1984 And Technology

Today’s society is predicted as living in a world George Orwell envisioned in 1984. The system Orwell invented is compared to what the United States government is capable of doing. Government control of society is an essential subject due to the current mind set of the world today. In 1984, George Orwell represents how Big Brother is compared to today’s government, showing the consequences and dangers of a government with unlimited surveillance power.

“An average American citizen can be caught on camera more than 75 times a day.”(Crime Feed) Cameras are everywhere, from the time someone leaves their home to the time they arrive to work, and surveillance becomes a natural way of life. Today’s advance in technology has thrust the universe nearer to the world of Big Brother, a symbol in George Orwell’s novel 1984, written after World War 2 with foreshadows of the world’s technological future, and imitates the novel through the government’s abilities to spy on individuals. Orwell’s prediction for the year 1984 is faultless because it directs the future toward an imprisoned world through technology as today, although the novel was published in 1949. When Big Brother’s world and today are compared,

As the electronic eyes shrink in size, Big Brother grows even bigger. (Hancock 1995, 1) Cameras can turn into instruments of abuse, even to effectiveness of telescreens that did in Winston and many of his kind. The wired society is a creeping phenomenon because there are no regulations or laws to protect against video surveillance. (Hancock 1995, 2) Our poor character Winston was subject to a harsher type of surveillance than what has been seen, but with no regulation the possibilities are very real that a system that did the work on the people of Big Brother can exist in our society today. George Orwell amazingly portrayed a anti-utopian world in witch everyone was caught up by the strong possibility that there being watched, and if/when they foul up, there next in line to be reconditioned. Even Winston knew the great power of

“BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU”(Orwell 2), is a saying that surrounds society in the classic novel 1984. The author, George Orwell provides his audience with an abundant amount of themes throughout his writing. One very prominent one is Orwell’s psychological manipulation of his characters. As characters within this society are constantly surrounded by sayings such as, “WAR IS PEACE”, “FREEDOM IS SLAVERY”, and “IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH”(Orwell 4), Orwell shows the ultimate type of control within his characters. Orwell is able to achieve such psychological manipulation in his characters through physical control and the abundance of technology. Without Orwell’s use of telescreens, his characters would be able to have their

“Government exists to protect us from each other. Where government has gone beyond its limits is in deciding to protect us from ourselves”(Reagan). In the book, 1984, Winston recognizes the power the government has over the citizens of Oceania. The citizens lack privacy from the government. George Orwell warns society about a government with total control in 1984. Based on Dana Hawkin’s article, “Cheap Video Cameras Are Monitoring Our Every Move”, as well as Beech Etal’s, “The Other Side of the Great Firewall”, society may truly have something to fear in the form of surveillance and information manipulation.

In the novel 1984, George Orwell sets up a world whose citizens are forever under surveillance by the party. This forever surveillance and policy is illustrated through the concept of “Big Brother”, and the phrase “Big Brother is watching you”, which is continuous throughout the novel. This expression is advertized inside and out of Oceania as a remembrance to the citizens that they are being scrutinized. The Citizens of Oceania give into being observed out of fear of the party. In the real word, people are giving up their personal freedoms, and privacy allowing government surveillance to grow. The real word does not see this as a fear, but as a benefit. People are so consumed with the benefits and the convenience that technology has provided,

In America, surveillance cameras are set up in many public places and cell phones are subject to monitoring in order to ensure safety and prevent attacks on the country (Scaliger). This type of surveillance is present in 1984 where telescreens are placed on every wall and they are always watching, listening, and recording the actions and words of the citizens (Orwell 6). Rather than destroying the world, as it does in 1984, technology is used to build a better world that is cooperative and fair (“NSA

The late 20th century brought upon changes to the world that it should have seen coming; the world came to a turning point in many different aspects including new political bodies, privacy issues, violence, and most importantly, the power over the lives of the people increased. Many world-changing events that range from scientific breakthroughs to terrorism attacks change, oppress, and limit people in the world; and allow others to take advantage of the situation. These events deprive the people of their privacy, cause them to be effortlessly influenced, and absorb the lies in the world very easily. But this is nothing new as it was envisioned 51 years before the 21st century. Through George Orwell’s 1984 – which was written in 1949 – the reality the people of the world are shown and the reality that citizens are living in 1984 are slowly becoming one. The figure of Big Brother is an overpowering personification of control. His ways of acquiring and retaining that control to manipulate the lives of his people is very effective; it involves using various methods of mass indoctrination, propaganda, and fear.

Orwell’s 1984, paints the picture of a society that is gripped strictly in the hand of a totalitarian government. In this world, the government utilizes a complex surveillance system, known as “Big Brother”, to monitor the everyday activities of citizens. The cameras

Today, we are more able to express our thoughts and ideas. Technology is not bringing us closer to a world of Big Brother; it is instead being used more for ethical reasons and less for corruption such as the usage of technology in the classroom, the medical field, and the law enforcement. In the world of the novel, 1984, citizens are constantly being watched through technology.

“Big Brother is watching you” – the haunting phrase remains relevant today; however, it is modified to our society as “The government is watching you.” George Orwell’s impactful 1984 novel greatly emphasizes a dystopian civilization, in which a totalitarian government has complete control over every citizen. The novel, written in 1949, reveals profound political awareness for future generations to not impose such oppressive objectives. The society of 1984 reflects many similarities to our society today in the United States such as mass surveillance, enemy-changing wars, and the influence of the press and media.

What is output on social media and technology can affect how we view situations . If the government keeps supplying us with new technology people will spend their money and it will be given to them. The party’s have a knowledgeable sequence that wey the people haven’t caught on to yet as a whole. They want as much money as possible and controlling us with technology is a great way to get it. Also what is put out on social media that gives us an insight of what’s going on in the “Big Brother” can be lies, but you see that’s the manipulation we fall short to. In what ways does the Party employ technology throughout the book? “Modernization in 1984 takes the form of technology, used for controlling means. By placing telescreens and clandestine microphones all across Oceania, the Party monitors its constituents 24/7. At work, in the comforts of their own home, even in the countryside or giant plazas and marketplaces, Oceanians cannot expect privacy. The Party’s use of advanced surveillance technology is only one of the methods it employs to ensure and ascertain control. From Shmoop Lit on Theme of Technology and Modernization in 1984.”

Is Our Technology Taking Us Close to the World of Big Brother? “Big Brother is watching you” (1984, Orwell). This line has a lot of meaning to it, especially in our current era now. This quote comes from the book “1984.”

Individuals claim that the states throughout our country are always being watched by the Government; our every move, our every purchase, and even our every commute to and from work are being monitored. Welsh and Farrington(2004) both agree in explaining that the closed-circuit television(CCTV) is doing the exact same thing. "America is on the verge of becoming a 'surveillance society' (Stanley and Steinhardt, 2003:1)" (Welsh, 2004: 2). George Orwell discusses that “Every single technical device that has been invented, restored, or refurbished in the last ten years is becoming an increasing negative towards individuals freedom of interference”, but Welsh and Farrington seem to disagree. "Fact is, there are no longer any barriers to the Big Brother regime portrayed by George Orwell" (Welsh, 2004:2).

"Big Brother Is Watching You” (Orwell 1). One may ponder the thought of living in a world where the powers that be controlled, every step one takes and every move one made. Image the control being so drastic that it controlled one’s telepathic thought. There have been many who envisioned the thought of government surveillance. One of these visionaries is George Orwell. Orwell implemented his warnings to private citizens of his era, about these dangers through fictional writing. On June 8, 1949, George Orwell published a book titled 1984 (Nineteen Eighty-Four) (GWB). In his book, Mr. Orwell effectively shapes the aspects of how the ramifications of World War II opened the doorway to a radical totalitarian government.