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Similarities Between Harrison Bergeron And Fahrenheit 451

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The literary works of “Harrison Bergeron”by Kurt Vonnegut, and Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury are satirical portrayals of egalitarian societies that are censored in order to create a faux sense of order . The Prospect of promoting sameness and conformity among all people, and the effects of the forced elimination of citizens’ individuality in order to maintain order is challenged in both societies. In Fahrenheit 451 the possession of books is considered a crime . They believe all members of this community should be equally intelligent, and remain content without learning or exploring the further knowledge offered by reading books. With the multitude of mind-numbing stimulation from advanced technology and a constant bombardment from the media, most …show more content…

Due to regulations instituted by the futuristic government, and enforced by the Handicapper General, all amiable traits or talents are eradicated in order to maintain peace and equality. “The year was 2081, and everybody was finally equal. They weren’t only equal before God and the law. They were equal every which way. Nobody was smarter than anybody else. Nobody was better looking than anybody else. Nobody was stronger or quicker than anybody else,” (Vonnegut). The beautiful were to disguise their faces while the smart were to be rendered idiotic .The Handicapper General mandated ear radios in order to scramble the thoughts of those who show intelligence. Handicap weighed down the physically strong rendering them crippled. All citizens were forced to become absolutely the same, and breaking from this equality would be a federal offense. They were forced to abandon the individuality and free thought that could potentially allow for advancements for the community, conforming instead with sameness

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A Supreme Court Justice, Potter Stewart, once said, “Censorships reflects a society's lack of confidence in itself.” Fahrenheit 451 written by Ray Bradbury shows us a futuristic society that he believes we are heading for. In his book, novels are banned and it is up to a group of firemen to go around and burn them all. In the end, an unexpected hero arises to go against his current society’s beliefs, and it shows his struggles along the way. Bradbury’s relatable themes make the reader think of the similarities between the book and their world, and is a key element in why the book is so successful.

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1119 Words | 5 Pages

in Harrison Bergeron they solve the problem of inequality by giving people handicaps. These would restrict people who were prettier, smarter, or stronger than average. They censored their knowledge and their thoughts specifically with a brain handicap that was "tuned to a government transmitter. Every twenty seconds or so, the transmitter would send out some sharp noise to keep [smart] people…from taking unfair advantage of their brains." (Vonnegut 1)

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302 Words | 2 Pages

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury and “Harrison Bergeron” by Kurt Vonnegut Jr. are good examples of what would happen if one law was created to make a thriving utopia, but it turns it into a frightful dystopia. Both stories have one major law that attempts to create a utopia, but turns it into a dystopia. In Fahrenheit 451, the protagonist, Montag, and his friend, Clarisse, talk about how books are illegal in this society. It says “‘Do you ever read any of the books you burn?’ He laughed.

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901 Words | 4 Pages

The two stories, “Harrison Bergeron” and Fahrenheit 451, both have common themes. The common themes of the stories may include; our reliance on technology can spiral out of control if we let it, knowledge is joyful and painful, and that we can be confined by our own self-censorship. All of these themes are exhibited throughout both stories frequently. Whether it is as Montag has conflict with his wife over books or as Harrison’s parents forget right from wrong in their society. In Fahrenheit 451, their technology definitely gets out of control.

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345 Words | 2 Pages

“There are worse crimes than burning books. One of them is not reading them” (Ray Bradbury). In the dystopia world of Fahrenheit 451, firemen burn books instead of extinguish the fires. This is one of the many distinct differences which makes their world undesirable. Even though there are a lot of differences in our society compared to Fahrenheit 451’s society, there are also some things that are the same.

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489 Words | 2 Pages

In the story “Harrison Bergeron” by Kurt Vonnegut, the US has reached “true equality.” The year is 2018 and because of the amendments declared by the government, people who have talents and gifts are handicapped to become average. Strong people have heavy weights, smart people have transmitters that don’t allow them to think straight, and attractive people wear masks. The main character, Harrison Bergeron is incredibly gifted, so when he was 14 he was taken by the government and placed into jail with huge handicaps. One day, he gets out and goes to a ballet and reeks havoc.

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570 Words | 3 Pages

The government’s idea is to enforce equality by handicapping talented people and preventing those with less talent from bettering themselves. In this story, the government's strategy is "equality by limitation. " In American society, it should be "equality by opportunity. " When the government attempts to have “equality by limitations”, the use “handicaps” to prevent people with higher levels of knowledge from using their brain

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845 Words | 4 Pages

The society in Fahrenheit 451, unlike the one we live in, is very controlling and have many rules most would deem dehumanizing. In the novel Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury, the protagonist Guy Montag seems to be in a perfect world but as you keep reading you learn that nothing is more far from the truth. In the society, owning books could get you killed. Also, speeding is not only ok, it is highly encouraged and you could get yourself in trouble if you don’t! It seems everyone is living as if they are a vessel lacking a soul and mind.

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Each society values knowledge and wisdom differently, but as real life advances in time, it may become more similar to the world of Fahrenheit 451. Learning and censorship are important themes throughout Fahrenheit 451, as books are prohibited and even burnt. When Montag was with the other firemen, he thought about what it would be like to have his house burnt, “[gazing] beyond them to the wall with the typed lists of a million forbidden books. Their names leapt in fire, burning down the years under his axe and his hose which spared not water but kerosene” (Bradbury 31). The ‘forbidden books’ contain valuable knowledge and wisdom, but society has censored all of it.

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404 Words | 2 Pages

The Handicapper General was proud that all citizens living in 2081 were equal. In the beginning of the text, the narrator states”... and everybody was finally equal”(Vonnegut 13). This quote shows that the Handicapper General controls people in order to make them equal to each other. No citizen was smarter.

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Vonnegut states, “They were equal in every which way. Nobody was smarter than anybody else. Nobody was better looking than anybody else. Nobody was stronger or quicker than anybody else” (Vonnegut). Vonnegut is showing the idea that there have been major social and environmental changes of the

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502 Words | 3 Pages

In the Novel Fahrenheit 451, one way that the government controls their society is by outlawing owning and reading any type of literature. There are a couple reasons why the government does this. One reason they ban books is because they want everyone to be equal, so everyone is more comfortable with the way they are. There are no more labels, such as “Genius” or “Stupid” or “better”. As Beatty states in the book “We must all be alike.

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819 Words | 4 Pages

Censoring Knowledge Censorship, in a crumbling world, does not act as glue; but rather, as a hammer. All throughout Bradbury’s novel, Fahrenheit 451, examples of censorship are seen. In his made-up dystopian society the “more powerful” characters use censorship to cover up anything that is seen as risky or “inappropriate”. In this novel the largest group of censored objects are the books. Books could change one’s view entirely.

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349 Words | 2 Pages

In this short story, everything has to do with equality. No one can be more intelligent, stronger, or more attractive. Handicaps are making people unequal. People in this short story isn’t equal because the most intelligent people have to suffer because of the handicaps. “Every twenty minutes or so, the transmitter would send out some sharp noise to keep people like George from taking unfair advantages of their brain” (page 2).

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435 Words | 2 Pages

Due to regulations instituted by the futuristic government, and enforced by the Handicapper General, all superior characteristics possessed by people were made obsolete, and the entire population became equally strong both mentally and physically. “The year was 2081, and everybody was finally equal. They weren’t only equal before God and the law. They were equal every which way. Nobody was smarter than anybody else.

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