Remove The Human Instinct

George Orwell wrote his best works during the tragic events of the fierce government repression of Communist Russia and Nazi Germany during the 1940’s. He expressed various grievances toward the high authority of these totalitarian governments and the abuse of their powers. In his writings, he alludes to many well known dictators, such as Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin, and he cynically views them as symbols of corruption and the loss of basic human rights and freedom. In his most renowned novel, 1984, George Orwell insightfully demonstrates how the repressing influence of a totalitarian government ironically amplifies and draws out the natural essence of humanity within the characters, specifically relating to romance, hope and rebellion, and fear and betrayal throughout the novel.

1984, written by George Orwell, has a depressed and dull tone with a bleakness style. Orwell wrote this book to show that people should fear or caution that the political process and ideas for language might be full of corruption. He claims that if we do not be cautious then the government will take over all our personal lives and thoughts. The book has a more emotional appeal to enhance the blandness and show how our character is developing more feeling. The book’s setting is Oceania and the party, named INGSOC, has the goal to control all their citizens; furthermore, control of their minds and thoughts. “War is Peace” and “Freedom is Slavery” are examples of “doublethink”, which means at the same time accepting two opposing beliefs as correct. Doublethink is used by the party to make sure of their control over the people; in addition to, on page 258 it shows the brutal ways of making Winston think how they want him to through torture. The party in different ways has the citizens believing that these slogans are real and true.

Thesis Statement: 1984 is a well-written cautionary tale that is perfectly applicable to today’s political climate and other current events. This is shown through George Orwell’s intuitive predictions of the use of censorship, his discussion of the perception and nature of reality, and his timeless depiction of a too-real society.

In his book, 1984, Orwell has created a dark and gloomy atmosphere for the readers to witness the negative impact brought forth by a totalitarian government. Orwell has succeeded in depicting the dangers of a totalitarian government by using imagery and figurative language to create the dark and gloomy atmosphere.

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.

In his novel 1984, author George Orwell warns against the dangers of totalitarianism through the life of one man living in a dystopian society. The novel follows Winston Smith, a man who tries to rebel against the ruling group of the nation of Oceania, know as the Party, and its leader, Big Brother. Through his quest, readers are exposed to a world in which the past is consistently altered to match the present, a person can commit a crime by having thoughts against the Party, and continuous war creates “peace”. With his novel, Orwell makes it clear that he wishes to modify the rise of consolidated power and controlling government. Through literary techniques such as point of view and variances in language, Orwell warns of the dangers presented when a small group holds power over a mass of people.

History reveals that when a totalitarian regime seizes a nation, violence and brutality are often utilized to take control of its citizens. 1984 depicts a world engulfed by the totalitarian ideology. George Orwell applies cruelty as a way to condition the people of Oceania to abide by the philosophies of the Party, Oceania's ruling body. Although the Party promotes ideas of welfare and diligence, their true intent is to accomplish complete dominance over every facet of humanity.

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 Orwell’s 1984, he displays psychological manipulation through Oceania’s government which it uses to control its citizens. This includes the use of propaganda, control of content, and ethnocentrism. The Party’s methods of control relates to real life events repeated in history such as the Nazi Regime from 1933 to 1945 headed by Adolf Hitler and common patterns in cultural history.

“1984 expresses man’s fears of isolation and disintegration, cruelty and dehumanisation…Orwell’s repetition of obsessive ideas is an apocalyptic lamentation for the fate of modern man. His expression of the political experience of an entire generation gives 1984 a veritably mythic power

In an article by The New York Times, the author suggests that George Orwell’s 1984 was “a chilling exploration of absolute depravity.” Orwell’s purpose in writing 1984 was to warn the people of the dangers that could come from becoming a totalitarian society. Throughout 1984, Orwell exposes the dangers of a totalitarian society, such as the psychological torture and the physical brutality that one would experience living in such a society.

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

1984 was written in an age of Nazism and Stalinism, where those totalitarian and fascist governments had their fists clenched around their citizens, controlling and terrorizing them at every move and within every aspect of their lives. The English author, Eric Arthur Blair, better known under his pseudonym George Orwell, wrote 1984 as a warning, to provoke a sense of fear from his audience, which, in turn, makes his purpose, to persuade and inform his readers to question the authority and integrity of their governments and news stations and make certain they do not infringe upon people’s inalienable rights, all the more impactful. Orwell propels his purpose through means of rhetorical devices, such as allusion, colloquialism, and paradoxes in order to build up fear in his audience, which in turn more adeptly and meaningfully develops his purpose.

1984 is a typical dystopian novel in which Orwell explores the many issues present during the time in which he wrote this book. He successfully creates a world in which technology is vastly more sophisticated than it was during the time in which this book was written and in which fear is used as a tool to control individuals who do not conform to the social norms. The horrible and dangerous futuristic world controlled repressively by the government and the thought police is portrayed wonderfully by Orwell who is able to create the perfect dystopian realm.

1984, Orwell’s last and perhaps greatest work, deals with drastically heavy themes that still terrify his audience after 65 years. George Orwell’s story exemplifies excessive power, repression, surveillance, and manipulation in his strange, troubling dystopia full of alarming secrets that point the finger at totalitarian governments and mankind as a whole. What is even more disquieting is that 1984, previously considered science fiction, has in so many ways become a recognizable reality.