Abuse Of Power In 1984

In the novel, 1984, what is power and who contains such control over the society? What extreme measures are taken to ensure power goes to its owners? Although power is confined to the one uniform government, everyone in 1984 seeks it, and it plays a significant role by shaping the characters of the citizens. This occurs by molding the way that they behave and think. It is demonstrated throughout the society in various forms, both evident and concealed. Power easily controls the younger generation and as a result, they are pretentiously rewarded. For the old in 1984, however, power is a fearful part of their life. Power molds their image of the way the world works and the only way it can work, is reserved for important people and figureheads

It controls every aspect of the citizens’ lives. Many means of power are exercised throughout this novel. For example, technology plays a role in the power of the government. Through the use of telescreens and where they are located, the government can simply hear and see anything and everything they want to. For example, in the novel, Winston says, “But at any rate they could plug in your wire whenever they wanted to. You had to live – did live, from habit that became instinct – in the assumption that every sound you made was overheard, and, except in the darkness, very movement scrutinized” (Orwell 5). Power also defeats Winston in every aspect, even though he was an individual thinker. Eventually, they, the Party and their beliefs, get to him. Winston thinks, in the end, “He had won the victory over himself. He loved Big Brother” (326). They convert him through torture and “cure” him. He ends up content with his life at the café, mindlessly going through life (Caminiti). In the novel, the Party and its ideals eventually penetrate even the most individualistic thinkers and controls every aspect of their

Brainwashing, especially in children, is an effective method of keeping power, because it teaches discipline, toleration, and even love for the government. Brainwashing is accomplished in many ways, such as hate week, the Two Minutes of Hate, popular slogans, and the never-ending wars. In particular, a significant type of brainwashing used throughout the novel is the rewriting of the history. “This process of continuous alteration was applied not only to newspapers, but to books, periodicals, pamphlets, posters, leaflets, films, sound tracks, cartoons, photographs – to every kind of literature or documentation which might conceivably hold any political or ideological significance” (Orwell 45). This demonstrates that the Party controls what its citizens read, hear, and essentially learn, through controlling all forms of literature. In addition, the government ensures they are always right, going to great lengths to do so. “In this way every prediction made by the Party could be shown by documentary evidence to have been correct; nor was any item of news, or any expression of opinion, which conflicted with the needs of the moment, ever allowed to remain on record” (45). Party members, in specific, keep power through their job, status, and loyalty to the government and Big Brother. Another owner of power is Big Brother.