Harrison Bergeron: Book or Movie?

   It is the year 2081, every American is finally equal. One April, fourteen-year-old Harrison Bergeron is taken away from his parents, George and Hazel, by the government. George and hazel are not fully aware of this tragedy due to Hazel's lack of intelligence and George's ear piece. On TV, George and Hazel are watching ballerinas dance not so gracefully due to the weights they wear to make sure the viewers don't feel bad about themselves.  On TV, an announcer with a speech impediment attempts to read a bulletin. He can’t overcome his impediment, so he hands the bulletin to a ballerina to read. Hazel commends him for working with his God-given abilities and says he should get a raise simply for trying so hard. The ballerina begins reading in her natural, beautiful voice, then apologizes and switches to a growly voice that won’t make anyone jealous. The bulletin says that Harrison has escaped from prison.A photo of Harrison appears on the screen. He is wearing the handicaps meant to counteract his strength, intelligence, and good looks. The photo shows that he is seven feet tall and covered in 300 pounds of metal. He is wearing huge earphones, rather than a small radio, and big glasses meant to blind him and give him headaches. He is also wearing a red rubber nose and black caps over his teeth. His eyebrows are shaved off.After a rumbling noise, the photo on the Bergerons’ TV screen is replaced with an image of Harrison himself, who has stormed the studio. He says that he is the emperor, the greatest ruler in history, and that everyone must obey him. Then he rips off all of his handicaps. He looks like a god. He says that the first woman brave enough to stand up will be his empress. A ballerina rises to her feet. Harrison removes her handicaps and mask, revealing a beautiful woman. Diana Moon Glampers comes into the studio and kills Harrison and the empress with a shotgun. Training the gun on the musicians, she orders them to put their handicaps on. The Bergerons’ screen goes dark. George, who has left the room to get a beer, returns and asks Hazel why she has been crying. She says something sad happened on TV, but she can’t remember exactly what.
   
   Some similarities and differences are... The story is more politically focused, in one seen of the movie the TV breaks and George has to fix it, which didn't happen in the story. Also, in the film they never talk about the dark ages or the fine and jail penalty for making your weights lighter. Another thing that happens in the film and not in the story is that it doesn't state that Harrison is 14, Harrison also threats the studio with a bomb. The last difference is that Harrison doesn't have his eyebrows shave off, he doesn't have a mask or a red nose,and he isn't 7 feet tall. Some things that are similar are... It is still 2081, News announcers still have speech problems, Harrison gets shot and the H-G doesn't wear handicaps. 

   I preferred the film because to me it made more sense. Even though it changed some things. Like how instead of George going into the kitchen, Hazel does. That makes more sense to me because he has the ear piece, for hazel to forget she would have to be incredibly stupid.

   My favourite moment from the film is when George is crying. I like it because his son just died, but he forgets 20 seconds later. I feel like this also was the saddest part in the whole story. Watching an old man cry.

THE END