Harrison Bergeron (Magill’s Survey of American Literature, Revised Edition)
At a glance:
- Author: Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
- First Published: 1968
- Type of Work: Short story
- Genres: Short fiction, Dystopian fiction
- Subjects: Twenty-first century, Punishment, Equality, Disabilities or physically challenged persons, Government, Conformity, Constitutional law
- Locales: United States
First published in Fantasy and Science Fiction Magazine, “Harrison Bergeron” is set in 2081, when equality has finally been achieved by elimination of the exceptionally gifted or by controlling them via technology. Such methods of control include mental handicap radios in ears which emit ghastly sounds to interrupt and control thought, masks which conceal exceptionally attractive faces and clothing which does the same for bodies, and weights that the physically strong carry at all times, like handicaps for horses. However, George and Hazel Bergeron's son, Harrison, is so...
[The entire page is 680 words long]
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