In the works of Groundhog Day, by Ramis, 1984, by Orwell, Antigone, by Sophocles, and To Kill a Mockingbird, by Lee, the authors utilize diction and repetition to reveal that one person can make a difference in the world through their use of power, leadership, justice, and dignity.
Each person in society has the power to negatively or positively affect others around themselves with their words or actions. For example, in the film Groundhog Day, directed by Harold Ramis, Phil Conners, a weather reporter, relives Groundhog day several times. When Conners realizes he is reliving Groundhog day, he becomes frustrated and panicked which causes him to smash his alarm clock. As Conners relives Groundhog day, he becomes prideful, sloth, envious, greedy, and lustful which impacts others negatively. Conners attitude changes when he realizes his actions can positively impact people around him. After his attitude changes, Conners saves a child
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from falling, saves a man from choking, and fixes a flat tire for elderly ladies which causes Conners and those around him to become happy. One person can have an extreme impact on several others. An individual's responsibility is to be the best you can be by helping others around you. Leaders posses influence over their citizens which allows them to impact their lives.
Leaders are often feared when they abuse their leadership and status which causes their citizens to become silent. For example, in the novel 1984, by George Orwell, the author criticizes totalitarian governments through diction and repetition which conveys a harsh tone that demonstrates that totalitarian governments manipulate citizens by forcing false facts into their minds and conditioning them to always question their own thoughts which leads citizen to become blind to the truth. For example, “...twisting everything he said” (Orwell). The strong diction of “twisting” connotes a distorted shape and denotes pain and change of ideas which reveals that leaders sometimes destroy the distinction between memory and facts which eliminates the citizens ability to see the truth. When citizens are unsure of their own knowledge, they do not speak up against corrupt leaders. Leaders can change society by positively or negatively with their decisions and
actions. When a man admits to his faults, he should do so humbly. In the play, “Antigone” by Sophocles, Creon enforces an unjust law which causes conflict when Antigone, his niece, breaks the law because of her morals. Sophocles utilizes diction to reveal that man should humbly admit to his mistakes because it is morally right. When Teiresias attempts to convince Creon to correct his mistakes for his own good, he states, “A good man yields when he knows his course is wrong and repairs the evil” (232). The diction of “good” and “evil” connotes excellence and wicked but denote righteousness and sinfulness which demonstrates contrast which creates a didactic tone that demonstrates that morals must be held for justice to be accomplished. One person’s kindness can impact the others around them. In the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, by Lee, Atticus, a lawyer, states “It’s a sin to kill a mockingbird” (Lee). Mockingbirds cause no harm, so they do not deserve to be harmed. Although Mockingbirds symbolize innocent people, they are still harmed. Atticus teaches his children that they should not harm the innocent because it is a sin.
The novel, 1984, written by George Orwell, gives readers an insight to a possible frightening future where one government has complete and definite control of the people. But “control” might not be the term to describe such a rule. The Party dominates every aspect of life. There is not a single thing that is not under the Party’s rule. Feelings, history, language, statistics, and even human nature are submissive to the Party. They corrupt the mind so much that there is no longer a line that separates truth from a lie. Slogans are repeated through telescreens on a daily basis so the people are gradually forced to believe in illogical statements. Upon first glance, it may seem that a 1984 society is not even imaginable in the world we live in currently. But is it really logical to make such an assumption so quickly? Do we know that what we see on the news and read in our history textbooks is completely accurate? The Internet is one of the most powerful technologies our world has, consisting of an insurmountable amount of information, which is not always what it seems. Ultimately, there are so many things that we do not know, some of which is being held a secret from us. Modern day society shockingly has evidence of a transformation into a menacing 1984 society because of similar government actions and abuse of advanced technology.
George Orwell’s novel, 1984, is a dystopian literary text that illuminates the tenets of totalitarian and authoritarian governance in most areas where the leaders seek total loyalty and near hero worship. It was published in 1949, but has since remained relevant because its details promoted authoritarian political constructs and the political leadership concepts that evolved in the globe over time. Set at Oceania province in Airstrip One, formerly known as Great Britain, the book displays an omnipresent government that institutes constant state surveillance on the people that it suspects to be a threat to its regime and agitators of rebellion. It infringes on human rights
Martin Luther King and Gandhi are one of the few people who changed society, and stood on their own. They were individuals who didn’t worry what other people thought. They decided to bring a change in the society. King and Gandhi fought for their own rights and freedom. Lots of people get influenced by a person and make him as a leader, So he can do all the work for them while others were lazy. So this shows that a person can change a society. In “To kill a mocking bird” by Harper lee, in the county of Macomb, Atticus a lawyer defending a black man at that point of the time is changing the society. So lee clearly sends this message to his readers by using Atticus and some other characters in To Kill Mockingbird.
One person in To Kill a Mockingbird who radiated hope for a small town, Morgan Freeman. This gracious man did not like the fact that this community had separate proms based on race. Freeman took initiative and proposed an idea to a High school in Charleston, Mississippi, the proposal was he would pay for an integrated prom if they have one. Freeman’s thoughts about separate proms, “One of the things that surprised me most was that they have separate proms and separate homecoming queens- one white, one black. How stupid can that be?”(¨Prom Night in Mississippi Quotes). Morgan Freeman hated the fact that there was still separate proms and used his platform to change a community norm for the better. While Morgan Freeman used his power to make a difference the two lieutenants used their power to physically go head to head with the enemies above Pearl Harbor. These two guys did not think twice about flying up and putting their life at great risk because it was there job to fight, serve our country, and they knew it was the right action to take. Two people can make a big difference in a tragic situation, “...the second lieutenants had shot down at least six fighters and bombers between them” (Get History 4). It takes a lot of courage for people like the two flyers and Morgan Freeman to take initiative even when the outcome is not in their
The novel 1984, by George Orwell, made me paranoid. It made me suspicious of our government's power and intentions. I became aware of the potential manipulation which the government could impose upon us. I came to see that the people I believe to be wholly dedicated to the well-being of society, the people I rely so heavily on to provide protection and security have the power to betray us at any given time. I realised that in my naivety I had gravely overlooked the powerful grip government has over society, and what it can do with that power.
Although they are critiqued, some people do whatever they can do to improve our society. In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus Finch proves himself to be a hero. This small-town lawyer exhibits bravery, strength, and modesty when faced with objection during Maycomb’s quarrel for justice. Without a doubt, Atticus proves that anybody can stand for what he or she believes is right.
Many citizens today are truly unaware of how much of their private lives are made public. With new technological advances, the modern democratic government can easily track and survey citizens without their knowledge. While the government depicted in 1984 may use gadgets such as telescreens and moderators such as the Thought Police, these ideas depicted can be seen today in the ever evolving democratic government known to be the "equivalent" of the people's voice. Orwell may have depicted a clearer insight into modern day surveillance than one may have imagined from this "fictional" novel. Furthermore, a totalitarianism based government is a dictatorship, in which the dictator is not limited by constitutional laws or further opposition.
While the society in Brave New World refrains from lethal methods of repression, the government in George Orwell’s 1984 build their power off of fear. Throughout the novel, the government holds daily gatherings in which citizens are shown the enemies of state and is always ended with the phrase “Big Brother is watching you” (Orwell et al). This alone demonstrates the government’s implementation of fear on its own people. The notion that the government is monitoring your every move creates an atmosphere of anxiety and oppression. Not only by displaying their ability to monitor their citizens, the government uses aggressive and almost always lethal methods to rid society of nonconformists. For “criminals”, or enemies of the state, ...
These examples display the inevitable fact that all over the world subtle but significant events are taking place that appear to signify a shifting toward a totalitarian government, much like the one present in 1984. This is extremely disturbing because most people will agree that the life lived by the characters in 1984, is not one of any value. Though they are “protected” from several of the problems that many of the free world citizens and officials face, they have no control over their thoughts or actions. This leads to unbearable uniformity. It is chilling to know that though George Orwell’s book was written as fiction, portions of it are becoming factual.
Many students believe that Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird displays social issues in early America. In this time standing against common customs was unacceptable, a violation of society. People believe that today courage has overcome adversity that was displayed in early America. Courage is the common subject of To Kill a Mockingbird, which allows Lee’s novel to defy the changing times of humanity. These morals are bound to the “impartiality” and “fairness” taught to people as children, but become unavoidably invisible though selfish actions. The characters in To Kill a Mockingbird express audacity along with resilience in the face of cowardice.
George Orwell’s intent in the novel 1984 is to warn society about the results of a controlling and manipulative government by employing mood, conflict, and imagery.
Eventually, the lack of privacy and freedom leads to a suppression of people’s thinking. In 1984, people’s thinking was controlled by lies, invented stories and false information. The stories of the past are all altered and the information is constantly changing every day without any sign of change. The party uses propaganda as a deadly weapon to control its citizens’ minds.
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.
If one were to choose to be either feared or loved, their best bet would be to instill fear in their constituents. A loved, weak leader may be usurped by those with less pure intentions. However, one that is feared will have a much greater, lasting effect on its people and/or followers, scaring them into order. With...
Corruption of power describes the improbity or abuse of entrusted power by a totalitarian government for self-interest. In the novel 1984 by George Orwell, the theme of power corruption is demonstrated through the authoritarian rule of Big Brother and corrupted characters withstand in the novel. First, “doublethink” is a motif in the novel representing corruption of power of the oppressive party by controlling reality. Orwell introduces the concept of doublethink through the quote “morality while laying claim to it, to believe that democracy was impossible and that the Party was the guardian of democracy, to forget” (Orwell, 36) Doublethink symbolizes the abuse of power through massive mental manipulation within Oceania. With absolute power held in hand, the party coerces people into doublethink