1984 Power Analysis

George Orwell’s 1984 is more than just a novel, it is a warning to a potential dystopian society of the future. Written in 1949, Orwell envisioned a totalitarian government under the figurehead Big Brother. In this totalitarian society, every thought and action is carefully examined for any sign of rebellion against the ruling party. Emotion has been abolished and love is nonexistent; an entire new language is being drafted to reduce human thought to the bare minimum. In a society such as the one portrayed in 1984, one is hardly human. In George Orwell’s 1984, the party uses fear, oppression, and propaganda to strip the people of their humanity.

1984, a novel by George Orwell, represents a dystopian society in which the people of Oceania are surveilled by the government almost all the time and have no freedoms. Today, citizens of the United States and other countries are watched in a similar way. Though different technological and personal ways of keeping watch on society than 1984, today’s government is also able to monitor most aspects of the people’s life. 1984 might be a dystopian society, but today’s condition seems to be moving towards that controlling state, where the citizens are surveilled by the government at all times.

George Orwell’s novel 1984 reflects on the society of dystopian city Airstrip 1 where main character Winston Smith lives. Along with the many other citizens, Winston is controlled by the Inner Party by constantly being monitored via telescreens that keep sight of everybody and their actions. Besides using telescreens the government also easily arrests people in any case of “thoughtcrime” which consists of any thoughts that regard disobedience towards the government. Thoughtcrime and telescreens are two of the several factors that reflect the extreme surveillance in 1984. Orwell uses surveillance as the central theme of the novel to spread his idea that the usage of more extreme surveillance could eventually lead to a totalitarian society. On a less extreme scale, today’s society also has a significant amount of surveillance but many question whether or not more surveillance is necessary. With the many current text sources, it is certain that we need less surveillance in order to keep a stable society that does not take away the individualism of people.

In the brainwashed society of Oceania in 1984, by George Orwell, led by a totalitarian government in the name of a leader known as Big Brother, citizens are placed under constant surveillance from the government, preventing them from having individuality and freedom of thought. Although written in a fictional setting, the book strikes analogous similarities to the United States in today’s world. Due to a growth in surveillance, personal information and privacy are being intervened, however, not violated. While technological advances are increasing and crimes such as hacking and terrorism are becoming more prominent in society, government surveillance is becoming largely needed to ensure the protection

“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.

There is the concept of an ideal world, a future where humanity has reached its peak and the global society is at peace. Then we flip the coin to realise that a dystopic future too is possible, one where humanity is lost to the chains of oppression and control. George Orwell’s classic yet hauntingly prophetic work “ 1984” represents this dystopian human society, a frightening yet vivid description of what the world would be if human desire for power and control was given free reign. Although Orwell wrote this text in the context of the rise of Fascism in Europe, the rise of Nuclear Aggression and the Cold War rivalry, the text carries significance even today, as Government control over its citizens, surveillance over every aspect of private

Technology is taking over the world as we know it. Orwell predicted that technology would take control of citizen’s lives and make them have no privacy, and honestly that is not so far off. Governments can access these devices and look at what people learning, looking at, and who they are talking to. There is not much that a citizen can hide from their government. Citizens do not have as much privacy as they did even just twenty years ago. With technological advances, the world could follow the story of George Orwell’s 1984. Video surveillance is something that the government uses also, although it is not as harsh as in George Orwell’s story, but still citizen’s privacies are being invaded. According to Alex Abdo, there is a United States owned database filled with every Americans information and every one of his or her associations (Abdo). Even the United States, which is considered a country built upon freedom, is monitoring its people. The American government even tries to follow everything that its citizens do. Governments even have 64 federal websites that are helping them follow their people’s browsing and buying habits (Zuckerbrod). Governments are using their websites to monitor what people are doing. This way the government can know everything from their people’s hobbies to who their best friend is. Technology is helping the government take away their citizens privacy.

George Orwell wrote his best works during the tragic events of the fierce government repression of Communist Russia and Nazi Germany during the 1940’s. He expressed various grievances toward the high authority of these totalitarian governments and the abuse of their powers. In his writings, he alludes to many well known dictators, such as Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin, and he cynically views them as symbols of corruption and the loss of basic human rights and freedom. In his most renowned novel, 1984, George Orwell insightfully demonstrates how the repressing influence of a totalitarian government ironically amplifies and draws out the natural essence of humanity within the characters, specifically relating to romance, hope and rebellion, and fear and betrayal throughout the novel.

Fear is inevitably tied to the common saying “I am watching you”. When one’s actions are constantly monitored and privacy being relentlessly invaded, the individual soon will possess a sort of fear. In the novel Little Brother by Cory Doctorow, the government uses surveillance as a tool for exploiting the privacy of the people which then engages their fear.

In George Orwell's 1984, the government was omnipresent. With technology monitoring citizens' every moves, Big Brother was always watching. This lack of privacy helped the government eliminate any threats; however, most would say it went too far. The omnipresence of the government through technology allowed the spread of propaganda supporting a totalitarian regime and complete federal control over the mindless citizens inhabiting the nation. Although the 1949 novel was predicting the world 35 years into the future, many fear the ubiquitous nature of technology today is leading to the world Orwell ominously forecasted.

They change something that has always been true, and change the truth into a lie. Then the lie becomes fact, because the government says it has always been that way. These examples are how the government in the novel are controlling their people through fear and corruption.

The blatant evils of an all controlling government are spelled out by George Orwell in his novel, 1984, in an effort to push his agenda against totalitarianism. Orwell offers a look into a future governed by dictators. He points out the exaggeratingly blind faith people have in following the convention, turning them into sheep to be easily preyed on by a power hungry government. So long it will please Big Brother, the ruling government in the plot, the public welcomes around the clock surveillance of their every action and thought, extreme rationing for an unproved war, absolute restrictions on all relationships, a forced nationalism and the most minimal quality of life. George Orwell challenges this by presenting and dispelling

This article is entitled: “We’re living ‘1984’ today”. To summarize this article, it is basically relating our world to the book. The newspeak language that the book had is similar to the language we use when we text including the acronyms and short forms of saying things. In the book there is a global war that has been seemingly going on forever and this relates to our current world because today we have a so-called war with no end in sight with the enemy being all around us and anything. The telescreens in the book is used as a vital way of communing propaganda and today’s sites such as facebook tracks our likes and dislikes and act upon those by setting advertisements to our liking based on what we search up or click upon. It also seems that every store that we enter seems to want our number and zip code as part of any transaction. We live in a world that has everyone surveying almost everything we do, our messages and phone calls are monitored as well as our transactions. A memory hole is the machine that has been used in the book to diminish embarrassing documents and this is related to our life today with paper shredders. This ends off with a significant quote: “Unless you spend your life in a wilderness cabin, totally off the grid, there is simply no way the government won't have information about you stored away somewhere”. This quote basically states that the government

Title: Exploring the concept of power relations and its oppressive nature in 1984 and The Kite Runner Referencing Format: MLA Word Count: 2. Referring to two texts and your personal experience, explain why power is so attractive and how people are oppressed by those who are invested in maintaining their power. Introduction In 1984, by George Orwell and The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini, are two excellent novels that provide a representation of power and its influence on one’s life, livelihood, and well-being.

In the dystopian novel, 1984, George Orwell predicted the future to be overrun by a tyrannical government that values conformity to the extreme over the lives of their citizens. Orwell warns future generations through his depiction of the dystopian world that consists of the three powers; Oceania, Eastasia, and Eurasia. Upon examining tyranny in Oceania’s society and the knowledge of reality outside of an individual’s mind, it is found that freedom cannot exist under tyranny and when citizens are unaware of the “real” reality around them which highlights Orwell’s warning of a future that is heavily controlled by an overpowered government.