Harrison Bergeron was taken away from his parents by the Handicapper General's men when he was fourteen years old. It is explained in the story that this is because amendments to the Constitution have made it illegal for anyone to be anything other than equal to his fellow men—and Harrison is certainly not equal. Indeed, he is above average in various particulars, which means that he has to wear heavier handicaps than anyone else has ever had. He is "an athlete" and "a genius." He is also extremely handsome. Consequently, he wears a pair of earphones intended to handicap him mentally; he also wears glasses with very thick lenses. He is meant to carry 300 pounds of scrap metal to handicap him physically, and to prevent him from appearing handsome, he has to wear a red rubber ball on his nose (like a clown) and keep his eyebrows shaved off. Because his teeth are white and even, he must also cover these with random black tooth-caps to offset the even appearance.
Harrison Bergeron lives in a dystopian world in which diversity is effectively outlawed. No one is allowed to be smarter, prettier, more talented, or more handsome than anyone else. Everyone must be formally handicapped by the government to drag them down to a general level of mediocrity. The law is rigidly enforced, and those deemed to have an unfair natural advantage are forced to wear handicaps to make them less smart, less pretty, less handsome, or talented.
Harrison is considered a triple threat to society as he's smart, good-looking, and athletic. As he is so intelligent, he is forced to wear large headphones emitting loud radio sounds that disrupt this thoughts; his good looks are obscured by a fake nose and black caps for this teeth; and his natural athleticism is compromised by three hundred pounds of metal weighing down his body.
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