Censorship, Media Manipulation, And Betrayal

George Orwell’s political parable, 1984, portrays an oppressive and dictatorial government, which thereby presents to the reader a palpable sense of danger and malevolence born out of the creation of a counter utopic totalitarian regime. Orwell’s nihilistic creation of Oceania, presents a world wherein every aspect of private and public life is abhorrently regimented and regulated by the autocratic ‘Big Brother’. The whole population at large is forced to conform to the ideals and beliefs of the tyrannical ‘party’ as a means of not only survival but also a means of being able to live an unabated existence. The party opposes all forms of individuality and

Nineteen Eighty-Four, by George Orwell, is a superb novel with outstanding themes. One of the most prominent themes found in this novel is psychological manipulation. Citizens in this society are subject to ever present signs declaring “BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU” (Orwell 1). Along with psychological manipulation, physical control takes place. The Party not only controls what people in Oceania think, but what they do as well. Technology is another important theme. Without the constant telescreens, microphones, and computers, the Party would be all but powerless. Big Brother is the main figure of the Party. The main symbol that drives these themes is the telescreens. It is representative of the party always watching and controlling

“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

The fictional novel, 1984 by George Orwell is about a world run by a totalitarian government, called the Party, which takes away all the freedoms of its citizens by watching over them with high surveillance technology. In addition, the Party uses dishonesty and betrayal to expose people’s true feelings of Oceania, the country where the story takes place. Betrayal is seen throughout society in Oceania through government manipulation and actions made by Winston, Julia and O’Brien, the main characters. Winston’s true self-betrayal comes when he realizes his new passionate love for Big Brother, the leader of the Party and Oceania. The Party fears a rebellion against them, as a result they use different methods to eliminate trust between

Orwell’s novel of 1984 depicts a dystopian society in which people are brainwashed with propaganda and bound to the chains of a strong dictatorship, also known as the Inner Party. Humanity has been filled with lies, as not a single person knows the truth that lies beneath the dictatorship. History is constantly being rewritten to mask their true identity. Any skeptical thoughts may make you disappear."Big Brother" is constantly observing you along with a telescreen watching every facial expression and recording any abnormal body language. However, two citizens called Winston and Julia rebel against "Big Brother's" totalitarian rule which triggers an astonishing warning towards future generations. Orwell is warning future generations of a society

People are too intimidated by the Party’s control to take any action against this overwhelming power. The telescreens and Thought Police assist the government in their force and intimidation to control. No one dares to make a subtle facial expression that may trigger the Thought Police. The telescreens could be watching and listening at any moment to catch one in an act of defiance. The Party’s cheapening of sexual pleasure is another point discussed where the threat of abuse keeps the inhabitants of Oceania in line. Even the idea of sexual pleasure was punishable by forced labor camps or abuse in Room 101. Sex to most people in Oceania has just become a chore that has to be taken care of periodically. People have sex just to provide children for the future of the government. The Party controls everything with this looming threat of abuse. Control over truth versus fact makes the strongest case for this constant threat. The Party mentally abuses one to influence them to accept everything the Party says as fact. If a person disagrees with the Party, the government can make the person’s life miserable both mentally and physically. This power and imminent menace of abuse keeps every citizen in line, whether they are rebellious or not. The warnings have been given to society, whether they take these warnings into account is left to the people. If they do not, Big Brother may be looming

“1984” is a chilling dystopian novel written by George Orwell, set in the 1980’s, in London, in the continent Oceania. Oceania is ruled by the Party, and their dictator Big Brother. Big Brother controls Oceania through four ministries, Love, Truth, Peace and Plenty. Winston works in the Ministry of Truth, where he changes the dates, articles and photos of things to match up with what Big Brother is saying. Big Brother watches everyone through telescreens, which are in every room, and anyone who speaks out, or thinks to rebel, or even doesn’t get to their house at the right time, vanishes. “Big Brother is watching you” is the Party’s slogan, and is plastered all across London. In their society, the ideas of individuality, freedom and opinions

1984 by George Orwell is a novel set in a dystopian near-future London, the chief city of Airstrip One, Oceania. The people in Oceania are under the control of the Party. Big Brother, or BB, is the face of the Party and the leader of this great power that rules over Oceania. He is a dominant figure who acts as a trustworthy entity for the people he governs, but ironically is their worst enemy in many ways. His posters, captioned “BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU”, can be seen everywhere in the streets of London. These posters give the reader a physical description of what one can imagine Big Brother to look like. He is a man of about forty-five with a heavy black moustache and ruggedly handsome features that make him look scary but leader-like. Most people in this society are unaware of how they are brainwashed and controlled by the Party. Big Brother controls Oceania with various carefully designed techniques, some of which are: keeping the Outer Party in control with the 24-hour surveillance, Reality Control and by controlling the proles -- by keeping them ignorant and luring them through privileges.

            Big Brother’s opinions are strict—very strict.  They are so strict that there are oversized cameras called telescreens installed everywhere throughout Oceania.  The telescreens ensure that nothing is said about Oceania’s perfect leader.  This device is installed as a reminder that “Big Brother is always watching” (Orwell, 1949).

1984 was primarily written to bring light to the dehumanization a totalitarian government may provoke. There were many cases in this novel where the citizens of Oceania were exploited to promote the Party’s own agenda. Propaganda being one of these exploitations, the man with the mustachioed face, also known as Big Brother. The people of Oceania may see this and think of the name Big Brother, a family member, someone who will protect and care for their family’s wellbeing. Yet the posters read “BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU” a scary thought indeed. The Party is manipulating its people

By using the telescreen, a surveillance device located in the homes of all Party members, the Thought Police are able to keep everyone under scrutiny. Winston says, “You had to live-did live, from habit that became instinct -in the assumption that every sound you made was overheard, and except in darkness, every movement scrutinized” (Orwell, 3). This quotation shows how the intense observation efforts stifle the actions and thoughts of the people in Oceania. An essential component of being human is the ability to communicate freely. Communication has fostered developments in mathematics, literature, science, and every field of learning. The Party deprives their citizens of the human spirit of education by preventing uninhibited conversation. Stephen Ingle’s essay from The Abuse of Power in 1984 reads, “This lack of distinction between a private and public realm is precisely what gives life in Oceania its nightmare quality. Nobody has the recourse to a private world in which he or she may regain self esteem or attempt to control even the smallest part of their destiny: there is no escape from Big Brother” (_______, ____). This excerpt reveals that constant surveillance removes a portion of humanity. Humans need to have havens of refuge where they can lower their defenses against the outside world and have the safety to think and act as they wish. Of course there is the

The history of the world has undoubtedly been dominated by an endless struggle for power. However, after a brief glimpse into the pages of history it should not take long to realize that the trick to maintaining power lies in the control of information. Even the most fearsome military generals of the past acknowledge the power of the mind and ideas over lethal force. Former Soviet leader Joseph Stalin once said “… [Ideas] are more powerful than guns. We would not let our enemies have guns, then why should we let them have ideas.” Stalin’s quote personifies the main concept of this literature review which will be discussing the history of government censorship and its effects that are

Similarly to Napoleon’s training of the puppies, the Party trains children to follow their rules and report thoughtcriminals. Children fill parents with the dread that they shall be determined a thoughtcriminal and taken away to the Ministry of Love. Inner and Outer Party members therefore aim to obediently conform to Big Brother’s laws. Fright of rebellious acts’ punishment cause members to discard opposing thoughts, permitting tyrannical authority to continue controlling citizens. The Party slogans are another insightful factor to examine. “Ignorance is Strength,” “War is Peace,” and “Slavery is Freedom” all induce fear and control the populace of Oceania. Power is gained and sustained by citizen’s ignorance to government manipulation. Lack of knowledge is retained by enslaving the citizens to obey laws without questioning. Citizens’ ignorance causes them to accept the atmosphere of apprehension that war creates. Together, the regulations control citizen’s education and stimulate fear, both of which promote totalitarian government’s power. Each of George Orwell’s novels, Animal Farm and 1984, simulate societies in which the government uses the next generation and laws to

The Party makes children feel powerful when they have positions of influence and thereby generates eternal loyalty to the party while having them surveil the public. This is seen in Part 1, Chapter 2: “Winston raised his hands above his head, but with an uneasy feeling… ‘You’re a traitor!’ yelled the boy. ‘You’re a thought-criminal! You’re a Eurasian spy! I’ll shoot you, I’ll vaporize you, I’ll send you to the salt mines!” Their loyalty to the Party is demonstrated when they use vocabulary of the party such as “vaporize”. They threaten to arrest their neighbor and later go on to arrest their own father.  Big Brother’s method of surveillance instills loyalty in the future generations of Oceania.

The parameters of the term censorship have been changed and manipulated very much over the years. Television and movie ratings have become more lenient against violence and indiscretion because these things are now seen as entertainment. Is this appropriate for our youth? Should children be exposed to these images so early on? How does censorship in the media affect adolescents? Children are the future of our society and need to have some understanding of real world occurrences. Ultimately, censorship can only be determined by the parents. The media cannot filter every bit of controversial images. What rights does the media have in this situation? How are their First Amendment rights applied here? As an aspiring political science