Ever have a story that just sticks with you, even years after you read it? Back when I was in 6th grade, my class was given a text book that was filled with short stories like Gift of the Magi by O Henry. I read a story in there that stayed with me ever since I read it. The problem? I couldn’t remember the name or author. Just a very vague remembrance of the plot.
A few weeks ago, I was telling a coworker about the story. While I was telling her about it, she started googling the plot. Wouldn’t you know, she found it. It’s a short story by Kurt Vonnegut written in 1961 called Harrison Bergeron. So I bought Welcome to the Monkey House that features the story.
So I’ve a chance to reread it. Vonnegut was known for his imaginative works that blended sci-fi with social satire. Because of that, I believe he became somewhat prophetic in his writings. Especially when it came to Harrison Bergeron.
The story takes place in 2081, less than 60 years away now. Everyone is completely equal. Not just in pay or place in society, but in looks and intelligence. The government has someone called the Handicapper General and is in charge making sure that everyone complied. That would never happen, right?
Back to the story. If you were deemed average, the HG didn’t bother with you. On the other hand, if they deemed you beautiful, smart, or physically gifted, they gave you handicappers. If you were beautiful, you had to wear an ugly mask. The uglier the mask, the more beautiful your face was underneath. Physically gifted, heavy weights added to your frame. Finally, if they deemed you too smart, you had to wear an ear piece that transmitted a loud sound every 20 seconds to disrupt your thoughts.
Bonus to those lovely gifts from the government, if your child was deemed all of those, they would take your child. That’s what happened to Harrison in the story. He was taken from his parents by the government. He escaped and tried to free others. If you know anything about the US Government, then you can guess how that went for young Harrison.
Why am I writing about this? Mainly because I believe children don’t read as much as they used to. They don’t get to hear differing ideas. They get forced fed through screens what to think and feel. That will lead to singular thinking. That’s even more dangerous than binary thinking. I’ve always been a big believer in learning as much as possible. You won’t learn everything that there is in the world, but you should know a little about most things.
Thank you for coming to my TED talk.
Made Dames 