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This essay needs major revising. I originally had chosen to write on two topicsthe use
of the television and its implications of government surveillance and propaganda, and
Vonneguts satirical take on McCarthy era fears of Communism. However, this morning as I was
reading the rough draft, I realized that just one of these topics is more than sufficient enough for
a four page essay. If I were to write about both topics, the paper wouldnt get to delve into the
amount of detail I want it to. As it stands, this essay needs a ton of restructuring, meaning that I
will most likely delete a good portion of the television parts, and instead focus on the satirical
element of the piece and what it meant in the larger cultural and political context of the time it
was written.









In his short story Harrison Bergeron, Kurt Vonnegut shows us a dystopian futuristic
society in which all naturally talented people have handicaps placed on them in order to dumb
them down, or lower them to the level of ordinary citizens. Vonneguts intention, through
elaborate metaphor and alarmist rhetoric, is to illustrate the inherent dangers of governmental
oppression of alternative thoughts and technology, as well as to satire contemporary Americas
irrational fear of communism.
Kurt Vonnegut lived in a time where modern technology and mass media had only just
begun to creep into mainstream society. Television, in 1961when Harrison Bergeron was
writtenwas still a novel invention, and many alternative thinkers such as Vonnegut feared that
a television in every home created an environment where the government could expose citizens
to propaganda en masse. This fear reverberates throughout the entire story; the television is a
centerpiece for the storys action, and Vonnegut continually uses description of the television set
as a gateway to the action of the plot.QUOTE HERE MENTIONING THE TELEVISION
George and Hazel watch in their living room as the story unfolds on their TV set. QUOTE
ABOUT NONCHALANCE Their nonchalance towards the entire situationeven with their son
on the television screenindicates that a good portion dumbed-down Americas time is spent in
front of the television set. Through this, Vonnegut implies that if the Government is the one
controlling the message, those who are constantly watching television will be more swayed by
the governments narrative and lulled into complacency.
Vonnegut writing conveys the use of the television by the new United States as a method
of intimidating its citizens. As the ballerina struggles to read in a gravelly voice the crimes of
which Harrison was accused, a picture of him is shown on the screen, such as QUOTE HERE
which showcases the truly monstrous handicaps that government dissenters were forced to live
with, and serves as a warning to anyone watching the television. Vonnegut uses Harrisons
picture and description as a parallel to how government dissenters might be shown on the TV in
the future. In addition, at the end of the story, when Diana Moon Glampers comes in and shoots
both Harrison and the Ballerina, the curtness of the writing QUOTE HERE is in stark contrast
with the fanciful language that had been present since Harrison arrived in the studio. The
shortness of the writing reflects the shock of the sudden shooting of the two lovers. That it aired
on TV only serves to increase the power of the United States Handicapper General in the eyes of
the people. It was then that the Bergerons television tube burned out, leaving them in shock
but without the allowance to deal with their emotions properly. This type of fear mongering
would intimidate ordinary people into falling in line with the governments agenda.
The ridiculousness of the language Vonnegut uses and the situations that he envisions
only serve to cement Harrison Bergeron as a satirical take on conservative Americans
irrational fears of Communism and Collectivism. Vonnegut attempted to highlight Americans
insecurities though scenes such as the ballerina scene. It is reminiscent of an absurdist work
musicians playing music that is cheap, silly, false, dancers so overburdened with weight as to
not be better at dancing than even the clumsiest of people, and only a few people even had the
intelligence to dream up an alternative, for which they were punished: It was such a doozy that
George was white and trembling, and tears stood on the rums of his red eyes. Two of the eight
ballerinas had collapsed to the studio floor, were holding their temples. Unlike other dystopian
stories, Vonnegut focuses on creating a situation so patently crazy that the reader is forced to
reject the plausibility of it. The situation gets even crazier as Harrison and the Ballerina begin to
dance. As opposed to the drab, dreary nature of the wording for the rest of the story, Vonnegut
unleashes a torrent of vocabulary as the two reeled, whirled, swiveled, flounced, capered,
gamboled, and spun. At a certain point, all logic is tossed aside as neutraling gravity with love
and pure will, they remained suspended in air inches below the ceiling. Everything about the
story, from the initial premise of the handicap, to the action on the stage, and even from the word
choice chosen, seems to indicate that this is indeed a satire.
If a future where everyone is dumbed down to the lowest common denominator seems
far-fetched, it probably is. The craziness of the plot line provides a backdrop for Vonnegut to
provide his input and important social commentary. The cultural tumult of the 60s had not begun
yet. 1961 still embodied the spirit of the 1950s. Public opinion was monolithic and firmly anti-
communist. As well, the publics fears were exacerbated by the Red Scare and McCarthyism.
The ideas that Vonnegut was presenting could not be explicitly spoken for fear of being labeled a
traitor, and in this way, works such as Harrison Bergeron are especially important.