Comparing George Orwells '1984 And Fritz Lang's' Metropolis

Through his failure, Orwell portrays the dangers of a disunited society for the individual. Even though Winston willingly chose to oppose the Party and offered his life towards the eradication of his oppressors, his sacrifice proved futile without communal support to usurp the tyrannical regime. Despite the common suffering the people endured, their fear of the individual torment each would suffer motivated them to submit to the government. In Winston, Orwell highlights the frailty of an individual person in comparison to a mob. When imprisoned at the Ministry of Love, Winston’s will crumbled under torture and he even offered the life of the one individual he had earlier seemed hesitant to sacrifice, Julia. Hence, Orwell illustrates the need for a united social front for individuals to change the society in which they live in. Otherwise, self-preservation shall remain dominant within each individual, leaving them vulnerable to continuous manipulation through propaganda.

The working class in this film are forced to endure agonising labour in extremely dangerous environments whilst the upper class, the ‘sons’ are free to live at their will. The dystopic setting of the ‘depths’ becomes evident through Lang’s use of symbolism when the dictator’s son, Freder, journeys to the depths and starts to see the workers being eaten up by the machines in the scene ‘Slaves of the Means of Production” (14.58-17.52). This symbolises the dystopic society in which workers do not have the right to be safe. This idea forms a contextual connection to the 1920’s Weimar Republic where there were two distinct classes, the conservative elite, who were free to live at their will, and the workers who were forced to endure labour with no guarantee for safety. Through the contextual connections of political reform and the shared perspectives of dystopian societies the quote “the object of power is power” is strongly supported by George Orwell’s ‘1984’ and Fritz Lang’s ‘Metropolis’.

Orwell values freedom of thought most in society. Of all the terrible crimes committed by the party and Big Brother against the population, the culmination of the ultimate revolution is the idea of complete control over the physical and mental states of citizens. The repetition of the phrase “2 + 2 = 4, not 5” shows Orwell’s belief that the truth is inherent and no one should be allowed to control an individual’s thoughts on this truth. Orwell uses Winston as the first person narrator because so much of his journey is internal, showing the power of freedom

He demonstrates this idea through Winston’s psychological failure to cope with the cruel reality and what Big Brother wants. The dystopian society in 1984 not only governs with total control over the people, but also fundamentally restricts people’s ability to think freely. The government dictates this domination through the power of the “Thought Police.” Winston on the other hand struggles with severe internal conflicts. Orwell articulates, “He felt as though he were wandering in the forests of the sea bottom, lost in a monstrous world where he himself was the monster. He was alone. The past was dead, the future was unimaginable. What certainty had he that a single human creature now living was on his side” (Orwell 25)? What Orwell is expressing about the dystopian government is that they are spreading nonsense beliefs using fear out of people. He uses simile to expresses Winston’s internal conflict in the totalitarian government when he writes, “he felt as though he were wandering in the forests of the sea bottom.” Orwell is comparing an intimidating world that Winston confronts with the idea of doublethink. The “forest” is a place where one gets lost and the “sea bottom” is a place where only darkness exists. Orwell further support the idea of doublethink when he says, “lost in a monstrous world where he himself was the monster,” using situational irony.

In the novel 1984, George Orwell relates the tension between outward conformity and inward questioning by allowing the reader to see inside of the mind of Winston Smith. Orwell uses Winston’s rebellious thoughts to counteract his actions in order to show the reader how a dystopian society can control the citizens. Although Winston is in an obvious state of disbelief in the society, his actions still oppose his thoughts because of his fear of the government. Winston’s outward conformity and inward questioning relate to the meaning of the novel by showing Winston’s fight to truth being ended by the dystopian society’s government.

Orwell uses Winston Smith, our main character, to exemplify the message he repeatedly tries to get across. Winston is a middle-aged man who is alone, or so it seems. It quickly becomes clear through his awkward behavior that he is constantly being

Orwell’s warning of the dangers of totalitarian regimes to his contextual readers and future audiences is portrayed through his novel, 1984, because “Big Brother is Watching You”, exerting total control over the masses. The masses are effectively controlled by the thought police, telescreens and children who are “against their parents and taught to spy on them and report their deviations”.... Orwell writes about the potential dangers that are inherent when power and technology are abused, resulting in mindless citizens and “a world of fear and hatred and torment”, which Winston perfectly captures with his metaphorical epiphany; “we are the dead”. Like the dead, society will become opiated, lacking individual thought, a highly valued asset of

Through this dystopian novel, George Orwell suggests that when the government protects its citizens, individualism needs to be sacrificed. The novel revolves around the theme of “Big Brother is watching

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

Context plays a large role in the portrayal of values as it influences the composer’s thoughts about society. It is evident that the respective context of Fritz Lang has greatly influenced the portrayal of significant values in his film, Metropolis; similarly these values have also been shaped in George Orwell’s novel, 1984. The values portrayed in both these texts include the political values of authority and control, which is influenced by the totalitarian societies in which Lang and Orwell live, and the value of individual identity, shaped by individuals becoming slaves to technology, which is influenced by the composer’s context of the machine age. Fritz Lang’s context has greatly influenced the way in which the political values of authority

The struggle of humanity to maintain devotion of human spirit is compared and contrasted through ,etropolis and 1984’s ranging mechanisms. The silent Film Metropolis directed by Fritz Lang, shows human expressionism similar to 1984 by George Orwell representing a dystopian future, where the emphasis of human life is underlined through the indoctrination and exploitation of humanity. The nature of each text, the dreary words prompt the probability of human kinds total oppression, also the wish of upheaval mirroring the staggering socio- political issues inside Lang and Orwell’s Seperate worlds. Although the population of metropolis and nineteen eighty four vary because of context, the two texts accentuate the value of human life through their

Between and after the World Wars, literary and art movements were influenced by world events; this is true for both the Allies and the Germans, as each interpreted historic events in different ways due to their different ideas and values. Metropolis, a silent film by Fritz Lang, and the novel Nineteen Eighty-Four by the British author George Orwell explore similar notions of absolute power and lack of individuality in their respective societies, conveying their viewpoints on social issues of their time. Written some twenty years apart, the texts each question the fundamentals of life itself, as their respective protagonists seek to know more about their worlds.

This quote exemplifies the extent to which the Party hijacks the mental processes of people to gain power, and how that is more crucial to unopposed power than physical control already established. Thus, Orwell presents a perspective on power through exploring the restriction of free thought and movement, and how that benefits a totalitarian government.

The words under the picture read “BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU” in all capitals. This phrase immediately establishes the power-distance relationship between the party and its members. All citizens are constantly being watched over and are powerless compared to the party. The word “watching” implies that all citizens are under scrutiny from big brother himself with the “mustachiod figure” playing the role of a “big brother”, watching over his citizens and controlling their actions and movements. Such a lack of freedom creates a stark contrast between normal people’s lives and the lives of Orwell’s characters, and therefore acts like a warning as to what might happen in the future if the rise of totalitarianism continued in Europe. Through this, Orwell is also criticizing this movement by highlighting its key disadvantages and drawbacks.

The main character in George Orwell’s 1948 novel, 1984, Winston Smith can be seen as many things. To some, he may be a hero, but to others he is a coward and a fool. Throughout the novel, Winston’s characteristics are explored, and readers are shown the reasoning behind Winston’s twisted mind. It is evident that although Winston thinks he had control over his own mind and body, this is an imagined factor. The world of 1984 is one of a totalitarian society, where no one can be trusted, and no one is safe, Winston being the primary example of one who trusted thoughtlessly.