“Harrison Bergeron”
By Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
Teacher’s Guide
This unit on “Harrison Bergeron” by Kurt Vonnegut Jr. includes a vocabulary worksheet, vocabulary quiz
and answer sheet, reading quiz and answer sheet, a PowerPoint presentation on the anatomy of the short
story with an introduction to dystopia literature and “Harrison Bergeron”, an assignment where students
find dystopian solutions to our societal problems, and lastly a short story writing assignment, complete
with an introductory Prezi presentation.
Anatomy of a Short Story and an Introduction to “Harrison Bergeron”
PowerPoint:
Short stories are a good way to sneak in some literature during your yearly curriculum, but they are a bit
different from reading poems or novels. The PowerPoint included in this unit guides students through the
special characteristics of the short story. From their convenient length to their abrupt endings, the
PowerPoint showcases just what makes a short story so special. Toward the end of the slide show,
students get acquainted with the dystopian genre so very popular these days. I included this section as
“Harrison Bergeron” definitely qualifies as a dystopian short story. This section of the PowerPoint will also
help with the Dystopian Solutions assignment later in the unit.
Discussion Questions:
Included in this package are five discussion questions. These could be used in small group or full class
discussions. They could also be used as short writing prompts.
Dystopian Solutions:
This assignment has students study a few of our own societal problems and then try to decide how a
dystopian society might try to solve the same problem. As students learned earlier, dystopian stories are
defined by a plot line where a society has gone to extremes to try to solve a societal issue. These types of
stories are usually all about controlling human behavior, taking away the choice to go against the powers
that be. In that vein, students will try their hand at being the “powers that be” in a dystopian world trying
to solve the same problems we currently face. This assignment allows students a more in-depth study of
the story itself and of the dystopian genre. It can be done as groups or individually, and if you choose, this
assignment can easily be worked into a presentation about how their dystopian societies would function. I
chose a few societal issues, but I’ve also included the original Word document so that you may choose
different societal problems as well.
Writing Assignment:
Armed with knowledge of what makes a short story a short story and the special characteristics of a
dystopia, students can now take on a short story writing assignment. Vonnegut’s short story is more like a
vignette—a snapshot of what his world looks like. Ask students to pick one of the many dystopian
societies they’ve created during the Dystopian Solutions assignment and have them create a similar story,
snapshot-style, giving their reader a quick look into their worlds. Included in this unit is a Prezi
presentation that introduces this writing assignment. Unfortunately, the Prezi file is too large for a TpT
download, but you can access it online and make your own copies of it by following this link:
http://prezi.com/f-mycdzzgqwb/?utm_campaign=share&utm_medium=copy&rc=ex0share
Common Core Standards:
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.9-10.3 Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using
effective technique, well-chosen details, and well-structured event sequences.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.9-10.3d Use precise words and phrases, telling details, and sensory language to
convey a vivid picture of the experiences, events, setting, and/or characters.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.9-10.10 Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research,
reflection, and revision) and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of tasks,
purposes, and audiences.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.9-10.10 By the end of grade 9, read and comprehend literature, including
stories, dramas, and poems, in the grades 9-10 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as
needed at the high end of the range.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.8.10 By the end of the year, read and comprehend literature, including stories,
dramas, and poems, at the high end of grades 6–8 text complexity band independently and proficiently.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.9-10.2 Determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyze in detail its
development over the course of the text, including how it emerges and is shaped and refined by specific
details.