Sam Johnson
Mrs. Franz
English 10 P.6
7 March 2016
Sophomore Research Paper (Rough Draft)
In the novel 1984 by George Orwell, a character known as Winston lives in a complete Totalitarianism community in London. A Totalitarianism community is one that a ruler, or group of rulers, controls all aspects of people 's personal and public lives. In 1984, Winston struggles to follow and obey the government’s orders and is constantly afraid that the ministry of truth (like a police department) will come and bust down his door in the middle of the night. Until one day they do. They take him away to a special place and when he comes back he is a different person. Ironically, while Orwell wrote the book, he lived in a time when a totalitarianism
George Orwell published 1984 “during the reign of Russian leader Joseph Stalin...who was proving to be a cruel and violent dictator” (Stanley 245). Joseph Stalin can be easily distinguished as the Big Brother in 1984, “Big Brother seemed to tower up, an invincible, fearless protector, standing like a rock against the hordes of Asia...the hostile figure melted into the face of Big Brother, black-haired, black-moustachio 'd, full of power and mysterious calm, and so vast that it almost filled up the screen” (Orwell 16). Big Brother, in this case, is the ruler of the party, the leader of the totalitarian community Winston lives in. It is unbelievably similar to Joseph Stalin in the Soviet Union which George Orwell was witnessing the horrors of everyday. Another similar aspect of the Soviet Union and the Party in 1984, was Independence or the feeling of being free because it didn 't exist. In the Soviet Union, absolutely “No one, of course, at this time thought of independence. The nationalists demanded respect for the economic interests of the nation, and above all promotion of the national culture and language” (Kenez 231). This is an important part of the Soviet Union’s history. The future looked so dark, so morbid, that people saw no future. This fact was accepted as life in the Union, as it was accepted in 1984. One of the most famous quotes in 1984 refers to
All competing pleasures will be destroyed. But always—do not forget this, Winston—always there will be the intoxication of power, constantly increasing and constantly growing subtler. Always, at every moment, there will be the thrill of victory, the sensation of trampling on an enemy who is helpless. If you want a picture of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face … forever” (Orwell
In “1984,” Orwell uses Winston to portray a single individual’s attempt to take action against a powerful government, culminating in his failure and subjugation. His individual efforts failed tremendously due to the overarching power of the Party to control every aspect of social life in Oceania. Orwell uses Winston’s deeply seated hatred of the Party to portray his views on power and social change. Winston’s actions show that even in the direst of situations ...
Every part of life is regimented and controlled, but the only crime is ‘thought crime’: independent thinking and individualism. Big Brother is the figurehead of the Inner Party, and throughout the book, it is heavily implied that he may not really exist. The people are divided into Inner Party members, who control the government, Outer Party members, who make up the middle class, and Proletarians, or Proles, who make up the uneducated lower class. He utilizes strong but vague descriptions of the world around Winston to hint at the state of the world without directly saying it. He describes a bright cold day, which seems to perfectly depict the world's bleak state in a sort of indirect way (Orwell, 1948).
Winston is arrested and taken to The Ministry of Love, another of the main government agencies. Here he is tortured physically by starvation and electrocution under the watch of The Party. He is manipulated physiologically by being conditioned to avoid torture by answering questions about his loyalty to The Party.
George Orwell creates a dark, depressing and pessimistic world where the government has full control over the masses in the novel 1984. The protagonist, Winston, is low-level Party member who has grown to resent the society that he lives in. Orwell portrays him as a individual that begins to lose his sanity due to the constrictions of society. There are only two possible outcomes, either he becomes more effectively assimilated or he brings about the change he desires. Winston starts a journey towards his own self-destruction. His first defiant act is the diary where he writes “DOWN WITH BIG BROTHER.” But he goes further by having an affair with Julia, another party member, renting a room over Mr. Carrington’s antique shop where Winston conducts this affair with Julia, and by following O’Brien who claims to have connections with the Brotherhood, the anti-Party movement led my Emmanuel Goldstein. Winston and Julia are both eventually arrested by the Thought Police when Mr. Carrington turns out to be a undercover officer. They both eventually betray each other when O’Brien conducts torture upon them at the Ministry of Love. Orwell conveys the limitations of the individual when it comes to doing something monumental like overthrowing the established hierarchy which is seen through the futility of Winston Smith’s actions that end with his failure instead of the end of Big Brother. Winston’s goal of liberating himself turns out to be hopeless when the people he trusted end up betraying him and how he was arbitrarily manipulated. It can be perceived that Winston was in fact concerned more about his own sanity and physical well-being because he gives into Big Brother after he is tortured and becomes content to live in the society he hated so much. Winston witnesses the weakness within the prole community because of their inability to understand the Party’s workings but he himself embodies weakness by sabotaging himself by associating with all the wrong people and by simply falling into the arms of Big Brother. Orwell created a world where there is no use but to assimilate from Winston’s perspective making his struggle utterly hopeless.
George Orwell’s haunting dystopian novel 1984 delves into the closely monitored lives of the citizens of Oceania as the Party tries to take control of society. In totalitarianism, propaganda and terrorism are ways of subjugation with a main goal: total obedience. He aimed to create a “what if” novel, what would happen if totalitarian regimes, such as the Nazis and Soviets, were to take over the world. If totalitarianism were to happen, the leader would be the brain of the whole system. Orwell emphasizes the theme of individualism versus collective identity through Winston, the protagonist, and his defiance to the Party and Big Brother, with a frightening tone, surreal imagery and a third person limited point of view.
In Conclusion, 1984 is a novel that represents a called government. The government is taken over by “The Party”. The Party seeks to gain complete obedience from the people of Oceania. The main goal of the Party is to eliminate independent thought. The book is surrounded by psychological manipulation. Everything that happens throughout the book is government related and tends to manipulate some people of Oceania. Since their government is totalitarian they seek absolute power towards their people. This shows warning of what might happen id our government becomes too powerful, the party is trying to avoid any sort of rebellion from the people.
The conflict between Winston and Big Brother starts from the beginning of the novel when Winston begins to keep his secret diary about Big Brother. Winston Smith is a third-nine years old man who is a member of the 'outer-party'--the lower of the two classes. Winston works for the government in one of the four main government buildings called the ministry of Truth where his job is to rewrite history books in order for people not to learn what the past used to be like. Winston's occupation is the major factor which lets him to realize that Big Brother is restricting people's freedom. However, Winston keeps his complains about Big Brother and the party for his own secret because the party will not allow anyone keeping a rebellious thought. The tension between them gets serious when Big Brother becomes suspicious of Winston. Winston is therefore watched by O'Brien, an intelligent execute at the 'Ministry of Truth', who is a member of the 'inner party'--the upper class. Without doubting Big Brother's trap, Winston shares his ideas with O'Brien. O'Brien mentions a gentleman named Emmanuel Goldstein whom he claims to know the leader of the rebels against the party. O'Brien also promises to help winston, and promises him a copy of Goldstein's book. But O'Brien betrays him as Big Brother has planned.
The novel 1984, written by George Orwell in 1949, details the life of a one Winston Smith and his constant, life long battle to defeat Big Brother. This dystopian vision of the future serves as a reminder to the reader that anything can happen, but it is up to humanity to shape what kind of future is wanted in the end. Although Orwell’s novel is rather convincing to the people of this time, it serves only as a warning to one of many outcomes that the world could face. This book was Orwell’s idea of how life could have ended up; had people not realized that there is always a way to change what we do not like in life. Through the author’s many literary techniques, he was able to weave in meaning and importance to simple everyday objects
Orwell explores the social impact of government through the means of Big Brother and how it affects social conformity. Big Brother is a character presented in the novel which exercises restriction and maximum control of the mass. Winston writes, “Down with the Big Brother” (Orwell 19). From the beginning of the novel, readers see Winston’s extreme disgust with the government.
The constant theme of betrayal in 1984 is being used by George Orwell to show how hopeless Winston’s struggle against the Totalitarian system is, giving the reader an idea of how bad this type of government is. The reader is introduced to this dark time and given hope in the form of the rebellious protagonist, Winston. However, the reader soon realises how hopelessly alone Winston is in his silent battle when they see that the government is against him, he has no support or allies, and that even his own mind can be turned against him. The message is clear and makes readers who live in a democracy happier with what they have.
George Orwell uses Winston to represent truth in a deceptive world in his novel 1984. In Oceania, Big Brother is the omnipotent and all powerful leader. Everything the government dictates is unquestionably true, regardless of prior knowledge. Even thinking of ideas that go against Big Brother’s regime, or thoughtcrime, is punishable by death. Winston serves as the dystopian hero, longing for freedom and change. Orwell uses Winston to emphasize the importance of individual freedoms, as they give us the ability to fulfillingly lead our respective lives.
In 1984, George Orwell presents an overly controlled society that is run by Big Brother. The protagonist, Winston, attempts to “stay human” in the face of a dehumanizing, totalitarian regime. Big Brother possesses so much control over these people that even the most natural thoughts such as love and sex are considered taboo and are punishable. Big Brother has taken this society and turned each individual against one another. Parents distrust their own offspring, husband and wife turn on one another, and some people turn on their own selves entirely. The people of Oceania become brainwashed by Big Brother. Punishment for any uprising rebellions is punishable harshly.
The year 1984 has long passed, but the novel still illustrates a possibility for the future of society. It still remains a powerful influence in all sorts of literature, music, and social theory. George Orwell envisioned a nightmarish utopia that could have very easily become a possibility in 1949 ? the year the novel was written. He managed to create such a realistic view of humanity?s future, that this story has been deemed timeless. There will always be the threat of totalitarianism, and at some moments civilization is only a step away from it. Orwell hated the thought of it, and 1984 shows that. From his work, readers who live in prevailing democratic society have a chance to consider about these very different political systems, democracy and totalitarianism.
Because of the people in our current society, life on Earth will never be like the one in 1984 by George Orwell, and the reader can see that through the experiences Winston went through compared to our real life. Winston experienced the control of the government how they regulated how people thought and acted, they predicted every single move someone made. Although there may be some persuasion in our society, we are all independent people who will have a different impact on the world. Our society does have rules and regulations, and we are watched in some public areas for safety but it is nowhere near the extremity of Big Brother. One can say that our society in the United States is nothing like the one in 1984
Works of dystopian fiction have served to display the dark side of human nature, the most common themes of this dark genre is oppression, poverty, and squalor. Though in most pieces of text written in this genre the protagonist often views the oppression as something wrong, and often find themselves trying to bring to light the true horrors of their way of life. In George Orwell’s novel 1984, the bureaucracy that controls society known as The Party, dehumanizes their citizens by constantly monitoring their actions, way of life, very thoughts, and manipulating their own history so that the government is seen as always right. Winston Smith, the protagonist of the novel has always found something wrong with their society, and often secretly resisted the common way of thinking. Winston illuminates the danger of totalitarianism and how it has the ability destroy mankind's most human qualities.