Harrison Bergeron

Harrison Bergeron by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.

For a lot of you readers out there, whoever, and wherever you are. In your lifetime, once in a while, you have probably been assigned some required reading. Throughout my life, I have found, that reading is supposed to be fun. Why read a book that doesn't interest you? You're just boring yourself. And often, that's what required reading does to us. It bores us! However, throughout my schooling years I have come across some pretty fascinating titles, such as; The Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett, The Black Book of Secrets by F.E. Higgins, The Giver by Lois Lowry, etc. And all of these were required reading! This year, in the past week, I have come across another interesting title, Harrison Bergeron by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.

Harrison Bergeron is basically about a dystopian society. Dystopia; an imaginary place where people lead dehumanized and often fearful lives. Basically, a place where everything has gone wrong, the society is at a very low point. The story is set in 2081, where the Amendments of the Constitution declare that everyone is to be equal. And by equal, they mean equal. If you are of average intelligence, looks, height, speed, etc. you are good to go. However, if you are above average in anything you are in for a bad time. People in this society are basically tortured for being above average, by forcing them to handicap themselves to give the appearance that they are average. Sounds terrifying doesn't it? Imagine, having to live with irritating sound waves repeating every twenty seconds in your ear, just because you were the smartest in your class. Or imagine having to carry possibly hundreds of pounds of bird shot around your neck, just because you were the fastest sprinted on the team. Anything you would take pride in doing, was something that you should be ashamed of...

So, how do I rate Harrison Bergeron? Well... it did change my perspective about a few things, actually. 
Harrison Bergeron: 7.5/10

Of Mice and Men

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

Have you ever been in the situation, where you just had to do something? Something you didn't want to do, but had to? I'm not talking about the small stuff, like schoolwork or something. No, I'm talking about something that might have violated your moral code. But, because of the circumstances, you had to.

I've just finished reading Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck. Basically, that's what the story works towards. Doing something you didn't want to, but had to. So, the story is set somewhere in the 17th century. Two friends, George and Lennie, are fieldworkers who constantly travel place to place. This is because, Lennie is mentally disabled, and often gets himself into trouble. This goes on for too long, until one day, accidentally, Lennie kills someone. George, has two choices, either Lennie gets sent to jail, and will suffer for the rest of his life. The second option, is for George to kill Lennie. And that is exactly what he does.

However, above all this madness, I really enjoyed reading Of Mice and Men. Even though, the story contains some crude themes, I can see why it is famous.

The story is about friendship. No matter what, George is always there for Lennie. George sacrifices a lot of his happiness and life, just to take care of Lennie. If that is not true friendship, then what is? Eventually, when it comes down to George murdering Lennie, in my opinion, it was the right thing to do. By doing so, George may have saved Lennie from a world of torture. I, for one, truly value friendship. And to read about a friendship like George and Lennie's was quite interesting.

Overall, I give Of Mice and Men: 8/10. And a round-of-applause to John Steinbeck.