Hunger For Power By George Orwell

The novels Nineteen Eighty Four by George Orwell, and The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood, both are social commentaries explored through the lens of a citizen in a dystopian, totalitarian society. While Orwell articulates his anti-socialist political agenda, he also draws conclusions about the nature of humanity and spins a cautionary tale to warn about the dangers of dictatorships. On the other hand, Atwood uses a misogynistic, theocratic ruling party to convey a similar message. However, both authors share the same controlling idea about tyrannical regimes which use information control, loss of autonomy, and extreme punishment, to maintain their power. The novels are each warnings that left unchecked, such governments put the future of

A dystopian society is one with restricted freedom, whose values are worshipped by citizens who live in fear of surveillance or punishment. In 1984 by George Orwell, the protagonist lives in a futuristic world, controlled by big brother and the inner party over aspects of human life. In Harrison Bergeron by Kurt Vonnegut Jr, the fear of egalitarian policies, and the dangers of equality take over. In The Purge by James DeMonaco, the citizens relief to self-regulate violence and to protect themselves and their family from the protagonist. All dystopian literature shares similar characteristics, winston which is the protagonist in 1984, he lives in a society where the government takes over and tries to brainwash the citizens making them believe they live in a illusion of a perfect world. Winston is depicted and physically ill, but strong enough not to give in. “Who controls the past controls the future, who controls the present controls the past.” (Orwell 12). George Bergeron is the protagonist in Harrison Bergeron, the government makes him wear a radio, which broadcasts noise over these radios to interrupt the thoughts of smart people like George. ‘’Screams and barking cries of consternation came from the television set’’ (Vonnegut 2). Sergeant was the protagonist in the purge, he risked his life by saving others life for a night of horror. The Purge, Harrison Bergeron, and 1984 were all based off government, society where there is limiting and controlling the population. ‘’We

Embedded in the human spirit is the notion that people possess an innate sense of being an individual, free to think, act, and understand the world surrounding them. In George Orwell’s 1984, individuality is removed to support the Party’s abilities in controlling and exploiting the masses. Yet, despite their success in suppressing the citizens of Oceania there is something rooted in humanity that although can be repressed, still remains implanted within the deepest parts of a person’s mind. In the novel, while the Party attempts to annihilate all human instincts in order to acquire pure and absolute power, it is unknown to them that despite their best efforts there lies something much more dominant in the human mind which although can be inhibited may never be entirely eliminated. As Winston ponders revolutionary ideas, his physical body unknowing to his conscious mind, is complacent with his innermost thoughts to rebel in any way possible. Winston’s thoughts of unorthodoxy become enhanced through Julia because he discovers someone who desires and understands him, conjuring up something instinctual in him which has been waiting to be released. To care and protect someone else becomes instinctive when he/she experiences suffering or pain and this kind of understanding is acknowledged through the only people Winston believes express any sanity in a corrupt world: the proletarians. A person’s impulse to resist an oppressive nature is instinctual and this is validated through

1984, by George Orwell, is set in London, England. The mood of this novel is mostly gloomy or dark. In some cases the mood changes to happy, scared and bits of hatred.. We don’t even know the year we have an educated guess of 1984. Throughout most of the story the characters are bland and do the same thing over and over again every single day. It's like they are robots stuck in a loop.

Firstly, Nineteen Eighty-Four and The Inheritors are related because the societies in these novels control people through despair. In Nineteen Eighty-Four, the Party constantly manipulates the minds of its citizens and rewrites historical records in order to keep them inferior and to obey the government’s commands. However, even if an individual revolts against the Party, they will be tortured to the extent where they will relinquish all of their rebelliousness and become loyal once again. For instance, in the novel, Winston’s completely surrenders himself to the Party when the narrator states, “But it was all right, everything was all right, the struggle was finished. He had won the victory over himself. He loved Big Brother” (Orwell 298). Winston, who initially despised the Party, is now beginning to love Big Brother as he was severely tormented by O’Brien in several ways, Winston is renouncing his desire to cause the collapse of the regime, which indicates that O’Brien, who is a Party member, has directly provoked the former through the tortures to state that there is no hope of forming a revolution in Oceania as the Party is the supreme power in the universe. Likewise, in The Inheritors, the Homo sapiens brutally

Societies in which individuals bear underdeveloped emotions is evident in both novels. Psychological manipulation from authority yields a world consumed of dull mechanization rather than of people with sincere passions and concerns. The protagonist of 1984 claims that “to dissemble your feelings...to do what everyone else was doing, was an instinctive reaction...” (Orwell 17). In both pieces of literature, the internal staleness within individuals is directly associated with their government, who utilizes it as a way to remain more powerful than the citizens it controls. The fact that Bernard Marx wishes to experience “what passion is” and yearns to “feel something strongly” allows the conclusion to be drawn that members of the World State

1984 is a problematic world where conflict is carried throughout the whole novel. Orwell’s depiction of society is shown and what he believed would become if events grew worse: the spread of communism. Instead of being forward and using communists as the enemy, Orwell creates a protective and intimidating image of the government and uses the coincidental name Big Brother. This wicked party promotes a totalitarian society and erases all truth, forcing Winston Smith’s to conceal his

“But if thought corrupts language, language can also corrupt thought,” states George Orwell, a well-known author, showing how powerful words are, to the point where they can influence the thoughts of people. This is a common theme throughout history, referred to as propaganda, where those in control present words and information to the public to change their opinion on ideas, causes, or policies. The use of propaganda appears in many forms of literature, but it is an especially prominent idea in the novel 1984 by George Orwell. The plot centers on Winston Smith, a thirty-nine year old man living in a dystopian London in 1984, and follows his struggle to subtly oppose the Party, the ruling government of the oligarchy Oceania, one of the three superstates of the world in his time. While Winston fights to oppose the Party through small acts of rebellion, he is constantly on guard against the Thought Police, a task force that finds, imprisons, and kills people who have independent thought outside the Party’s will. Though Winston is eventually caught by the Thought Police and converted back to a Party drone, along with his lover Julia, he is able to catch a glimpse of the corrupted government behind the helping façade of the Party. One of the main tools of propaganda used by the Party is the three slogans WAR IS PEACE, FREEDOM IS SLAVERY, and IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH. The Party utilizes the slogan WAR IS PEACE to promote the war between Oceania and one of the other two superstates

Imagine living in a world where a citizen is being watched 24/7 by the government with nowhere to escape for freedom and liberty. People are constantly watched every single second in their daily lives. They have no privacy from the government at all; even their thoughts are monitored. Thinking and/or committing crimes that are considered treasonous by the government result in punishment, usually by death in this society. A nightmarish society like this is portrayed in George Orwell’s novel, 1984, where the main character Winston Smith struggles to live in the superstate, Oceania where the Party is the head of the government. He also covertly hates the Party and Big Brother, who is the head of the Party, and wishes to rebel. He then joins a

Throughout George Orwell’s novel Nineteen Eight-Four, the main character, Winston Smith, is shown as a rebellious Party member who often shows his lack of concern of others. Winston’s attitude towards others is emotionless and loveless. Even his wife whom he had been married to for eleven years, he describes as that “he was capable of forgetting that he had ever been married” (Orwell 67). Also, Syme, Winston’s friend, disappears and Winston shows no sign of sadness or concern. Even towards Winston’s secret lover, whom he had secretly broken Party laws with and shared a sexual relationship, he states that “he felt love no for her” (Orwell 229). Many of his thoughts could be because of the government’s total control of the country and its people. However, Winston constantly rejects the ideas of the government. There is only one character that Winston seems to never get enough of, O’Brien. Winston is seen constantly being fixated on O’Brien. Winston dreams of and admires O’Brien and is described as being “deeply drawn to him” (Orwell 11). Oddly enough, besides O’Brien, Winston is not close with any other male. Winston mentions his mother and even thinks he finds her while being held captive; however, Winston never mentions a father. This lack of male guidance that Winston receives opens himself not only to be star struck by O’Brien but also opens up the ability for the totalitarian regime to conquer his mind.

Although the book 1984 portrays a fake society filled with fictional societal members, the book actually represented a lot of what we see in our modern world in 2016. The most similar parallel between society in the book 1984 and current society in 2016 is the Upper Party. They are not similar in how they treat criminals, but they are similar in their philosophy. This essay will analyze why the Upper Party is represented in the very specific way that they are portrayed. In the book 1984, George Orwell presents the Upper Party as rich tyrants, and mysterious in an attempt to raise both your awareness and your dislike for how they run Oceania.

Imagine a world where every thought, every belief, that ever came to mind was shared with everyone. It would start many unnecessary fights, unnecessary wars. The world would be chaotic. Luckily, this is not the case. The only ideas that are shared through others are in the actions we take and the words we speak. John Ruskin explains this ideology when he conveys, “What we think, or what we know, or what we believe is, in the end, of little consequence. The only consequence is what we do.” Ruskin is correct in his philosophy about our actions and behavior.

Write an essay in which you discuss this statement in relation to Of Mice and Men.

“Selfish desire is found in the senses, mind, and intellect, misleading them and burying wisdom in delusion.” Stated by Lord Krishna in the Mahabharata war to Arjuna, this is especially true in George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four and William Golding’s The Inheritors. These classic dystopian novels illustrate the harsh realities of oppression and epitomize the selfish mentality of humans, which is to always claim power. The antagonizing groups in these novels, which are the Party and the Homo sapiens, respectively, develop several methods to fulfill their lustful intention of ruling eternally through misery and torment, and through utilizing comparatively advanced technology. The levels of these methods vary in both of these novels as the settings differ significantly; however, most of the themes being conveyed in both of these novels demonstrate their similarity between one another. Therefore, although Nineteen Eighty-Four and The Inheritors consist of some contrasting themes, these novels are similar because their societies control people through despair and technology for solely claiming power, not caring for morality.

Throughout the novel, language and its vitalness in both communication and unification across time and boundaries has been an underlying theme. In this quote, Orwell alludes to “a definitive edition of the poems of Kipling” (Orwell 230). Kipling was a distinguished English writer who dabbled in both poetry and novels, like The Jungle Book, and with Kipling’s background, Orwell and the English writer had clashing, disagreeing morals and supported different campaigns, like imperialism, with Orwell even going as far as calling Kipling “morally insensitive and aesthetically disgusting” (Dag). Even though Kipling and Orwell had differing views on nearly everything, Orwell still alludes to him in 1984 to demonstrate that works like those still exist