Harrison Bergeron Figurative Language Essay

As social norms continuously change over the years, the question of the extent to which people should be equal grows. In his short story “Harrison Bergeron,” Kurt Vonnegut discusses the dangers of equality in society. While equality is good in some cases, Vonnegut emphasizes that too much equality can lead to a totalitarian regime where the lack of individuality results in the decline of development in society through the usage of figurative language and plot points. Vonnegut skillfully uses figurative language to create comparisons that showcase how the lack of individuality and an excessive amount of equality will lead to a totalitarian regime. In the beginning of Vonnegut’s short story, the father of Harrison Bergeron, George, watches

The government in the story’s society suppresses free thought to censors opposing ideas that could be used to lead the development and innovation towards the future. In this society, intelligence is a crime because the government views intelligence as an attempt to be better than everyone in the society rather than an opportunity to innovate and move towards the future. To further illustrate that too much equality can lead to a totalitarian regime, Vonnegut utilizes metaphor and irony. The television program of the ballerinas is interrupted with the news bulletin to inform that Harrison Bergeron, an individual who is said to be planning to overthrow the government, broke out from jail. When Harrison Bergeron bursts into the news room and onto the stage that the ballerinas danced on, “Harrison’s appearance was Halloween and hardware. Nobody had ever borne heavier handicaps” (Vonnegut 875). Handicaps hinder an individual in this society from looking, performing, or thinking better than everyone else to help maintain equality in the story’s society. Due to his beauty, robust body, and

During a broadcasting of a ballerina performance, the show was interrupted with a news message that George’s son, Harrison Bergeron, had escaped from the handicap jail. Suddenly, Harrison appeared on the screen while declaring that “even as [he] stood there” while being “crippled, hobbled, [and] sickened,” he was the “greatest ruler than any man who ever lived” (Vonnegut 874). This event is a key point in the story because it highlights how although the rules and laws of society were strict, there will always be rebels who defy the rules. The presence of these rebels disrupts order in society because they offer a different opinion or belief than what the society originally believed in. This could then further result in more rebels who are inspired by their message, ultimately leading to a stricter totalitarian regime. The suppression of these rebels will also affect the development of society because there will no longer be any contrasting views in society that could create new ideas or innovations to help further advance society. Furthermore, Vonnegut uses another plot point in order to describe how rebels can result in a stricter totalitarian regime. As the newly founded Emperor Harrison Begeron and his empress danced, the Handicapper