality as the “United States Handicapper General,” and the word, handicap, provides the reader with a powerful literary metaphor which is expressed through the characters in the story.

In other words, he is implying with the phrase “Handicapper General” that the concept of social equality has become so extreme and convoluted that people in this dystopian world are forced to be “handicapped” if they have special physical and intellectual attributes or advantageous genetic traits. Interestingly, Vonnegut has creatively inverted through his story the real life concept of how modern society assigns special advantages to handicapped and disabled people. At the same time, he turns the concept of equality into a futuristic nightmare scenario that has huge implications for characters in the

story.

In the sociopolitical realm, Vonnegut’s inclusion of the U.S. Constitution and the amendments enacted by the government to enforce the “equality concept,” gives the story a powerful setting and context. It shows the audience that this is a society where the state has over-stepped its authority and blurred the lines between the public and private realms of existence. For example, there are government agents that are “vigilant” in enforcing this oppressive legal precedent which could also be a veiled reference to the increasing power of real-life modern government agencies, such as, the F.B.I or the U.S. Justice Department. Perhaps, Vonnegut is providing a warning about the rise of a future technological dictatorship as a result of American society being tricked into supporting an abstract notion of equality. Also, he could be pointing out that the concept of equality is inherently ambiguous and it cannot be defined by self-serving politicians and sociopathic, power-hungry government agents. In essence, what may be perceived as a noble and self-less legislative act to create an equal society could possibly be in reality; a Fascist political ideology that promotes the elimination of certain people or social groups that are deemed to be different or non-conforming (i.e. Nazi Germany, and Stalinist U.S.S.R.). Nevertheless, Vonnegut’s use of the U.S. Constitution is also a reference to the individual freedoms and rights that were initially created by law to promote an open and democratic society, however; they have now been transgressed and violated by this future conformist “techno-dictatorship” of the United States.

An example of these aforementioned ideas could be viewed in the character George Bergeron, as he is described by Vonnegut as being, “way above-average intelligence” as compared to his average-thinking wife Hazel, because, George is equipped with a government controlled transmitter that disrupts his thinking, and thus his above-average intellectual functions. For instance, in the scene where he observes the ballerinas on TV and he begins to formulate thoughts and judgments about their dancing ability, and then a loud noise in his ear transmitter disrupts his thinking (232). Hence, this scene reinforces Vonnegut’s secondary theme, that intelligent people in the future are not allowed to make value judgments or think critically. Furthermore, the fact that George Bergeron had a lead-filled canvas bag padlocked around his neck and that he would be fined and jailed if he removed it revealed how far the dystopian government went to control the thoughts and actions of its citizens (233).

Vonnegut, goes further into the techno-dictatorship theme and plot as George and Hazel witness their son Harrison being pursued by the government authorities on television.

The television screen is an apt reference to modern society and its evolving and growing interactions with electronic devices and screens. Moreover, Vonnegut, is implicating in an indirect way the power of the media and how it manipulates reality. For instance, Harrison Bergeron is described as a criminal by the authorities, but in reality; he wanted to break free of his oppressive existence. The only “crime” he committed was that he was physically and intellectually different from the average citizens in society. On another level, the news bulletins about Harrison Bergeron reflect how the mass media in modern society broadcast misinformation and propaganda about people who are deemed threats by the government, when in reality; they may be innocent and victims of false information. In effect, Harrison Bergeron, is subsequently eliminated by government agents who bring the plot to a resolution and his life as freedom fighter becomes just another sound-bite or video clip for the television screen. In fact, the manipulating power of the media and technology utilized in the story were so effective that his parents forgot what happened to their son as the TV images and transmitters apparently erased their

memories.