“He who is unable to live in society, or who has no need because he is sufficient for himself, must be either a beast or a god.” Aristotle. This can be shown in the book Brave New World or the movie Harrison Bergeron. Both of the main characters are either beast or god like; whether it is in their minds or by others around them thinking this idea. The stories can be compared and contrasted by showing the main themes of both stories. These themes include: higher power, equalization, and social classes.
In each story, it shows the point of view from a more intelligent person in the story. This allows the reader to see how the power system works. These stories both have a very simple form of dictatorship. The main difference between these two
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Brave New World’s drug makes people just disappear from themselves for a period of time and are trained as young children to use soma whenever their emotions are too high or if they do not want to feel the pain of living so they are happy. Harrison Bergeron’s anachronism of 1950’s life showed the TV as the vise of the people. The TV was what everyone was watching at certain times and was the most regulated thing by the government. It did not allow people to have thought. It was more mindless then what today’s society has. Another way in Harrison Bergeron that created “equal” was handicapping everything in sports, education, and just regular life. Brave New World allowed people to be a little bit more independent however in their form of love everyone was everyone else’s. Basically they went on dates had sex then went to the next person. This made it where no one could have a connection and could even discuss deep conversations about the government. This made it an equal playing field for everyone to be with anyone with no denial or disappointment. In the movie all couples are put together at random by computer. This uses education as the base for connection putting average with average intelligence and smart with no so smart to create a more perfect society that is average. This literary theory of creating equality makes control of people very …show more content…
In Brave New World the class system is made up of five classes with each class being in control of one thing but all are considered under the alphas and Directors. Each director is basically a dictator in control of all things with in a section of where they are located. Each class however is already predetermined by birth. Each group is given a certain drug or alcohol to set a being into the predetermined class. This is possible because natural birth is prohibited and frowned upon, so the government can do what they please with the children. Starting with brain washing them into what they believe is the perfect citizen therefore no body would revolt against the government. Harrison Bergeron is separated into two classes: Citizen or Real Government. Everybody who is not a part of the real government filled of real thinkers is a generally average human with a mind altering band. This creates segregation between the two because the citizens don’t even know any different. These stories have the same general foundation; however, are put into different systems. From a cultural criticism stand point wouldn’t the same segregation of cultures found