Dystopian stories are usually set in an unfavorable society in which to live, where the antagonist is the society itself, and the protagonist is the person who is looking towards changing this society and fixing its flaws, who believes that they can make a difference by overthrowing the government or escaping from it. The conflict is often not solved, or the hero fails to solve it, and the dystopian society continues as it was before. Harrison Bergeron is an example of a dystopian story where society has intensely controlled the population’s unique qualities to make everyone exactly equal. People’s talent, beauty, intelligence, and any other quality that makes them different is brought down and destroyed by forcing them to wear handicaps, masks, and weights. Harrison Bergeron is the protagonist of the story. He disagrees with the society’s way of living and is arrested for it, but he takes a step forward to change it. The author takes on different varieties of tone throughout the story such as gloominess, despair, and joy, which clarify the idea that he disagrees with this society’s …show more content…
“The minute people start cheating on laws, what do you think happens to society?” When someone as intelligent as George says something so predictable, this shows that society has been crushed and people have accepted this way of living and are not planning to do anything to change it. This helps Vonnegut in adopting his tone of ridicule and disapproval. After Harrison and the ballerina were shot dead by the Handicapper General as a consequence for their rebellious act, Hazel forgets about their son’s death moments after it happens and therefore it receives no attention from both George and Hazel. The author takes on a despairing tone at the end of the story and shows disapproval of the society’s state, where something so important such as a family death receives no