Kurt Vannegut And Anthem: Dystopian Societies

George felt as though he did not speak well enough and was looked down upon

Hazel, who is of average intelligence, urges George to take off his handicaps, stating that she doesn't “care if [he] is unequal to [her]” (2). This depicts the actual

“A lie told often enough becomes truth” -Vladimir Lenin. Lies are the pillars of the society in Ayn Rand’s Anthem and Kurt Vonnegut’s Harrison Bergeron. These lies are produced by the government and distributed to the citizens of these dystopian nations in the name of equality. The governments in both writings are looking to achieve equality, however the methods by which this is done differs greatly.

No One Is Equal What if every person on earth was the forced to be the same? Imagine a world filled with people who count their strengths as weaknesses. In the short story “Harrison Bergeron” by Kurt Vonnegut Jr., the world is exactly like that. Main characters, George, Hazel, Harrison, and the Ballerina all wear mental and physical handicaps given to them by the Handicapper-General.

Harrison Bergeron vs. Anthem To live in a world where collectivism is a part of society it must be strange to the way we live now. In both dystopian novels everyone has the same rights and is equal which makes them practice collectivism. Throughout both novels they show their separate in relationship and figure out what relationships truly are and overcome the fear of their government discovering them. In Vonnegut’s “ Harrison Bergeron” and Rand’s “Anthem” their societies are the similar in equality but different in their relationships. Both novels show the characteristics that they are exactly equal because collectivism is practiced upon society by the close minded government. .

Although “Harrison Bergeron” by Kurt Vonnegut and Anthem by Ayn Rand are both dystopian pieces, their portrayal of love and marriage prodigiously differs. Firstly, the Marriage in “Harrison Bergeron” is free to anyone in the age limit. In “Harrison Bergeron” couples are able to get married to each other and live as a family. For instance, George the husband of Hazel, tells her to forget the sad things and she says ” I always do”, and he responds with “That's my girl” George is showing that he has a relationship with Hazel.

Dystopian Societies are driven by governments whose purpose is to create similarity and obedience in all of their citizens. Both of the stories, Anthem and Harrison, have similar governments with the same goals. The governments in both stories want the same type of community, with no individuals. Each person is expected to be the same as the one before. The government in Anthem built their community around a saying, “There are no men but

Equality for all “No two leaves are alike, and yet there is no antagonism between them or between the branches which they will grow”(Mahatma Gandhi) The book Anthem by Ayn Rand and Harrison Bergeron by Kurt Vonnegut are both dystopian pieces which display equality in different ways. Although Harrison Bergeron by Kurt Vonnegut and Anthem by Ayn Rand are both pieces of dystopian literature their portrayal of family differs greatly. In Harrison Burgeron, people have a families and marriage. Harrison Bergeron differs from Anthem because they have more freedom when dealing with family.

George has no money and no control over his wife. Everyone seems to walk all over his, as if he isn’t even there. I think George knows that his wife is not happy, but he chooses to ignore it. However, when he finds the dog collar and figures out Myrtle is cheating on him, part of his anger shows. He thinks he can fix his marriage by locking his wife up and taking his wife to leave town.

Most people would be angry or upset, however George cannot feel this way due to the consequences that may follow. When a character does feel a human emotion, they soon forget. “ ‘Forget the sad things.’ said George. ‘I always do,’ said Hazel”(44).

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to live in a collectivist society. Ayn Rand lived through communism and she saw nazisim,in her book she gives an example of a collectivist society, she uses this novel to warn people about what could happen if we lived in a society like that. Ayn Rand uses her novela ANTHEM to explore the theme of individualism by having Equality discover light, by defing society, and discovering that ones self respect is the most important thing in the universe.

In the novel Anthem the author, Ayn Rand discusses the ways Equality 7-2521’s world is a dystopia because independent thought, information and freedom are restricted, the natural world was banished and distressed, a concept is worshipped by the citizens and the society is an illusion of a perfect , utopian world. To begin with, Ayn Rand explains how the Equality 7-2521’s world is a dystopian society because the freedom of think and do anything for yourself is restricted. Equality states “It is a sin to write this. It is a sin to think words no others think and to put them down upon a paper no others are to see... It is as if we were speaking alone to no ears but our own.

Harrison Bergeron Essay Claim: Being equal isn’t always fair. Intro: What if someone had to wear a handicap? Or what if someone had to be treated exactly like everyone else?

The Handicapper General's agents enforce these laws by forcing citizens to wear "handicaps": hideous masks for those that are considered too good-looking, loud ear implants that disrupt the thoughts of those considered too intelligent, and heavy weights on those considered to be

Nowadays, as divorce has become socially accepted, the figures have grown. According to the article “The American Family”, nearly 50 % of marriages in the United States end up in divorce. This fully affects the idea of traditional marriage because, from those divorces, new uncommon family structures emerge, such as, single father or mother parenting families. Moreover, according to a study called, “An International Look at the Single- Parent family” by Ludger Woesmann, “in the United States, in 2012, 21 percent of 15-year-old students lived in single-parent families.” These figures illustrate the social change society is going through and how the concept of an ideal family structure is becoming obsolete nowadays as well.