Comparing Ursula K. Le Guin s The Ones Who Walk Away

In comparing Ursula K. Le Guin s The ones who walk away from Omelas and Kurt Vonnegut Jr. s Harrison Bergeron, the authors describe utopias wherein each society relies on another s misfortune. In Harrison Bergeron, George and Hazel watch their son s execution when he publically rejects the laws of society. In The ones who walk away from Omelas, the narractor describes a city of wonder built upon the pain and suffering of a single child. Through these stories, the authors attempt to convey the following points: everyone desires happiness, not everyone will achieve happiness, and the happiness of some may depend on the unhappiness of others. People wish for a world free from famine, destitution, war, and oppression; A world†¦show more content†¦Watching her husband struggle, Hazel suggests he remove the birdshot, at which he declines. He insists if [he] tried to get away with it, then other people d get away with it - and pretty soon [they d] be right back to the dark ages of competing for a better quality of life and happiness. Hazel decides she hates the very idea of returning to a world where she could hardly compete in anything concerning intelligence and physical labor. Unlike her husband, Hazel wears no handicaps which makes her mediocrity evident. She is wholly content and happy with her current circumstance. George, being severely handicapped, is seemingly happy as well. There are times when the suffering of some can bring greater happiness for others. A small example, would be when one individual loses a job, another can gain a job. However, this is demonstrated unfairly in the city of Omelas. Locked in a damp, dark basement exists a child bereft of all love, care, and opportunity. It has become imbecile through fear, malnutrition, and neglect (260). Its gender is left unidentified to emphasize its destitute and feeble state. The child embodies all the hallmarks of extreme poverty, including the lack of proper nutrition, health, education, as well as poor economic and social standing. The others never come close, but peer in at it with frightened, disgusted eyes (261). They all know [the child] is there, all the peopleShow MoreRelatedBusiness and Management2600 Words   |  11 Pagesyou attend class. If you have recently changed modalities, read the policies governing your current class modality. Course Materials Barnet, S., Cain, W.E., Burto, W. (2011). Literature for composition: Essays, stories, poems, and plays (9th ed.). New York, NY: Longman. All electronic materials are available on the student website. |Week One: Elements of Literature—Stories