Narrative
Identity in "Harrison Bergeron" and 12 and Holding
Kurt Vonnegut introduces the reader to Hazel, who is perfectly average, and George Bergeron, somewhat above average, who are the parents of fourteen-year-old Harrison. The boy proved to be so intelligent and talented that the government-mandated handicaps assigned to him were beyond anything anyone else had ever worn. His mother was free of handicaps, but his father was considerably smarter because of the heavy weights he carried and his headgear which emitted crashingly painful sounds every 20 seconds or so. In the year 2081, society has equalized everyone down to the lowest common denominator so that no one feels less wonderful than anyone else. The parents are at home and their son has been jailed. The reader first meets the boy following his escape when he appears on the television screen.
In a world gone overboard with laws and palliatives to mask the realization that one is not as smart or pretty or talented as others and thereby eliminate competitiveness, Kurt Vonnegut has provided another chilling alternative to the future. His characters are treated to Job-like scourges of weights of bird-shot, hideous masks, and brain-numbing audio torture. Identity in this culture is limited to the one who is in charge, namely, Diana Moon Glampers, the Handicapper General. The effort to relieve the anxiety of those less talented, less beautiful, less anything has resulted in a plain vanilla world. These characters lead a monotonous, semi-conscious existence, but those whose talents are greater suffer the most. Vonnegut's people endure pain commensurate with their brilliance, beauty, and talent.
A single man's impetus to assert his identity and free himself from the shackles of society will end in some sort of destruction; either the rebel will be destroyed or the carefully crafted microcosm of society disrupted by the anarchist will crumble. When Hazel suggests to George that he remove a few of the weights from his 47-pound bag he responds by reminding her what would happen if everyone cheated: "If I tried to get away with it then other people'd get away with it-and pretty soon we'd be right back to the dark ages again, with everybody competing against everybody else. You wouldn't like that, would you?"1 Vonnegut's story is a cautionary tale that tells today's youth that everybody is not equal, nor should they be made so. Teenagers often confuse equal rights with equal abilities. In the struggle to define themselves, young people assert their notions of individuality. Ever notice how teens write their names everywhere? Their notebooks, the chalkboards, desks, the backs of their hands, and even in tattoos their names are emblazoned in an effort to leave a mark, like dogs marking their territories.
Harrison Bergeron's personal outcome is unvictorious but he goes down fighting. For one glorious moment he is on top of the world, or as close as he can come to it, dancing with his queen in mid-air. Society exacted the price of death for such flagrant disregard for the rules in order to maintain the carefully designed mediocrity, and Diana Moon Glampers had her day with her shotgun. Quelled for the present, the fact of Harrison Bergeron's uprising offers hope for the future.
In choosing a film to parallel with the Vonnegut story, I found many possibilities (see Additional Titles) but I was drawn to 12 and Holding because of the richness of the characters, the storytelling technique, and the brilliance of the young actors. Harrison Bergeron fought to the end to express his identity; these characters are struggling to forge their identities, and their attempts are strikingly realized in Michael Cuesta's film. My students are teenagers but they will remember being twelve years old and may still struggle with some of the insecurities and other problems of the characters in this film.
12 and Holding is the story of four misfits: twins Jacob and Rudy Carges, their overweight friend Leonard, and Malee, a Chinese American whose retreat is a tree house on the twins' property. Three of these 12-year-olds must deal with the onset of puberty with the scars of their childhood freshly ripped open by the death of the fourth of their quartet. Their identities must undergo the usual changes that occur with puberty while dealing with the tragedy of death as well as their own personal identity issues. Malee yearns for a relationship with her absent father to the point of creating a relationship in her mind with a man who has been kind to her. Leonard escaped death only to lose his sense of smell and taste, much to the chagrin of his overweight, food-loving parents, and he deals with his friend's death through a diet and fitness program. Rudy, who survived his twin, deals with the guilt of being alive and the fear that his parents would have wished him to die instead of his brother because of what he thinks of as a gross deformity, the port wine birthmark covering much of his face.
When two bullies, Kenny and Jeff, firebomb the tree house at night unaware that Jacob and Leonard are inside, the effects of the crime ripple outwards accordingly. Rudy is now the surviving twin. Always one to hang back, both because of Jacob's strong personality and of his birthmark, Rudy is now in the unenviable position of the surviving child. With the loss of Jacob, the quartet unravels with varying effects on the three friends as well as the two bullies.
Leonard Fisher survived the conflagration because Jeff went back and dragged him to safety. His lasting effect is the loss of his sense of smell. As the most overweight and unfit kid his gym teacher has ever known, Leonard's olfactory loss affects his appetite, and with some encouragement from his teacher, he begins to work out and eat more healthy food. This is much to the chagrin of his parents and two younger sisters who all eat enough for several people. They don't understand what he's doing, and while this is a serious situation, most of the humor in the film comes from the puzzlement of Leonard's parents and sisters.
Malee Chuang, the only girl in the group, is a Chinese American with a divorced mother who is a psychiatrist. Malee develops a crush on Gus, one of her mother's patients. Malee's yearning for her absent father gives way to her imagined romance with Gus. He also unwittingly provides the means through which Rudy is able to carry out his plan later on.
Both Kenny and Jeff are sent to juvie where their only visitor is Rudy. At first, Rudy taunts them both and Jeff, wracked with guilt, hangs himself in his cell. His brother tolerates Rudy's visits because they break the monotony. One act disrupted the lives of six twelve-year-olds, killing one of them, and affecting the lives of their families and friends. Both bullies are eliminated because of their actions as well, one through suicide caused by his inability to deal with the guilt, and the other through an avenging act of execution.
When is killing morally acceptable? Is it ever? Vonnegut's tale is a cautionary one for the reader, suggesting that the effort to attain equality for all citizens has resulted in the oppression of the individual's intelligence, talent, and beauty. The question that remains is a moral one, and that is the question of civil rights. 12 and Holding poses a more intricate weaving of character relationships and the resourcefulness of the three children to find meaning in their lives.
Anthony J. Cipriano's screenplay introduces the viewer to a foursome of preteens who seem to have little in common; twins Jacob and Rudy are the core with Leonard seeming to be the stereotypical fat kid and Malee the outcast "different" kid, being of Asian ethnicity. School figures into the film only incidentally, on three occasions: notably, Malee's concert where she performs a song specifically for Gus, Leonard's encounter with the gym teacher, and Jacob's empty seat in front of Rudy at the beginning of the new school year.
Through some very demanding processes, both Malee and Leonard mature; they shed parts of their younger selves, emerging from the cocoon of childhood. Leonard begins to lose some weight and Malee starts to use makeup. At the end of the film the viewer feels hopeful about their futures. With her mother's help, Malee is able to redirect her energies; Leonard's wake-up call to the fragility of life is aided by his nurse and his coach, but it is he who propels himself toward a healthier life for himself and his family.
Harrison Bergeron chose to go out with a bang; his triumph was short-lived but he showed that pushing forward one's identity is the only way to be true to oneself and one's destiny. In the case of these two examples, the story and the film, identity is shown to be the definition of human life.
Rudy is a much more difficult character to resolve. His family is affected the most deeply, understandably, and his stake in the whole affair is greater than the others. He is tortured by the loss of his twin, feeling a range of conflicting emotions from bereavement and loss to anger and hunger for revenge, to the burden of guilt as the survivor, and most terribly, the relief of no longer having to be second to his brother.
Rudy's decision to eradicate the bullies is not immediately evident to the viewer. His visits to the juvie center seem to be motivated merely to taunt the boys; indeed, it is Jeff, the unwilling accessory in his elder brother's plan to firebomb the tree house who suffers. It was he who managed to drag Leonard far enough away from the conflagration, assuring his survival, and it is he who is consumed with guilt from the deed.
Rudy's ultimate decision to shoot the bully is not clearly telegraphed to the viewer. As a tortured survivor, he is certain that his parents would have preferred that he, the disfigured twin, had died instead of Jacob. Rudy's desire to run away from home with the bully seems genuine. Kenny has already said that not even his mother has come to visit him in juvie. When they discuss running away, Kenny remarks that no one will even notice he's gone. This is prophetic in that his disappearance will not elicit any search for him. Rudy's suggestion to accompany Kenny seems genuine until he pulls the gun, so fortuitously supplied by Malee. The director reassures the viewer that Rudy's crime will remain undiscovered through the shot of the construction company pouring the foundation right on top of Kenny's body.
What can be learned from this and how does it fit into the overarching theme of The Individual and Society as well as the secondary theme of Identity assigned to this story? A discussion comparing the story to the film will follow along with the review of the video viewing forms (see Appendix B). Vonnegut shows the danger of society usurping the individual's right to Identity and the society's edict to eradicate anyone who will not accommodate the government mandated "equalizer." 12 and Holding poses the question of how to deal with the hole left in the lives of survivors. This was unnecessary in Vonnegut's tale because neither George nor Hazel had the mental faculties to remember much. The lesson is that while it is a struggle, two of the three surviving children manage to arrive at the next stage of their development. Rudy, the third survivor, and closer to his dead twin than anyone else, has more complex problems and his conviction to punish the bullies is the only way that he will allow himself to feel free from his emotional torture. Ask the students what they think will happen next. Ask them if the adolescents in 12 and Holding are related to Harrison Bergeron or if there is a possible sequel to "Harrison Bergeron?" What about the futures of the characters in 12 and Holding? Ask the students if they can imagine Leonard, Malee, or Rudy in five years' time. These ideas might be incorporated into their Culminating Project.
It is unsettling, this ending. As an adult viewer, it is disturbing to think of a 12-year-old boy executing his twin's killer, in a cold-blooded, pre-meditated manner, and getting away with it. While Malee and Leonard are headed through puberty with direction and the support of their families, Rudy has withdrawn; he is "holding," stuck in time while his friends move on. Having lived in the shadow of Jacob his entire life, he is lost without him.
The R rating of the film is primarily because of the content and the violence. There is no gratuitous violence, though. There is also a scene in which one of the male characters is in the shower and he is shown from the back. Previewing these shots should allow teachers to determine how to deal with them in their classrooms.
Discussing the rights and wrongs of manipulating the lives of others is directly related to the theme of The Individual and Society and the whole concept of Identity. Does one's personal identity supersede the good of society? Probably not. What happens to individuals who impose their ideologies and agendas on others? If the result is the death of others, the perpetrator is apprehended and jailed or executed. If it is a matter of infringement of rights, other consequences may apply. For instance, in "Harrison Bergeron" the civil liberties of the citizens have been severely compromised; laws have been passed curtailing them. In Vonnegut's world of 2081 there are over 200 amendments to the Constitution. How far can we go? How far can the individual go or should s/he go to combat this kind of government? How much should society impose on its citizens?
Fidelity in "No Witchcraft for Sale" and Into the West
Review the definition of fidelity that you introduced at the beginning of the unit. Expand on the theme with examples of different types of fidelity: personal relationship, family, team, club, community, nation. Post all of these ideas on chart paper or a bulletin board for referral while reading.
Before beginning the story, I always review the structure of Stasis/Instability/New Stasis2 as a basis for this story's structure. Adam and Eve's story, a part of our common cultural literacy, is the prime example of the foreign element contaminating the paradise, introducing the instability, and causing a new stasis. Whether or not the new stasis is an improvement on the original is debatable in some instances. While the Adam and Eve story is generally accepted to have a satisfying conclusion with the establishment of the new stasis, not all stories are determined to be improved by the intrusion of the agent that necessitates the new stasis. This will be determined by the students after reading the story.
In Doris Lessing's short story of white farmers in Rhodesia, circa 1934, the importance of fidelity to one's culture is paramount. After the child of his employers is attacked and nearly blinded by snake spit, Gideon, the native cook of the white family, quickly and efficiently supplies the antidote that prevents blindness. Following this seemingly miraculous event, word gets around, and soon a scientist arrives to learn the secret of the antidote to bring the cure to the world-and turn a tidy profit. The Farquars, Gideon's employers, are happy to think of the cure being made available to the rest of the world but are less thrilled with the talk of profit, being Christian: "Their feelings over the miracle (that was how they thought of it) were so strong and deep and religious, that it was distasteful to them to think of money."3 Sensing this, the scientist switches his tactic back to the good that will be done for mankind.
Gideon faces the dilemma of how to keep his native cure a secret without openly defying his employers. Rather than disclose the source of the antidote, Gideon first feigns ignorance and then leads the family and scientist on a grueling five-mile walk pretending to look for the plant, culminating in his grabbing a handful of common flowers and handing them off to the scientist. There is a way things are done in this culture and the Farquars (white people) just don't get it. It takes another of their servants to explain to them Gideon's standing in their local community: "Now there's a doctor for you. He's the son of a famous medicine man who used to be in these parts, and there's nothing he cannot cure." This is followed up by the disclaimer: "Of course, he's not as good as the white man's doctor, we know that, but he's good for us."4
Fidelity to his culture superseded Gideon's loyalty to his employers, people for whom he'd worked for quite a while. His reputation in his community was well-known, yet to the Farquars he was just a cook who doted on their son and behaved like a good Christian. While it is true that the marketing of the antidote could help others, it would have destroyed the village; industry, with white scientists swarming everywhere and upheaval of the vegetation would have overwhelmed and upset the balance. The indigenous population could assimilate one family, the Farquars, and coexist with very little disruption to their own lives, but inviting in the rest of the world was unthinkable. Besides, where else would this antidote be needed? Maybe it was only effective right where it grew, where the snakes lived, and nowhere else. Ultimately, each person must do as he or she sees fit and proper. Allegiances are strong and difficult to break, and honor is a must in any culture that hopes to retain its integrity.
To continue with the second theme under the heading of The Individual and Society, that of Fidelity, I plan to screen Mike Newell's interpretation of writer Jim Sheridan's Into the West, which poses the question of how the intrusion of a foreign element disturbs the stasis of any given society. What effect does the instability have on societal structure? Stories from all places and ages thrive on regaining or restructuring a new stasis, demonstrating this urge as a crucial element of human nature. How does this figure into the Fidelity theme? Remaining faithful to what has always been suggests that no new elements be introduced, or if they are, they must be rejected. This is mostly true in the Lessing story. The Farquars were tolerated but the scientist and everything he represented was not because acceptance of that eventuality would be destructive to the environment. The tale Mike Newell brings to the screen utilizes a legend that seems to be an intrusion into the world of the characters but which is really a vehicle that allows the characters to patch up their broken lives and restore the balance they all require.
Into the West is a fable that introduces a foreign element that is a desirable one rather than an unwelcome intrusion. Whereas the Farquars in Lessing's story are assimilated into the indigenous culture as much as necessary, Sheridan's story offers the viewer an intruder with a mission. The horse, Tir nan Og (tear nuh nogue), has a goal which the grandfather calls forth in the story of Oisin (O sheen). Tir nan Og's purpose is to shepherd the lost travelers back to the sea, where the spirit of Mary, the boys' mother reigns. Perhaps Tir nan Og is Mary's spirit.
The opening is a prologue in which Tir nan Og gallops freely along a sandy moonlit shore. At daybreak he presents himself to the grandfather and accompanies the old man back to the settlement near the towers where his son Papa and two grandsons, Tito and Ossie greet him. Posing as part of the Murphy family, Papa and his boys have secured housing and a stipend to get them through the winter. According to the grandfather this is a betrayal of the old ways, the ways of the travelers. Papa had withdrawn from his former life as a traveler after the death of his wife Mary. When the grandfather shows up, Papa tries to calm the wild horse and fails, allowing the viewer to see that he has lost his "gift," as his father astutely points out. Then little Ossie comes along and shows an immediate affinity for the beast that his grandfather calls Tir nan Og. He is then pronounced to have the "gift." Papa's loss of the gift shows that he has lost his connection to the organic world; in fact, he now makes a living doing body work on cars. Following the naming of Tir nan Og, the grandfather tells the story of Tir nan Og and the handsome Oisin who was given the horse by a princess who promised him that if he ever dismounted he would grow old. After a thousand years, Oisin yearned to visit the travelers and upon arriving suffered the misfortune of his saddle breaking, causing him to fall to the ground, age dramatically, and turn to dust. The magic of storytelling is evident in the close attention everyone pays to the grandfather's tale around the campfire, young and old alike. Ossie is particularly moved by the story and is reluctant to dismount to go to bed for fear of growing old.
In Vladimir Propp's Morphology of the Folktale, the author outlines thirty-one steps the hero must complete in his quest (see Bibliography). Ossie is the hero called to action in this story. Tir nan Og represents the driving spirit that serves as the vehicle for Ossie to satisfy his yearning for his mother. When he and Tito rescue Tir nan Og from the Englishman who has appropriated him to be a racehorse and start on their adventure, our hero, Ossie, is accompanied by his brother; he is too young to go alone, and the provision of Tito allows for dialogue, eliminating the need for the boy to talk to himself or to have complicated voice over thoughts.
In their flight from Tir nan Og's "owner" the boys ramble through the beautiful countryside, ever west, with Tir nan Og taking them exactly where he wants them to go. Several of Propp's heroic steps are completed on this physical journey. An interesting element here is the layering of an additional theme, that of Papa's emotional as well as geographical journey through his grief so that he can finally let go his obsession with Mary. It's as though Tir nan Og knows that Papa's reversal and change will naturally follow since the man will pursue his sons. This secondary journey also provides a satisfying ending, as seen by Papa's burning of Mary's caravan. His private gesture of throwing the photo of her into the flames symbolizes the release of her spirit and frees him from the torment he's carried for so long. Tir nan Og's job is done and he disappears back to the land under the sea where legend says he lives. Ossie nearly accompanies him but is rescued by a female helping hand and is allowed to return to his family. Her flowing hair, fine bracelet, and manicured hand suggest she is the princess of grandfather's tale. When Ossie comes to the first thing he says is, "I saw her."
So are these events real or imagined? And does it matter? How does this restoration compare and contrast to one's roots and the integrity of the society?
In reviewing the film along with the video viewing sheets, discussion can be generated that will further explore the theme of Fidelity. Students can offer their own ideas of fidelity and to whom they pledge their allegiance. Discussion about when fidelity is good or bad may emerge, as well as ideas for their culminating project stories.
In the Additional Titles section, two other films are offered that could be of benefit in this study and teachers may wish to screen clips of them. If there is extra time available or if only "No Witchcraft for Sale" is to be taught, consider these examples. Claire Denis' 1988 Chocolat shows the bond between a young French girl and the Cameroon cook employed by her family. In this piece, the child's trust is betrayed in contrast to the child/adult relationship in Lessing's story. In Germany's Nowhere in Africa, director Caroline Link shows how a Jewish family escapes Nazi Germany to spend the war in Kenya. The ability of their daughter to assimilate African ways is interesting. Rather than depicting a struggle between cultures in which one character is wronged or betrayed, this film shows each family member working through his/her feelings about being in Kenya and missing Germany. This film is too adult to screen in the classroom but clips from it may be helpful, particularly showing the young daughter interacting with the Kenyan children.
Conformity- "Initiation" and Vitus
Sylvia Plath's story is of the yearning to belong. In Millicent's American high school in the 1950s, the pinnacle of social stardom is to be invited to join the exclusive sorority. Her reflections shortly before the final initiation ceremony provide the flashbacks that set up the climax of the story. Sylvia Plath sets up the reader at the onset of the narrative with Millicent awaiting her final confirmation as a "sister." Sitting blindfolded in a basement, bits of dried raw eggs clinging to her hair, Millicent reflects on the events of the pledge period; this reconstruction of what has happened guides the reader through the positive and negative consequences of pledging.
The excitement is evident in the descriptions of the little embarrassing things the pledges must do, from not wearing any lipstick and not styling their hair, to walking up and down the aisle on a bus asking people what they eat for breakfast. Millicent feels proud of the way others at school notice her during pledge week, thinking that she's made it, finally. The only thing nagging at her is the fact that her best friend Tracy wasn't asked to pledge, but she manages to put that aside during the exciting pledge period.
The epiphany occurs when Millicent is on the bus. After receiving many boring,
everyday answers to her breakfast question from good-natured passengers she is pleasantly surprised by one man's quick response: "Heather birds' eyebrows on toast." Taken aback, Millicent can't help but exclaim, "What?" to which the man replies that these birds live on mythological moors and spend all day singing besides which, they're bright purple and have very tasty eyebrows. Following that encounter, Millicent begins to look at life differently. She realizes that people aren't all supposed to be alike and that the ones who aren't trying to conform are often a lot more interesting. Her realization is complete with this, "So many people were shut up tight inside themselves like boxes, yet they would open up, unfolding quite wonderfully, if only you were interested in them. And really, you didn't have to belong to a club to feel related to other human beings."5
While belonging is as much a part of growing up as being an individual is, there is a point at which too much of either one can be unhealthy. Millicent realizes this and finds a new happiness within herself. This story shows how people in Western culture often get their priorities skewed when choosing how much to conform. It is vital to be able to conform to some of societies demands; conformity is a necessity in society; laws protect society's citizens and some agreement on how to behave is crucial. Too much conformity, however, chokes creativity and individuality.
Viewing Vitus, a delightful film from Swiss filmmaker Fredi M. Murer, will extend this idea. This tale of nonconformity and decisions is concocted of a mix of languages, characters, and talents that add to the complexity and makes up strands of meaning that include the language of music as well as the language of interpersonal relationships. This is illustrated specifically in the bond between Vitus and his grandfather. This film is the only one that requires students to read subtitles, but as it is the final one in the unit, students should be ready.
Four-year-old Vitus is asked to play for his parents' friends at an party in their home. Sensing the attitudes of the adults, he begins by playing "Lightly Row," a beginner's piece, eliciting patronizing smiles from adults who don't expect much from him. After suckering them in, he quickly switches to Schumann's "Wild Rider" and enjoys the jaw-dropping reaction of the hitherto smug adults.
The relationship with his grandfather, played by the great Bruno Ganz, is not predicated on his musical abilities; his grandfather simply loves him. This unconditional love is what children need most. Parents want what is best for their children, and in pursuing this goal, some parents focus their energies on the child's future instead of enjoying him in the present and merely loving him. Vitus' parents, excited about his future, treat him as a commodity. They love him, but to the child it appears that they love his gift, not him.
Soon, pressure to excel in school is applied to the boy "genius." What recourse does a child have when this kind of pressure is put on him? Does he step up to the plate? Dig in and refuse? Run away? What is the best solution? Vitus decides not to conform but he doesn't do it through refusal like Millicent plans to do when "Initiation" comes to a close. Instead, he stages an accident, leading his parents and doctors to believe that he suffered some brain trauma. He exhibits memory problems. He can't zip through algebra anymore. He doesn't play the piano anymore. He has become a normal boy.
Vitus' parents are at a loss. Not knowing how to deal with an average child causes a lot of tension in the house. Vitus' time with his grandfather, however, is unchanged because his gift had nothing to do with the relationship. One day, the grandfather discovers Vitus playing the piano brilliantly and Vitus' secret is out.
While Millicent's story stops at the moment of deciding she will not conform, the longer tale of Vitus allows the viewer to see just how it will all play out. After staging his accident and achieving his goal of being a normal boy, Vitus begins to enjoy life without the pressure to perform. He runs across his former babysitter and reconnects with her. She still thinks of him as a child but he has outdistanced her intellectually in the intervening years. He keeps up the charade of having been injured in the "fall" while coming up with a business plan to make himself and his grandfather rich-the stock market. Vitus' decision to drop out of society to avoid the demands of his talent is one of self-preservation; he cannot and is not willing to compromise his childhood, his time, his goals and desires to fulfill some imagined kind of prophecy for his future success as a world-famous concert pianist.
How much conformity is indicated in any given situation? Of course, the answer will be "it depends." More important is whether or not conformity is good or bad; one should consider the comfort zone of the individual and when the conformity is helpful or necessary and when it is an infringement.
The triumphant close to the film celebrates the reemergence of Vitus into the music world. He has chosen to become a world class musician rather than being nudged into it. He has reconnected with his early crush, and although grandfather has passed away, Vitus' affinity for the man endures beyond his death.
Reflection
All of the stories and films have overlapping themes and students can identify these as they mingle and move to the forefront throughout each story, demonstrating how the elements of Identity, Fidelity and Conformity (under the umbrella of the Individual and Society) occur and intersect within the stories and films. At this point, students will have a wealth of examples from which to work. They will be able to write their own stories with the overall theme of the Individual and Society and can also incorporate or iris in on one of the three more particular facets of this broad theme. In addition to the intensive viewing guides provided in the appendices, information about several additional films follows for those whose studies may lie elsewhere geographically. All the films and their directors and countries will be offered below.
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