Dystopia foundations
What's the typical time setting of a dystopian text?
The future.
Who is Harrison Bergeron?
The protagonist of the story.
What's the narrator?
The voice who tells the story.
Define "equality".
Equality means everyone has the same rights, opportunities, and value.
What may the handicaps be a symbol for?
Forced equality and the suppression of talent and individuality.
What is a Utopia?
A made-up place that seems perfect, where laws are fair and everyone is happy
Describe Harrison Bergeron.
Harrison is a 14-year-old teenager. He is a handsome, super talented, incredibly strong and clever boy.
What type of narrator does "Harrison Bergeron" have?
A third-person, omniscent narrator.
Why is equality forced and unfair in "Harrison Bergeron"?
Because the government makes talented or strong people wear handicaps so no one is better than anyone else.
What may Diana Moon Glampers' shotgun represent?
Violent government power.
What's "speculative fiction" and which genre is it typical of?
Speculative fiction is fiction that imagines worlds different from our real one. It is typical of the dystopian genre.
What are the handicaps?
The physical tools and items the government forces people to wear to ensure everyone is "equal".
The is the most intense moment of the story called?
The Climax
"Harrison Bergeron" can be seen as a story about society or a story about...
...being a teenager student in high-school.
What may the television be a symbol for?
Government control over information and news.
Name three negative characteristics of a typical dystopic world.
unhappiness, corruption, injustice, poverty, fear, oppression, dehumanization.
What's the very first line of the story?
The year was 2081 and everybody was finally equal.
What is a symbol?
An element that has a deeper meaning, such as the handicaps representing societal limits.
Name two evidences of the interpretation of "Harrison Bergeron" as a story about high school.
- Harrison's rebellion: it's dramatic but ineffective.
- The role of adults: they don't understand or don't care.
What may Harrison and the ballerina's dance represent?
It represents freedom, individuality, beauty and rebellion against control.
What's the purpose of a dystopian text?
Helping readers recognize negative aspects of their own world, raising moral questions, encouraging different thinking and inspiring social action.
Why does George not know what happened on TV at the end of the story?
What is a theme statement?
A complete sentence that expresses the central message of a story without retelling the plot.
Regardless of its interpretation, what's the final warning of the story?
Protect and value individuality, freedom and talent.
George’s forgetfulness represents...
...how society becomes passive and stops questioning authority.