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Newspeak In 1984, 1984 By George Orwell

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“Newspeak was designed to. . .diminish the range of thought. . .by cutting the choice of words down to a minimum” explains George Orwell, the author of a dystopian fiction novel, 1984 (Orwell 300). Orwell designs a society in which a totalitarian government rules, depriving people of their thoughts. The story gives us a look into the life of the main character, Winston, who seems to face issues with reality control. Today, we will delve into the depths of this novel and explore Orwell’s views on the nature of language. In simple terms, Orwell suggests that language, if used in a certain way, has the ability to influence people and compel them to alter their thoughts. With this statement and supporting evidence, it can be concluded that the effective use of language can give individuals power to modify or reshape opinions that will allow for change in society. Language and thought are closely related. Language, both written and spoken, allows for the expression of thought. Without this, people are unable to convey their views. Orwell uses this idea by creating Newspeak, the language of Oceania. Newspeak is designed to restrict thought and limit expression. One character, Syme, states, “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 quote means that by removing words, specifically words that relate to freedom

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