1984 George Orwell Conflict Analysis

The author of the novel 1984 utilizes the element of conflict to portray the evils of psychological manipulation amongst characters. Throughout the novel, the author George Orwell uses the conflicts between The Party and the people which this particular variety of government controls. An example of this would be the external conflict between Big Brother and Winston because he likes to express himself in his diary and have human interaction. However, for people in this society this is not possible since, “Big Brother is watching you” (Orwell 3) constantly. Despite the fact that expression is not allowed it is only human nature to have an interest towards those topics, creating Winston’s grievances with The Party. The constant overviewing from

the government from language to history also confuses its people which keeps them in the dark in regards to any content that The Party considers prohibited. Additionally, this type of psychological manipulation causes people to become paranoid and have emotional repression because there is a chance of being punished for having an interest in prohibited topics such as family, political views, or expression of individuality. These consequences show the evils of the government and their true intentions since The Party is corrupted and does not want Oceania's citizens to change the current way that life is set up; without freedom.
In addition to conflictbewteen Winston and The Party, there is conflict between Winston and and himself about his decision concerning Julia which highlights the evils of psychological manipulation since he is unable to trust her. When Winston first meets Julia he stays to himself, however one day at work she gives him a note saying “I love you”. This note encourages an interaction to happen between the two, however, Winston does not know if he can trust her for fear that he will be punished for telling her anything compromising. When Winston is talking to Julia he admits to her “[...]I imagined that you had something to do with the Thought Police” (Orwell 152). This internal conflict between Winston and himself that he confesses to Julia is a result of the control from the government emphasizing the negative impact it has on people due to the lack of trust Winston now has. The “Thought Police” which Winston mentions are a tool that The Party uses to instill fear in its society's citizens. Winston has to decide for himself internally whether or not she can be trusted because the fear of getting in trouble for expressing himself looms over his decisions. While these conflicts are all between characters, the root of most conflicts in the novel are based on the controlling tactics and beliefs which restrict its citizens, accentuating its evil methods of psychological manipulation through its effects.

Similar to the novel 1984 by George Orwell, the current event at Berkeley University shares a common theme of censorship. In the novel, the method in which people are censored is the Thought Police, whereas in Berkeley, it is through the deplatforming of speakers, however, they both are a form of censorship. Censorship in the novel is very present in the lives of the characters since the Thought Police control the actions and expression of all citizens. When the Thought Police are first introduced, their actions were described, revealing that, “[...]they watched everybody all the time. But at any rate they could plug in your wire whenever they wanted to. You had to live—did live, from habit that became instinct—in the assumption that every sound you made was overheard, and, except in darkness, every movement scrutinized" (Orwell 2). The Thought Police are the ones who physically stop people from doing what the government prohibits and often do this by spying on people to gain information about their actions and enforce the laws of The Party. In this dystopian novel, since The Thought police are known for spying, the idea gets in people's heads and then tend to follow laws because they are paranoid that they are being watched even in that case if they are not. This is similar to the event of restricting freedom of speech at Berkeley because in both scenarios there is censorship. Due to this, people are not able to express their opinions or beliefs because in both scenarios have people, either the government or rioters, who do not want certain people to think freely.
While different in respect to the society in which the current event at Berkley University is based, it is closely related to the censorship in the novel 1984.

Earlier this month in April, student protestors rioted at Berkley University because they did not want certain Conservative guest speakers to be able to give speeches at the university due to some of the speakers comments being inappropriate. According to the nonprofit organization committed to defending civil liberties named The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE), "One worrisome trend undermining open discourse in the academy is the increased push by some students and faculty to 'disinvite' speakers with whom they disagree from campus appearances" (The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education). While the protesters were practicing their first amendment right to petition, the students were infringing upon the Conservative speakers freedom of speech which is unconstitutional. Just because the protesters may have disagreed with the speakers comments, does not mean that theys hould have prevented them from being able to express them. This is similar to the novel 1984 because the protestors controlled and censored what was able to be said at Berkeley University, just like how in the novel the Thought Police controlled what citizens said just because The Party disagreed with certain perspectives and didn’t want certain information to be

shared.

http://www.businessinsider.com/list-of-disinvited-speakers-at-colleges-2016-7

The novel 1984 by George Orwell is connected to the image by the International Conference on Internet Services Technology and Information Engineering ISTIE which depicts a woman surrounded by the technology. Both of these connect to the topic of omnipresence. In the novel 1984, the citizens controlled by The Party are surrounded with the omnipresence of Big Brother. Even from the beginning of the novel, “Big Brother is watching you” (Orwell 3) is something that all the citizens of Oceania know and understand. People are constantly watched in their own homes with video surveillance and prohibited from having freedom of thought by the Thought Police. Big Brother who is the forefront of The Party is constantly around people making sure that they don’t do anything that The Party does not approve of. Even the words “Big Brother is Watching You” is plastered around the city for people to see. Big Brother is what controls people and is constantly surrounding the citizens of Oceania.
The image depicting a woman looking at several screens showing different forms of media which are surrounding her and controlling what she is doing. The media and technology control what people do because they are so consumed in seeing what is online they are not actually experiencing life for themselves. In comparison to Big Brother, the media is similar in the way that it is omnipresent and constantly around people. In many ways, the image below is a representation of just how much technology and media controls the daily lives of people today. This is similar to 1984 because in the novel people are controlled with the omnipresence of Big Brother, just how people in the present day are controlled with the omnipresence of media/technology. Overall, the novel 1984 connects to the image from International Conference on Internet Services Technology and Information Engineering ISTIE because they both connect to the theme of ubiquitous factors in people's lives.