An Analysis of the Symbolism in the Novel Harrison Bergeron by Kurt Vonnegut
Symbolism in 2081 'The year was 2081, and everyone was finally equal." What seems like the ideal world, the greatest scenario possible in any given condition of living, is a curse for the characters weaved into the world of "Harrison Bergeron." Society, as perfect as it may seem, is still a place to be feared and still a world easy to get lost in, just as it is nowadays. The characters in Harrison Bergeron, too, share the same traits and aspects of those people within our society, even if it isn't a crystal clear message being portrayed. Looking deep within the characters in the story, we can see the resemblance to our society and ourselves. Harrison Bergeron himself is hands down the most symbolic of all of the characters in the story, directly this iconic, savior-like figure in an otherwise orderly and in-line society, albeit one with many issues that need repair. In the story, Harrison is a very strong-willed image of perfection and freedom, one that seems nearly impossible to come by in any given society.
"Even as I stand here," Harrison shouts to the world, "crippled, hobbled, sickened--I am a greater ruler than any man who ever lived!" Harrison is representative of the savior missing from our society, the person who could pull everyone out of the mud and fix what's wrong with the world. Harrison in himself stands for freedom and righteous power put into all the right places. He is the ideal solution that society can't, and probably will never be able to, come to. The Handicappers and the Handicapper General, meanwhile, would then be made out to be the general antagonists of the world, primarily the government that borderlines a dictatorship. The Handicapper General is the only one allowed to use a gun and permitted to not wear handicaps, which is similar to the benefits that only government officials with power receive nowadays. The Handicappers use their power for laws and situations that would have more cons than pros, much like the government today: our government passes situationally suitable laws and bills that may make more problems in the long run.
They aren't necessarily evil, but they put quite a few extra problems on top of society's massive list of issues already. George is the regular, unphased citizen of the dystopian society of 2081. In the story, he is hardly even moved or interested in the events that fold out due to Harrison's actions, content to stay in line with what he has (as seen when he refuses to take off his handicaps), and not too concerned with changing an already broken society any more. The realistic counterpart of George would be the average apathetic citizen. They may recognize that some things are wrong with society, but not really feel compelled to make any efforts to change them; simply, they wait for something to change itself or for someone else to try making changes for them. It spares them effort and risk, bluntly. Hazel is a bit different from George. As shown when she takes the risk of offering to take off George's handicaps to make him more comfortable, Hazel (though relatively dim) does acknowledge that there is a significant issue with society.
Order custom essay An Analysis of the Symbolism in the Novel Harrison Bergeron by Kurt Vonnegut with free plagiarism report
450+ experts on 30 subjects
Starting from 3 hours delivery
She moves towards the idea of improving already prominent issues, shown here with her desire to become Handicapper General and improve the sounds put into the earpieces for everyone's comfort and relief. There are multiple Hazels in the world as well; her counterpart would be those who do, in fact, recognize a problem and wish to take strides towards fixing it, somehow, regardless of the risks that follow. Even so, those making the effort are slowed by people like George, who condemn their ideas and make things more difficult. The world of 2081 is, of course, nothing more than fiction. An entirely equal world would never come to fruition, at least most definitely not in our lifetimes. Even so, Harrison Bergeron offers an insightful glance into the true personas of society, one that would otherwise not be so prevailingly obvious. We must recognize our flaws as a society and take steps towards walking in the shoes of bystanders, as the characters in this story wished they could, but never did. As Harrison would word it, "watch us become what we can become."
Cite this Page
An Analysis of the Symbolism in the Novel Harrison Bergeron by Kurt Vonnegut. (2023, Apr 16). Retrieved from https://phdessay.com/an-analysis-of-the-symbolism-in-the-novel-harrison-bergeron-by-kurt-vonnegut/
Run a free check or have your essay done for you
