Question

They weren't really very good—no better than anybody else would have been, anyway. They were burdened with sashweights and bags of birdshot, and their faces were masked, so that no one, seeing a free and graceful gesture or a pretty face, would feel like something the cat drug in. —"Harrison Bergeron," Kurt Vonnegut

How does Vonnegut use satire to explore ideas about fairness? Check all that apply.
a. By proposing a way to correct the problem
b. By exaggerating and distorting reality
c. By creating a dystopian society
d. He tried to think a little about the ballerinas.

Answer 1

Kurt Vonnegut's 'Harrison Bergeron' uses satire by exaggerating reality and creating a dystopian society to critique the extreme pursuit of enforced equality. The story illustrates the absurdity of suppressing individual talents and beauty in the name of fairness, suggesting such measures are counterproductive. Option C is the correct answer.

Step-by-step explanation:

Kurt Vonnegut's short story, "Harrison Bergeron," uses satire to explore the theme of fairness in a futuristic dystopian society. Vonnegut employs satire through various literary techniques, one of which is by exaggerating and distorting reality. This distortion is evident as he describes characters being physically burdened to enforce equality, thus negating any natural advantages they might possess. Additionally, the creation of a dystopian society itself satirizes the concept of enforced equality, by taking the idea of fairness to an absurd extreme where it loses its original intent and becomes oppressive.

The passage mentions ballerinas handicapped by sashweights and birdshot to ensure that no one person's abilities exceed another's, regardless of their natural gifts.

Vonnegut's satire here serves as a critique of policies aimed at creating artificial equality. Moreover, masking their faces so that beauty cannot be discerned continues this theme, suggesting the ridiculous lengths to which society goes to maintain a veneer of fairness. Vonnegut's approach illustrates the folly of attempting to homogenize humanity, thereby obscuring individual talents and beauty that should be celebrated rather than suppressed.