George Orwell Satire

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What makes an author great? It is the impact their books leave behind. George Orwell had accomplished such a feat: years after publication in 1949 and Orwell’s death in 1950, 1984 has hit the list of bestsellers in 2016. Orwell’s masterful use of satire to criticize an aspect of society is one of many reasons for the consistent resurgences back to relevancy. Satire is defined as the use of various literary devices to expose and denounce human vices. In this case, Orwell is denouncing the totalitarian governments as observed in Germany and Russian because it could reduce humans to unfeeling autobots. Orwell successfully warns his readers of the dangers of an unchecked totalitarian government on humanity through powerful satire. Orwell’s message …show more content…

Winston, the main character, is the only citizen the reader knows of that has free thought and rebellious to the extent that he wishes to join an underground group dedicated to overthrowing Big Brother; Julia is somewhat similar to him, but has no intention of overthrowing the Party except to make the best of their situation. It is therefore ironic that Winston, who had despised Big Brother with his entire being, became a victim of the system he tried so hard to fight against and eventually admitted to himself that he loved Big Brother. This illustrates an extreme version of the dangers of totalitarianism, how inaction by the people led to this government, and now the Party can engage in whatever activities it chooses in order to maintain their way of life. This satire is successful because Winston, who from the very beginning, was rebellious against the Party and the reader is constantly reminded of his hatred for Big Brother, freely admits to himself that he had won: he loved Big Brother. The reader is left with a feeling of dismay, that it is clear even the hero of the novel cannot overthrow such a government, therefore further highlighting his message. The irony is therefore successful in warning the readers of such dangers in their

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