Totalitarianism In 1984 By George Orwell

In 1984, Orwell talks about how language can be misused to deceive the people. Today, political precision and euphemism are equally inescapable and ridiculed. The novel also discussed the corruption of verbal progression under the direction of Big Brother. The formation of the Newspeak dictionary is mentioned very often in the book. The purpose of Newspeak was not only to provide a moderate form of expression for Oceania but to make sure that all additional methods of thought impossible. This is shown today by many public figures who speak on behave of the United States. For example, “Politically correct” language is a form of speech that stumps thought. Autocorrect and autocomplete functions frequently command our phrasing and the language of texting is a skill that has become increasingly more

In his essay “Politics and the English language”, he states multiple examples of how politicians use the English Language against civilians. When he wrote this essay, the people surrounding him were overcoming World War II. Due to the timing this issue wasn’t as important to them as it was for Orwell. He wanted people to understand the real threat Politicians were having on their population. He emphasizes that politicians have learned the best way to manipulate the general population. They used language that was extremely complicated and unnecessary in order to control the way we think, talk, and act. Since no one had any idea what these politicians were talking about; the only reasonable thing to do was to just listen and believe what they told us. This is why George Orwell felt it necessary to spread his message, even if the main focus was on overcoming World War II.

George Orwell’s book - 1984 - is mainly about how people are struggling under a totalitarian regime in London that has set out strict rules that it uses to control the people and remain in power. He wrote this book in 1949 right after the end of the second world war. Orwell’s purpose for writing this books was partly a reflection on his present - the war-torn countries, the communist governments and the sheer politics of his time. He was also predicting the fate of the world in the future as it relates to his present. In the process, he created words like thought crime, thought police, proles and several others that have entered common use soon after. The fact that some concepts like doublethink, memory holes, newspeak and telescreens that

Newspeak demolishes thought. Throughout the book, George Orwell tackles controversial ideas. He uses topics that create distraught in the readers to show how the future could exist. People kill for excitement and uses special forces to attack people. This happens because “Big Brother” wants it to. Big Brother runs the society and he uses his influence to control his subservients. He does this with the help of his new language “Newspeak,” which inhibits peoples thoughts and minds. The society in George Orwell’s 1984 does not have the capability to form personal opinions because of Newspeak.

George Orwell’s 1984, widely known for its chilling descriptions of the dystopian society of Oceania, warns of a world in which individuality is virtually destroyed as one oppressive government controls all aspects of life. Decades after the novel’s publication in 1949, various nations today draw unsettling parallels with the characteristics of the government described in 1984. North Korea is one such example, particularly seen as a controversial topic in global debate. Although North Korea and Oceania in 1984 both possess totalitarian governments that attempt to control and restrict individualism, the means in which each government originated and gained authority differ.

Over seventy years after he lived and wrote, the works of English journalist and democratic socialist George Orwell, continue to fascinate, stimulate and enrage his readers concerning the structure of society and the organization of government. The controversial writer openly spoke out against the absolute power of any government, warning that a fascist government would deprive its people of their basic freedoms and liberties. Orwell’s novel, 1984, serves as a reminder of the danger of totalitarianism by depicting a future in which all citizens live under the constant surveillance of the “Big Brother.” Through the main character, Winston Smith, Orwell demonstrates the dangers of totalitarianism; writing of the consequences of absolute government in several essays and proposing socialism as an alternative. To Orwell, the role of government is to represent the common people rather than the old and the privileged.

“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.

In Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four the power of language empowered the Party to solidify their control over the citizens. The politicians isolated the citizen’s state of mind instructing them to do what was asked of them. They were not able to have their own critical thinking because they worked like machines who were functioned by the Party. Throughout the entire novel, Newspeak was used by the Party to take the citizens of Oceania to such an extent where their state of mind was isolated from their own self and they were only able to describe their actions with one word that was already “decided” by the government in the language of Newspeak. The citizens are isolated from their lives not only through the use of Newspeak but as well as the

The prosperity of totalitarian governments throughout time has been reliant on the prevention of one thing: nonconformity. Strict government control and a sense of paranoia inflicted by this overbearing rule bends citizens into mindless drones who follow government direction at all times. A prime example of this is seen in George Orwell’s 1984 within the government of Oceania known as “Big Brother”. In 1984, Orwell employs the concepts expressed via Big Brother to manipulate collective memory and create of a hive mind of a society in which citizens blindly comply with government control. The heavy manipulation of media enforces the use of ideas such as doublethink, which limit thought and slowly deteriorate memory.

Evidence to how Orwell's warning his audience about totalitarianism is present through the parties abolishment of the one freedom of speech to such an extent that one would be incapable of expressing their resentment of the party oligarchical government. Orwell’s represents this concept through the idea of Newspeak and the extreme lengths that the party goes to ensure its people conformity and silent obedience. Newspeak achieve it intended goals through the destruction of words to “narrow the range of thought” as Winstons Comrade Syme put it “..we shall make thoughtcrime literally impossible, because there will be no words in which to express it...” Syme goes on to say. These few lines accompanied with Symes later remark “Newspeak is Ingsoc and

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

Since without language thought is nearly impossible the party believes that by altering the language they can impose their untrue reality. They will be able to restrict it to the point that even a person’s thoughts are manipulated; things such as individualism and imagination will cease to exist. Which ultimately will give the Party total control over society. The newspeak engineer also goes on to state “ In the end we shall make thoughtcrime literally impossible because there will be no words in which to express it.” (55) This quote proves how vital control of language is to the party, it is the key to becoming a controlled state. By creating the element of Newspeak in 1984 Orwell is warning against the potential consequences of manipulating language to benefit people in power and how this can eventually lead to a totalitarian state.

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.

In “1984,” Orwell describes a terrible society where totalitarianism reaches the top. In this circumstance, personality and freedom are strangled and thought is controlled. The most frightening aspect is that citizens have no sense right and wrong. Without a doubt, the reason why these happen is the governing of the Party, which is controlling everything in the country, Oceania. Orwell uses the control of language to show the idea that the Party solidifies its dominant position.

The popular word “Orwellian” was named after the clean, clear and direct writing style of the novelist George Orwell. He often used a writing style that enhanced the imagery throughout, while using short words and phrases that got straight to the point. Although, George Orwell wrote about his political convictions in simplistic form , the word “Orwellian” can be seen as an adjective that describes a situation, idea, or a social condition, that usually refers to an oppressive totalitarian government with an abundance of surveillance, a perfect example being the society