The concept of being a human with individual characteristics is a theme frequently found in both Never Let Me Go, a novel by Kazuo Ishiguro, and the short stories Harrison Bergeron and Who Am I This Time, written by Kurt Vonnegut. Although both take place in a future reality or incorporate futuristic technologies, the characters in the works still exhibit traits that make them human. These characteristics, which the characters were granted upon their inception, heavily influence their decisions throughout their lives and define them as individuals.
This concept of individuality is prominently displayed through two of the main characters in the short story Who Am I This Time. The story revolves around Harry, an actor in a local production of …show more content…
In this work, society is controlled by a figure referred to as the Handicapper General, who serves the public by assuring that everyone is equal in every facet. Nevertheless, there is an anomaly in this practice that results in Harrison Bergeron escaping from confinement and breaking out of his handicaps before ultimately declaring himself emperor. The capability of Harrison is described by a news agency when they state, “He is a genius and an athlete, is under-handicapped, and should be regarded as extremely dangerous”. Moreover, Harrison is able to break free of his confinements and seems virtually unstoppable, since there is nothing to hinder his abilities. However, he overestimates his capabilities and fails to realize that while differences are important they cannot all be possessed, which leads to his untimely death recapped in the statement, “Diana Moon Glampers, the Handicapper General, came into the studio with a double-barreled ten-gauge shotgun. She fired twice, and the Emperor and Empress were dead before they hit the floor”. Although Harrison unknowingly realizes that differences are necessary to create a society in which individuals can exist, he fails to register that one man cannot be endowed with all the differences in the world because that would prevent them from being
This concept of individuality is prominently displayed through two of the main characters in the short story Who Am I This Time. The story revolves around Harry, an actor in a local production of …show more content…
In this work, society is controlled by a figure referred to as the Handicapper General, who serves the public by assuring that everyone is equal in every facet. Nevertheless, there is an anomaly in this practice that results in Harrison Bergeron escaping from confinement and breaking out of his handicaps before ultimately declaring himself emperor. The capability of Harrison is described by a news agency when they state, “He is a genius and an athlete, is under-handicapped, and should be regarded as extremely dangerous”. Moreover, Harrison is able to break free of his confinements and seems virtually unstoppable, since there is nothing to hinder his abilities. However, he overestimates his capabilities and fails to realize that while differences are important they cannot all be possessed, which leads to his untimely death recapped in the statement, “Diana Moon Glampers, the Handicapper General, came into the studio with a double-barreled ten-gauge shotgun. She fired twice, and the Emperor and Empress were dead before they hit the floor”. Although Harrison unknowingly realizes that differences are necessary to create a society in which individuals can exist, he fails to register that one man cannot be endowed with all the differences in the world because that would prevent them from being