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How does Orwell vividly convey the importance of control in 1984
Essay on The Surveillance Society
How does Orwell vividly convey the importance of control in 1984
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The novel 1984 by George Orwell, the protagonist Winston lives in a futuristic society where the government constantly watches over its people, forcing them into blindly believe in everything it does. In the book, there is no such thing as privacy and freedom, because Big Brother is always watching over its citizens. There are many parallels that can be seen between the methods of social control in 1984 and our modern society. To begin with, the Party of Oceania tries to brainwash people into believing in what they say. Although this is done very discreetly, the fact that people with radical thoughts disappear and return with completely different behaviors, or do not return at all, has become a normal event. The Party uses fear and torture …show more content…
as an effective way to force its beliefs onto its people. “In the end the Party would announce that two and two made five, and you would have to believe it,” (80). According to this quote, the Party is controlling the mind of all citizens and if 2+2=5 was what the Party said, they would have to believe it. The problem is that the citizens of Oceania believed that they have been in a war with Eurasia, even though they had just become allies four years ago. Something else they would lie about is the quality of food and drink was just right, but the truth is that it was horrible, lacking the necessary nutrients. This is similar to the real world in the sense that some information are held confidential by the government and cannot be leaked to the public. In addition, the media is also becoming a source of “fake news,” and it is getting harder for the people to identify the truth. Everyone will believe anything that is said on social media because since this is modern society, news will usually be on social media first before anyone talks about it. Secondly, in Oceania, there is a feature called a telescreen. Although it may not be turned on, it allows the government to monitor each and every move of all citizens. This shows that in Oceania, there is no such thing as freedom or privacy. It monitors everyone’s action and speech, completely controlling every aspect of human existence. There is no way of escaping because the telescreen is in every street and every corner. The people have to be cautious with everything they do or say in their own house, since they would be captured immediately if they make a slip. Social media is similar to a telescreen because things they say and post online are being monitored. Furthermore, many websites can track the user’s activities and record data on him or her. Even if the person may have deleted what they posted online, it will not be deleted forever because everyone can find a way to bring it back. Television is somewhat different because it is something citizens can enjoy and watch without being worried that someone is watching them. The telescreen is important in Oceania because it is something to get into people’s heads and control them. It takes away their right to privacy and forces them to live in fear every day. Lastly, the Party made the children into mini Thought police to report their parents’ crimes.
The Party turned young kids into spies to betray their own parents. This helps the government as they now have an additional force of watchers (133). This is disconnection of love. An example is when Mr. Parson was in a jail cell for committing a crime, but he was proud of his daughter. It is strange how parents are proud of their own child for being able to arrest them because, but this is also due to the manipulations of the government. It is devastating to be a young child in Oceania because they would not be able to have a normal life, aside from the fact that the government will honor them as a hero who helped protect their nation. The children start at a very young age, since they can easily be turned into obedient little party members. A real world example would be an undercover cop because they act as if they were normal people walking on the streets but, they are actually watching the citizens every move to see if they are causing any trouble. The undercover thought police may relate to the mini thought police because the citizens do not know who is undercover so they just had to be careful with everything they do or say. Therefore, the concept of family has totally been destroyed in Oceania. In the real world, family is still one of the most important values in life, and it is highly treasured. Family members give each other love and protect each other from disasters, instead of working against each other for the sake of the
government. In conclusion, there are many parallels that can be seen between the methods of social control in 1984 and our modern society, as it shows that our world and Oceania are two completely different societies. There are certain similarities between the world in 1984 and the real world, such as the methods of monitoring people implemented by the government and the loss of free will. However, there are many drastic differences, such as the value of family and the extent to which the government spies on people. Fans thought George Orwell was insane for wanting to add brainwashing into the book because it crazy to think that the government can control the mind and body of a human. In the book 1984, The Party wants us have the 5 Senses which is think, see, hear, feel, and touch to everything they want. That is why everything escalated really quickly in our society.
Imagine being watched by your own government every single second of the day with not even the bathroom, bedroom, kitchen and all the above to yourself. George Orwell’s 1984 is based on a totalitarian government where the party has complete access over the citizens thoughts to the point where anything they think they can access it, and control over the citizens actions, in a sense that they cannot perform what they really want to or else Big Brother, which is the name of the government in the book 1984, will “take matters into their own hands.” No one acts the same when they are being watched, as they do when they are completely alone.
Instead, the Oceania government brainwashed their citizens into believing everything they had to say. The citizens of Oceania were convinced that Big Brother was always watching, the Thought Police could at any moment in time catch you for thinking something unlawful, or knowing there was nothing illegal, but if caught it would end in death or twenty-five years in a forced labor camp. 9. The Oceania society was not allowed to have thoughts or even opinions knowing their government has the capability of punishing them.
...ntrols the citizens’ emotions, everyone under their control becomes predictable. Citizens not only become predictable though emotional control but psychological control as well. Through altering the past and eliminating the ability for people to effectively express thoughts and opinions the government is successful in employing their tactics to create a perfect subservient homogeneous society. With the inability to have individual thoughts, beliefs, emotions, and experiences, one cannot be unique. As shown, the manipulation Big Brother exerts takes away the individualism of the citizens of Oceania and leaves them as nothing but obedient servants of the Party.
In 1984 by George Orwell, the government of Big Brother is overbearing and all knowing which crushes freedom of speech and free thought. Big Brother easily edits history and tries to convince people that reality is something different. The main character, Winston can remember what life was like before Big Brother and when he first comes into power. The memory of his father being vaporized also serves as a catalyst for his hatred of Big Brother and leads him...
Human beings are renowned for both their benevolent and malevolent qualities. However, when it comes to a human being and their self, it is a different story. It varies among individuals, some of them are exceptionally confident with themselves whereas others suffer from low-esteem. The way a person perceives themselves determines how they apply their personal beliefs. However, in many cases, when a person is presented with a dilemma, they will often try not to adapt to a situation and attempt to keep their character. Even when going through intense pressure, individuals will attempt keep their personalities in order stay true to themselves. George Orwell, a prominent English literary
Imagine living in a world where one’s whole life had been planned out for them by the Government; a life in which there were no surprises simply because everyday consisted of the same thing. 1984 written by George Orwell can be an archetype for this kind of world. Living in a totalitarian society, Winston Smith is a low ranked member of the ruling party in London. Winston is constantly watched by the party and had little to no privacy whatsoever. Everywhere he goes, Winston sees face of the party’s leader, called Big Brother. Winston goes through the same motions everyday, secretly hating the party and hoping that there are people around him that aren’t ignorant, but feel the same way as him. If people are ignorant and blindly follow what the
...as long as the party exists.” In other words, as long as the Party exists, its citizens of Oceania will always be watched. Again, this shows how the outer party is marginalized due to the lack of knowledge they have about their government and the lack of power they have. By setting the atmosphere of Oceania to be fearful and full of paranoia, Orwell demonstrates the inner party’s ability to silence the outer party and show ultimate control over them.
The 1984 community provided many ways to surveill its citizens, one being The Thought Police The Thought Police were undercover operatives who hid amongst everyday citizens, and could be found at any given time or place, to monitor people for thoughtcrimes against the party. The problem with this was the fact that “A few among of the Thought Police moved always among them, spreading false rumors and marking down and eliminating the few individuals who were judged capable of being dangerous” (Orwell 62). The people of Oceania knew that Thought Police were always around, but could never know which certain individual or individuals were actually one of them. This caused them to be suspicious of everyone and focus on not committing any violations. Along with telescreens, “You had to live - did live from habitat that became instinct - in the assumption that every sound you made was overheard, and except in darkness, every movement scrutinized” (Orwell 6). Although not every single citizen can be watched at every moment, they never know exactly when they are being watched. Therefore causing most of them to always follow the rules especially when every...
George Orwell’s dystopian novel 1984 follows the psychological journey of main character Winston. Winston lives in a utopian society called Oceania. There, the citizens are constantly monitored by their government coined “Big Brother” or “The Party”. In Oceania, there is no form of individuality or privacy. Citizens are also coerced to believe everything and anything the government tells them, even if it contradicts reality and memory. The goal of Big Brother is to destroy individual loyalties and make its citizenry only loyal to the government. In Orwell's novel 1984, he uses Winston's psychological journey to stress the dangers of individuality in a totalitarian regime because it can result in death. Winston’s overwhelming desire to rebel
Ultimately, common ideas found in the novel 1984, totalitarianism, surveillance, and lack of privacy are also ubiquitous in modern society and government. Big Brother and modern day government have been able to control its citizens through surveillance equipment, and fear all for a little more power. There is much to learn from such an undesirable form of society much like the one of Oceania in 1984. Examining Big Brother government closely, alarming connections can be made to real-world government actions in the United States and the cruel world within Orwell's book.
People hear about political issues all over the news and form their own opinions on them, but are they really deciding beliefs for themselves or are they just believing whatever the media tells them? Because of the modern day media biased, many people do not think independently, even when they think they are. They merely believe the lies the media feeds them and do not research the matter themselves to get an accurate idea of what is truly going on and how the control of information will impact the world around them. Because of people’s tendency to accept any piece of information that gets shoved down their throats, the US is slowly digging itself into the same government-controlled, no-freedom world as in the book 1984 by George Orwell.
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.
“"Propaganda is as powerful as heroin, it surreptitiously dissolves all capacity to think” by Gil Courtemanche connects to the sad fact of using propaganda as a deadly weapon to feed people with false information and stop them from thinking. George Orwell’s novel, 1984 describes a totalitarian dystopia society where the Party is constantly brainwashing its citizens with information that is beneficial to its own rights. On the opposite side people are working for the party just like dominated slaves for their masters without knowing of what’s going on. But, in order for the party to achieve this goal they have to use different techniques of propaganda in Oceania to create fear for people so that they can obey the rules. The use of propaganda
The novel 1984 by George Orwell presents the readers an image of a totalitarian society that explores a world of control, power, and corruption. The main idea of government control presents itself in the novel by protecting and listening to the people of Oceania. However, Orwell suggests giving too much power to the government is a mistake because eventually the decisions they make will not be about the people anymore but rather themselves. In 1984, the power and corruption the party has is overwhelming for the people. There are no ways around the beliefs of the Party, the party attempts to control and eventually destroy any mental or physical resistance against their beliefs. The agenda for the party is to obtain mind control over its people and force them to adore their leader. The methods the Party uses to achieve its goal are: the use of constant propaganda and surveillance, the rewriting of history, and Room 101.
The struggle for complete domination and power has been apparent in the past, most notably when Germany and Russia conflicted to maintain control in World War 2. In 1984, written by George Orwell, a totalitarian society seeks unlimited power by constantly monitoring it citizens. This monitoring was used to manipulate the minds and alter the thoughts of the people of Oceania. The population of Oceania is led to support ideas, which they do not truly believe. The lack of privacy and personal belief in citizens induces the idea of “doublethink”, where two contradictory ideas are both accepted. This is utilized by George Orwell to demonstrate political power and dominance. The Party forces the people to believe that “WAR IS PEACE, FREEDOM IS SLAVERY,