Doublethink In George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four 1984

In George Orwell’s novel 1984, there is global war that has been going on for as long as anyone can remember. In the novel it seems like only Winston can recall that they haven’t always been at war with the same country. The people of Oceania are told through propaganda that they have always been at war with the same country. Today we have the war on terror, that has no end in sight, a widespread societal fear, suspension of certain civil liberties, and an unclear enemy who could be anywhere or anything.

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.

In the novel 1984, Orwell produced a social critique on totalitarianism and a future dystopia that made the world pause and think about our past, present and future. When reading this novel we all must take the time to think of the possibility that Orwell's world could come to pass. Orwell presents the concepts of power, marginalization, and resistance through physical, psychological, sexual and political control of the people of Oceania. The reader experiences the emotional ride through the eyes of Winston Smith, who was born into the oppressive life under the rule of Ingsoc. Readers are encouraged through Winston to adopt a negative opinion on the idea of communist rule and the inherent dangers of totalitarianism. The psychological

Question 1:In what ways is Oceania not only morally and spiritually bankrupt but physically ugly and bleak as well?

The Party floods residents of Oceania with psychological motivation designed to overwhelm the mind’s capacity for independent thought. It also uses advanced methods of technology to control one’s every move. Yet Winston, who although is more or less controlled by Big Brother, manages to somewhat diverge. Moreover, Orwell reinforces the idea of intellectual rebellion and ultimate control through the use of many unique symbols. The paperweight, the proles and the dust all show Winston’s desire to connect with the past, something completely forbidden by the party. Winston’s journal acts as a symbol to illustrate his desire to rebel. Whereas doublethink symbolises the psychological control Big Brother has on the people of Oceania and the telescreens symbolises the physical control he has over his subjects. Orwell’s main goal in writing Nineteen Eighty Four was to warn future generations about the dangers of totalitarian governments; he effectively does so by reinforcing ideas, which correspondingly embrace

agents. They didn’t contain the contents of any U.S. military plans, or of any conversations between U.S. or foreign officials...But it will hardly surprise the organized terrorist groups, which already go to great lengths to avoid being monitored." (Cassidy 1). Snowden's revelations have only brought us alarming news on United States espionage upon their own people, which have individual rights to express what they wish to by the often cited First Amendment, even though they are being constantly surveyed upon sites such as Facebook and Yahoo where personal information is wholly visible by the government, even in the presence of privacy policies. Their logging of phone calls also puts many Americans at a severe risk of being targeted or put on further watch for choice words, and will not work on the intended, true terrorists to the country, as they do not use public communications system, at least not U.S. based ones. Even for the public, one will not have a phone call used for them as evidence unless it was recorded by a third party and it hints at their connection to a crime, disproving its pragmatic usage, even in higher

In his novel 1984, George Orwell created a nightmare vision of the future in which an all-powerful Party exerts totalitarian control over society by forcing the citizens to master the technique of "doublethink," which requires them "to hold simultaneously two opinions which cancel[] out, knowing them to be contradictory and believing in both of them." (3) Orwell's doublethink is usually regarded as a wonderful literary device, but, of course, one with no referent in reality since it is obviously impossible to believe both halves of a contradiction. In my opinion, this assessment is quite mistaken. Not only is it possible for people to believe both halves of a contradiction, it is something they do every day with no apparent difficulty.

Of all the factors that can drive human action, knowledge, power and freedom are perhaps the most connected. In the novel 1984, George Orwell explores how taking away these three concepts prevents double-thinking and individual expression.

The book 1984 by George Orwell has a lot of iron in it. Throughout the entire book every party character is governed in ruled by the idea of doublethink. As Orwell writes “double sink is basically the power of holding two contradictory beliefs in one’s mind, and accepting both of them”. This is an amazing example of that only because it is not humanly possible to fully grasp the meaning of this. Winston is surrounded by several ironic things, for example when he goes to rent an apartment with Julia he believes that he is safe and out of harm's way because it is in the prole side of town. However he soon finds out that the man renting them the room was in fact a member of the thought police and there was a camera located behind the picture.

The terrors of a totalitarian government presented in George Orwell’s 1984 apply not only to the Party, but also to the Stalinist Russia of the 1930’s. Frightening similarities exist between these two bodies which both started out as forms of government, and then mutated into life-controlling political organizations which “subordinated all institutions and classes under one supreme power” (Buckler 924). Orwell shows how such a system can impose its will on the people through manipulation of media, constant supervision as aided by technology, and the threat of pain, both physical and mental. Orwell also shows how the state has more subtle methods for imposing its authority, such as the manipulation of language and propaganda as they are

Living in a society with limited freedom of expression is not, in any case, enjoyable. A totalitarian system is a good example of such a society, because although it provides control for the people, it can deny them a great deal of freedom to express themselves. The fictional society in George Orwell’s 1984 also stands as a metaphor for a Totalitarian society. Communication, personal beliefs, and individual loyalty to the government are all controlled by the inner party which governs the people of Oceania in order to keep them from rebelling. Current society in North America is much more democratic. It contrasts with Orwell’s society of 1984 because communication, personal beliefs and the people’s loyalty to the government are all

“IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH” is one of the party’s key phrases. This means that having uneducated, oblivious people, contributes to the power of the party. The citizens of Oceania must believe everything the government tells them in order to be controlled. People who refuse to believe these lies, or try to let people know the truth, are considered enemies of the party. This is considered thoughtcrime, and anyone who is found guilty is subject to ‘vaporization’, and will never be seen again. In 1984, George Orwell uses characterization of the protagonists, Winston and Julia, and plot to explain how in a society built upon countless lies, it is a crime to think or spread the truth.

In George Orwell’s, Nineteen Eighty-Four, the people of the country, Oceania live under a totalitarian government. This iconic political novel serves as a cautionary tale for future governments at the time it was written in 1949. Although, many countries are democracies now, the world hasn’t completely learned its lesson in over half a century since the novel has been published. Alarmingly, the United States has begun to reflect similar traits founded in Orwell’s fictitious and terrifying country, Oceania in relation to themes of patriotism, control of media, and surveillance.

“1984” by George Orwell presents a dystopian picture where a society is being ruled by stringent totalitarianism. “1984” depicts a society where there is no freedom. Strict laws and ever-present surveillances create fear in people’s heart that suppresses their thinking. There are these two-way monitors that broadcast government propaganda, news and entertainment, and spy citizens’ private lives at the same time. The government also alters and filters the information it gives to the people to control their rationalization and mindset.

Norway’s Prime Minister Erna Solberg went out to the media and said, “Friends should not monitor each other”, and when the Norwegian broadcasting agency, NRK, went to the US Embassy in Oslo, they refused to comment. “When it comes to intelligence activity, we can not comment on individual case. The United Stated collects intelligence overseas, as every nation does” (The Local, 2013).