The Victims Of History By George Orwell

The author of the novel 1984, George Orwell, is a political critic. Therefore, he used very precise descriptions of situations and words to provide the reader a clear understanding of the entity he is criticizing. When Winston describes the destruction of past records to create new ones to Julia, he says: “Every record has been destroyed or falsified, every book has been rewritten, every picture has been repainted, every statue and street and building has been renamed, every date has been altered. And that process is continuing day by day and minute by minute. History has stopped. Nothing exists except an endless present in which the Party is always right.” (pg. 162). Here, instead of only saying “Every record has been

Nations all around the world are still healing from the wounds of twentieth century totalitarianism, yet more seems to be on the horizon. In his 1984 magnum opus, George Orwell warns future generations of the many dangers of allowing government, or the powerful few, from being the chiefs of law expression and history using the eerie, all-powerful dystopian Party. Unfortunately, it is a warning few have truly heeded in the past half century. Resulting from a lack of written laws, the Party may prosecute its citizens relentlessly and without reason. Moreover, the Party maintains an iron grip on all published information, ensuring a death hold on all free expression and education. Yet, above all, the Party controls history; it rewrites, revises and republishes the past to secure their totalitarian future. In spite of these warnings, the decades following the publication of this novel saw nations continue on the

When it comes to Canadian History, perhaps the most controversial and widely disputable topic of debate would have to be one of Canada’s greatest wars: The War of 1812. A wide array of views are held on many aspects of the war ranging from who won to what ramifications the war would ultimately sire. In yet another discussion on the ever so controversial War of 1812, a new question was posed and deliberated by five historians: whose war, was it? Like any other question posed about this war a multitude of ideas would ultimately arise in each of their differing viewpoints. In their roundhouse discussion, the historians would ultimately serve to paint the War of 1812 as a war that transcends much further than the nationalistic view. A view that, though an important part of Canadian history, has been exaggerated to the point of choking out the many voices who fought and continue to fight for inclusion in the narrative. In their remembrance of the War of 1812, society unwittingly failed history in their lackluster commemorations which exclude important narratives and voices and stand tainted by the misuse of history to serve the nationalistic agenda.

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

Night is an non fiction, dramatic book that tells the horrors of the nazi death camps all around Europe. The book is an autobiographical account of what happened, so the main character is the author. The author is Elie Wiesel who was only 14 year old when Nazi Germany came through his town of Sighet, Transylvania. This is story is set between the years of 1944 and 1945. Elie and his family of 4 are optimistic when Germany begins to take power. Germany invades Hungary, then arrives in Elie’s town. The Nazi’s begin to take over the Jews by limiting their freedom. Jews are eventually deported. The Jewish people are crowded into wagons where they are shipped to Auschwitz. He is separated from his mother and sister. Over the course of the book,

Thesis Statement: The hardships that Elie Wiesel faced in the concentration camps lead him to lose faith, until after when realizing it was crucial to keep faith in God despite the horrendous events of the Holocaust.

Whether it be depictions of the “noble savage” or a red-clad, horse-riding Mountie patrolling the northern nation, Canadians have a knack for creating a mythical element to their past. Deconstructing national myths has become a burgeoning field of academic inquiry as evidenced by monographs such as Daniel Francis’ in his book National Dreams: Myth, Memory, and Canadian History. A central event in the Canadian consciousness, with much national sentiment attached to it, is that of Vimy Ridge. On April 9, 2007 over thirty-five hundred high school students from across Canada congregated at the newly restored Canadian National Vimy Memorial near Vimy, France. Their presence marked the 90th Anniversary of the Battle of Vimy Ridge and

Elie Wiesel wrote this non-fiction book to alert his audience of his and his families experiences in the Holocaust and what they went through. He notes his journey through chronological events using extreme description. He accomplished this purpose by detailing every little thing that he experienced and that the people around him experienced. The central thesis of Night by Elie Wiesel is that a hostile and insensitive environment and world can cause even the strongest person to lose faith and identity. His thesis is clearly stated when he says, “ Never shall I forget that night, that first night in camp, which has turned my life into one long night, seven times cursed and seven times sealed...Never shall I forget those moments which murdered my God and my soul and turned my dreams to dust.  Never shall I forget these things, even if I am condemned to live as long as God Himself. Never.”(pg.32) This thesis is related to the purpose because since Wiesel is a holocaust survivor, it showcases the horrors of the Holocaust and the effects it had on the surviving victims.

“He who controls the past controls the future. He who controls the present controls the past.”

The difference between censorship and propaganda becomes centrally intertwined into the topic of maintaining power and control. Propaganda is frequently the device used to perpetuate the official vision, while censorship eradicates the rest. These two “arts” work in tandem to develop a sense of legitimacy for a regime. Propaganda however is unmistakably different and much broader phenomenon than censorship. While censorship attempts to contain alternative views through control and aggression, propaganda tries to impress one view through manipulation, ultimately through lies. Propaganda does not necessarily imply censorship, but censorship is always accompanied by propaganda (De Baets p. 18). George Orwell describes these methods in detail in his novel 1984 when he states that,” All history was a palimpsest, scraped clean and re-inscribed, exactly as often as necessary.” (Orwell 1949 p. 42) This quote illustrates the use of propaganda and censorship as a way of swaying public opinion and justifying the right to power. The pages of history will be rewritten by those in power to best align with their own strategies and motives. The problem now exists for the historian to sort through the high level of distortion and deception and unveil the truth. Here lays many dangers for the historian because in many cases the truth directly conflicts with the way that power is derived. The powers at be will

From the years of 1945-2000, Canada changed and developed as a country. These changes had both negative and positive effects, and were quite controversial. With a global crisis at hand, Canada found itself involved in international conflicts like they’ve never experienced before. Meanwhile, Canada was also dogged with internal issues, which were both political and economic, as it changed society. Canada was faced with problems of immigration, multiculturalism, Quebec separatism, as well as regionalism. This made Canada’s society change drastically. With Canada’s changes came the development of Canada’s national identity. Canadians began to view their country differently, and Canada’s identity took ahold of a new meaning.

Being a Canadian is a blessing. It is a once in a lifetime opportunity that garners protection against low wages, provides a platform propelling diversified learning environments and functions under a democratic government system operating for the common good. Adopting a pretentious framework, being able to acknowledge Canadian identity within the following context is the actual blessing. Canadian identity itself is submerged within an array of events, individuals and time periods that have significantly contributed to her development and fundamentally, idealization as a unified nation. Nevertheless, the idea of unity was not a matter of immediate occurrence; the journey to cultivating a unified nation was plagued by measures accentuating plurality.

In the novel 1984 Winston Smith is undoubtedly a failure. Winston exhibits attributes that would lead one into believing that he in fact, is a hero. Winston attempted to rebel against society and over through the party. Winston nearly achieves hero status and as a result, his failure is substantially more devastating. George Orwell created Winston as a failure so that Winston could operate as a warning to others that the world is headed in a negative direction.

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.

Readers of George Orwell have long appreciated the significance of his representation of a futuristic dystopian world. ‘Big brother is watching you,’ ‘Thought police,’ ‘Ministry of love,’ ‘Hate week,’ are expressions that Orwell used to represent his preoccupation with the totalitarian regimes of 20th century. More than one out of four Americans said they have red his dystopia and use his expressions in their language. Many critics claim that the novel opened up new prospects of political awareness. ‘1984’ is a political fiction in which the government eliminates all forms of political opposition, be it real or imaginary. The atmosphere of the novel is completely depressing because there is no hope for change. The government dominates people morally and forces them to live in constant fear. His terrifying vision of a future in which all aspects of society are controlled by a tyrannical system attracted the