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Question 3

1 pts
Which lines from "Harrison Bergeron" best support the following theme?
Authoritarian governments thrive on the ignorance of the populace and on the suppression of
education by limiting intelligence and knowledge.
O "If I tried to get away with it," said George, "then other people'd get away with it-and pretty soon we'd be
right back to the dark ages again, with everybody competing against everybody else. You wouldn't like that,
would you?"
O "Nobody was smarter than anybody else. Nobody was better looking than anybody else. Nobody was
stronger or quicker than anybody else. All this equity ws due to the 211th, 212th, and 213th Amendments to
the Constitution, and to the unceasing vigilance of agents of the United States Handicapper General."
"The rest of Harrison's appearance was Halloween and hardware. Nobody had ever born heavier handicaps.
He had outgrown hindrances faster than the H-G men could think them up. Instead of a little ear radio for a
mental handicap, he wore a tremendous pair of earphones, and spectacles with thick wavy lenses. The
spectacles were intended to make him not only half blind, but to give him whanging headaches besides."
O "Every twenty seconds or so, the transmitter would send out some sharp noise to keep people like George
from taking unfair advantage of their brains."

2 Answers

6 votes

Final answer:

The quote from "Harrison Bergeron" that reflects the suppression of education and intelligence by an authoritarian government is the one describing the enforced equality through constitutional amendments and the unceasing vigilance of the Handicapper General.

Step-by-step explanation:

The lines from "Harrison Bergeron" that best support the theme that authoritarian governments thrive on the ignorance of the populace and on the suppression of education by limiting intelligence and knowledge are:

"Nobody was smarter than anybody else. Nobody was better looking than anybody else. Nobody was stronger or quicker than anybody else. All this equity was due to the 211th, 212th, and 213th Amendments to the Constitution, and to the unceasing vigilance of agents of the United States Handicapper General."

This quotation explicitly mentions the role of the government in enforcing equality at the expense of personal excellence and the suppression of individual intelligence and ability. It reflects how the government's control results in a deliberate equalization that stagnates intellectual growth and knowledge, embodying the theme of authoritarian governments restricting education and intelligence.

User Virtualmic
by
3.2k points
2 votes

Step-by-step explanation:

Authoritarian governments thrive on the ignorance of the populace and on the suppression of

education by limiting intelligence and knowledge.

O "If I tried to get away with it," said George, "then other people'd get away with it-and pretty soon we'd be

right back to the dark ages again, with everybody competing against everybody else. You wouldn't like that,

would you?"

User Tdranv
by
3.2k points