Answer :
In the given excerpt from the short story "Harrison Bergeron," Hazel’s comments help Vonnegut develop his critique of American society by illustrating the absurdity of trying to make everyone equal.
"Harrison Bergeron" has been written as a satire to critique the people's claims of equality in every sense. Cambridge English Dictionary defines "satire" as "a way of criticizing people or ideas in a humorous way, especially in order to make a political point, or a piece of writing that uses this style."
The following lines from the text support this idea :
"The year was 2081, 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 213th Amendments to the Constitution, and to the unceasing vigilance of agents of the United States Handicapper General."
In his short story "Harrison Bergeron," Kurt Vonnegut stresses that suppression of individual creativity and talent is required in order to achieve absolute equality in every sense. He makes the point that everyone is not equal. Some people have below average intelligence, some people have average intelligence and some have superior intelligence. It is totally absurd to expect a person of superior intelligence to wear handicaps to make people with average intelligence feel better.
When participating in a group discussion, a good group member maintains a balance between:
a) Speaking and listening
<em>The point of a discussion is to interchange ideas about a specific topic. Therefore, one needs to speak in order to add to the discussion but; it is also important to know when to be quiet and simply listen. A good listener pays attention to what others are saying, this might include taking notes. However, taking notes does not necessarily contribute to a discussion. In a discussion whenever one speaks one needs to back up one's claims with facts and in the end, it is necessary to summarize the main ideas. Nevertheless, summarizing is not a key factor of a good group member that participates in a discussion. </em>
Franklin attempting to increase tolerance towards Native
Americans was the largest difference betwixt Franklin’s "Remarks
Concerning the Savages of North America" and Rowlandson’s The Narrative of
the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Rowlandson. Franklin promoted acceptance
regarding the beliefs of the native Americans. On the other hand, Rowlandson’s
view towards the native American people was negative.
