Thankful for Breath: Diversity and Equality in
"Harrison Bergeron" and X-Men
When we think about the words "equality" and "diversity", to two terms might seem like they should be used together, but all too often in our society the words could not be on more opposite sides of mental board. By dictionary standards, the word "equality" means the state or quality of being equal, and "diversity" means the state or fact of being diverse, variety and multi-formity. Exploring how the short story "Harrison Bergeron" by Kurt Vonnegut Jr. and the graphic novel "X-Men" from Marvel Comics incorporate these two themes will be the very topic this paper tries to convey.
In "Harrison Bergeron" equality is viewed as every being exactly the same, equal and the same are one thing. The government in the story creates a standard of "equality", where people who might be gifted or advanced in any way, whether mentally or physically, have handicaps enforced by the government. The main character, which the story is named after, rebels against the government, taking with him a small group of people before they are quickly put back in there place by means of brutal force. Harrison and his group of rebels are seen as a serious threat to the government and, therefore, are seen as the "bad guys". However, it is in the eye of the beholder that one could see the government as the "bad guys" as well. In my personal experiences from life with my friends and family, and from what I have gather about the world thus far, the only "bad guy" I can see is the government of Harrison Bergeron because they have killed creativity and extinguished individualism.
Marvel Comic's "X-Men" also has its own idea of what "equality" means. Equality in this graphic novel means completely segregated and separate. The mutants and the humans do not interact often, and when they do the ordeals can be violent and stressful. The government, run by robot sentinels, is the one who keeps them separate. Kitty, our main female character, goes back in time in order to try and alter reality in a way to save not only her mutant friends and children, but humans as well. The sentinels are viewed as the most dangerous character in the story because they are the ones who enforce the segregation laws. As seen in American and world history, segregation does not end well for either side of the line.
The themes of diversity and equality in both X-Men and Harrison Bergeron are themes that could be applied to the real world. Diversity is something that we live with every day, as is equality. We rely on diversity to keep ideas and knowledge moving in efficient ways in schooling and the work realm. We rely on equality keeping us safe and our rights intact. Nations were diversity and equality are being suppressed have been seen today, though they are not as extreme as the works citied. This concept of these two necessities for making the world spin being controlled is not anything new.
The idea of a world without diversity and equality is a scary thought that does not seem to sound like what America wanted to be in the first place. Diversity is what keeps us all unique and shows off our individuality. Equality is what ensures us of our voice in government and around the world. A world without such simple notions that some people take for granted or forget about all together would be like a world without oxygen. You wouldn't be able to breathe. So inhale your wonderfully diverse and equal nation. It's something that we should never forget to be thankful for.