Endgame
HARRISON BERGERON by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
THE YEAR HAW 2331, and everybody was finally equal.. They weren' t only equal
before God and the law.. They were equal every which way. Nobody was smarter
than anybody else.. Nobody was better looking than anybody else.. Nobody was
stronger' or quicker' than anybody else.. All this equality was due to the
211th, 212th, and 213 Amendments to the Constitution, and to the unceasing
vigilance of agents of the United States Handicapper General..
Some things about living still weren' t quite right, though. April for
instance, still drove people crazy by not being springtime. And it was in
that that the HAG men took George and Hazel Bergeron' s fourteen-
yearsold son, Harrison, away.
It was tragic, all right, but George and Hazel couldn' t think about it very
hard. Hazel had a perfectly average intelligence, which meant she couldn' t
think about anything except in short bursts. And George, while his
intelligence was way above normal, had a little mental handicap radio in his
ear. He was required by law to wear it at all times. It was tuned to a
government transmitter. 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.
George and Hazel were watching television. There were tears on Hazel' s
cheeks, but she' d forgotten for the moment what they were about..
On the television screen were ballerinas.
A buzzer sounded in George' s head. His thoughts fled in panic, like bandits
from a burglar alarm.
That was a real pretty dance, that dance they just did," said Hazel.
THE YEAR HAW 2331, and everybody was finally equal.. They weren' t only equal
before God and the law.. They were equal every which way. Nobody was smarter
than anybody else.. Nobody was better looking than anybody else.. Nobody was
stronger' or quicker' than anybody else.. All this equality was due to the
211th, 212th, and 213 Amendments to the Constitution, and to the unceasing
vigilance of agents of the United States Handicapper General..
Some things about living still weren' t quite right, though. April for
instance, still drove people crazy by not being springtime. And it was in
that that the HAG men took George and Hazel Bergeron' s fourteen-
yearsold son, Harrison, away.
It was tragic, all right, but George and Hazel couldn' t think about it very
hard. Hazel had a perfectly average intelligence, which meant she couldn' t
think about anything except in short bursts. And George, while his
intelligence was way above normal, had a little mental handicap radio in his
ear. He was required by law to wear it at all times. It was tuned to a
government transmitter. 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.
George and Hazel were watching television. There were tears on Hazel' s
cheeks, but she' d forgotten for the moment what they were about..
On the television screen were ballerinas.
A buzzer sounded in George' s head. His thoughts fled in panic, like bandits
from a burglar alarm.
That was a real pretty dance, that dance they just did," said Hazel.
...
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