Dystopian Government

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

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 examines a future under the rule of a totalitarian society. One of the unique notes about Orwell's 1984, is the views that Orwell presents on humanity, and human nature. Orwell presents humanity as divided into two sides- the dominant, and the submissive, with few quickly-eradicated anomalies in between. Human nature, however, is universal, and all humans

George Orwell uses his novel 1984 to convey that human beings, as a species, are extremely susceptible to dehumanization and oppression in society. Orwell demonstrates how a government’s manipulation of technology, language, media, and history can oppress and degrade its citizens.

Societies subject to totalitarian reign experience a complete degradation of both civil and natural born rights. Entire populations are forced to follow a strict regimen, often against their free will and good judgement. In 1984, George Orwell warns of such corrupted power of a totalitarian regime. Big Brother instills a looming fear that agitates the people of Oceania, which, in the hearts of some, ignites a cry of rebellion. Those trying to peacefully challenge the system, much like Winston and Julia, are met with a cruel fate of reassimilation. Under totalitarian rule of Big Brother, such actions of civil disobedience are not effective because of the government's disinterest of citizen acceptance, unrelenting power, and a complete control

George Orwell’s theme in 1984 is that an omnipotent and all-seeing government is dangerous and will demean individuality as well as free will. He portrays this through Winston’s failure to rebel while showing totalitarian governments cannot be stopped after they have been completely established. He also depicts his message through the citizens’ total belief in government propaganda no matter how absurd or inconstant as well as through the international solidarity and seemingly permanent nuclear cold war.

Totalitarianism diminishes the idea of individuality and destroys all chances of self-improvement, and human’s natural hunger for knowledge. In George Orwell’s famous novel, “1984”, totalitarianism is clearly seen in the exaggerated control of the state over every single citizen, everyday, everywhere. Totalitarianism can also be seen in the book “Brave New World” by Aldous Huxley, in which humans are synthetically made and conditioned for their predestinated purpose on earth. The lack of individualism will lead a community towards a dystopia in which freedom is vanished by the uncontrolled power of the state.

In the beginning of the dystopian novel, the society appears to be stable, organized and with no problems. As the events progress, the ugly face of the society is revealed by a protagonist that begins to question the social and political norms of his/her society. This protagonist begins to understand how the system seeks only power and does not care about the people. Moving towards the climax, he/she starts to think how to get out of the system or change the course of events. Moreover, Devin Ryan suggests “protagonists begin to search for their identities, they realize that the world in which they live is neither perfect nor free’’ (Ryan4). As for the end, Casey Aaron Holliday explains “ Dystopian novels generally end in one of two ways. The

In the book 1984 by George Orwell, a totalitarian government is emphasized. Throughout the story, it is revealed that all the government cares about is war and power within themselves. It is clearly shown that the intentions of the government in Oceania are self-serving and not benevolent. With the use of Newspeak and Doublethink, Orwell further shows that the intentions of the government are one sided and are only effective for themselves. The way in which the government runs its people expresses the idea of selfishness and that all benefits are only for the government. Through the use of surveillance, torture, and complete removal of people's privacy, the government is able to manipulate and scare people into obeying the government, which in turn only makes the government stronger.

“A government big enough to give you everything you want, is a government big enough to take away everything you have,” (Thomas Jefferson). This quote is observed throughout the novel 1984, by George Orwell, and galvanizes its theme, which is expressed through the mottos of the Party, the ultimate, unopposed ruler of Oceania. They are “War Is Peace, Freedom Is Slavery, And Ignorance Is Truth,” (Orwell, 4). To begin with, the truth of the quote is observed throughout the actions of the Party.

The word government is derived from two Latin words, “Guverno” which means to control and “Mentis” which means the mind. Government manipulation is seen clearly throughout George Orwell’s 1984. 1984 is a novel that tells a tale of a rebellious man by the name of Winston Smith who is trapped in a society ruled by a totalitarian government. The main character Winston attempts to exploit the government because they use manipulative tactics whether it be through propaganda, or through the citizens of Orwell’s Oceania who have no free will. Winston wanting to know why the party’s main goal is to establish no independent freedom and to make sure that every citizen does not have the ability to think freely. Winston eventually realizes that the government, who is led by a figure called Big Brother, controls the minds of the people by changing the history of the world so the citizens have nothing to compare their lives to and therefore, have no reason to think that they are being manipulated into being controlled. Although It is quite obvious to the reader that the totalitarian government which is displayed in 1984 manipulates and controls citizens, some of the practices and rules used by the fictional government are being displayed in modern governments today. Two examples of how the practices of the government in 1984 mirror the way governments are today are how the use of digital screens control our lives and how the government

Historically, literature has always echoed the key issues and themes present during that time. In the period which Orwell wrote this novel, totalitarian government was a popular concept seeing implementation around the world such as Nazi Germany, Soviet Russia, and Mussolini’s Italy. In the novel 1984. While Orwell’s world is a fictional one, it can be said that he uses it as a voice for social commentary, and he predictions as to what a world would be like if totalitarian governments would rule the world. This essay will aim to explore how Orwell goes about doing this.

In the book 1984, by George Orwell every aspect of society is almost controlled completely by the government. Totalitarianism, one of the most prevalent themes in this book is shown throughout the advancement of technology as well as government. The government for the most part is able to control every single thing of an individual destroying individualism and the ability for man kind to express their intrinsic knowledge and curiosity of the world. The inability for individuals to express their deepest desires and beautiful thoughts hinder the progression of evolution of man kind as a whole. In today’s real world, man kind is not far from this dystopia that is displayed in the book 1984.

The government in Oceania has gone so far as dehumanizing the citizens that the citizens themselves try to get others on board with the ludicrous ideals that the party uses to manipulate them. In chapter 5 of 1984, Syme says, “Don’t you see that the whole aim of Newspeak is to narrow the range of thought? In the end we shall make thoughtcrime literally impossible, because there will be no words in which to express it”(Orwell 52). This character’s words show the reader that there is so much control of the citizens; that the citizens can be used to advertise the party’s ideas. With Newspeak narrowing the vocab of Oceania’s citizens they hope for anything better than a dystopia is forever lost. The people of Oceania are not only dehumanized, but worship Big Brother the all supreme leader of Oceania. When Parsons is imprisoned for saying “Down with Big Brother”(Orwell 233). He states that “I’m glad they got me before it went any further. Do you know what I’m going to say to them when I go up before the tribunal? Thank you”(Orwell 233). Parsons’ actions are significant because they show the love that he and other citizens show for their leader is eternal.By making the citizens of Oceania live in a dehumanized state; the hope for something greater in life is abolished due to the fact that their

The governments in today’s society have brainwashed their citizens into believing everything their leader says and thinks is correct and everything else is wrong. This can sometimes be known as a totalitarian government. George Orwell’s novel 1984 revolves around totalitarianism. The members of the party in Oceania are taught and required to worship their leader Big Brother whether they believe in him or not. In the novel 1984, George Orwell shows the problems and the hatred with a totalitarian government through his use of symbolism, situational irony, and indirect characterization.