"Harrison Bergeron"

                  

Above is a short film based on the story Harrison Bergeron written by Kurt Voonegut, which explores the idea of an egalitarian society.

"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."

Maybe if everyone started with a clean slate and on the same level and then went on in life trying to reach their goals based strictly on their own merit, then I think it would be as fair as society could get. It's a nice ideal the possibility of an egalitarian society but not a realistic one. Vonnegut points out the flaws of an equal society in Harrison Bergeron, how total equality comes at the cost of individual freedom. An equal society would include everyone receiving the same amount of everything. For instance the same pay for maybe not the same amount of work. Now is that fair? Someone gets paid the same amount as you when you put forth more effort, shouldn't you get paid more? I don't think it's possible for everyone to be equal without hindering the exceptional and if we were all on the same level then our species would not advance. 



Harrison Bergeron by Kurt Voonegut