Notes

An anachronism occurs when a thing appears in a time period other than the one in which it was appropriately used. For example, the use of a telegraph machine in a story set in the future would demonstrate anachronism because telegraphs were developed in the 1800s and are essentially extinct. Harrison Bergeron is set in the year 2081 where everyone is equal due to the use of handicaps and masks that render everyone average. While Hazel and George are watching TV, their son appears on the screen and announces that he is the new emperor. He peels off his handicaps and begins to dance. Not far into the dance, the Handicapper General appears. It is in this moment that there is an example of an anachronism. She takes out a ten-gauge shotgun and kills Harrison and the woman he is dancing with. This is an anachronism because shotguns would be extremely outdated in 2081, and therefore not fit in with the setting of the story at all. It is possible that they were killed with such an archaic instrument because they were reverting back to the ways of the past, such as not having handicaps and allowing the world to see their true faces. The use of the shotgun shows how primitive Harrison's behavior is and how ridiculous it would be to live in a world without complete equality.