Big Brother And The Khmer Rouge: A Comparative Analysis

Throughout history, mankind has encountered various complications and obstacles. Many of these obstacles have been out of our control, but some are cause by our very selves. Pol Pot, the communist leader of Khmer Rouge during the 1970’s, was considered one of the worst regimes in history and was responsible for countless deaths and genocide. Many of the Khmer Rouge’s philosophies and structure can be found in George Orwell 's 1984. 1984’s Big Brother and the Inner Party controlled all aspect of the people Oceania, much similar to that of the Khmer Rouge. Both had many similarities, but the many of the core beliefs are noticeable. Big Brother and the Khmer Rouge had similar ideologies in was in power and what concepts should be followed. And

Many policies consisted of blocking out all foreign influence, closing schools, banks, hospitals and factories. Religions were outlawed and the owning of all private property was illegal. The Khmer Rouge tried to force Cambodia into a classless society, forcing all to take on an agricultural lifestyle. Khmer Rouge’s goals were to maintain and control the economic and personal life of its populous. In Orwell’s 1984, we see Big Brother and the Party controlling every aspect of peoples lives, even down to their own thoughts and sexual partners. The Party was constantly looking for new ways to control and subjugate its people, such as installing video screens and microphones everywhere and the installation of the Thought Police was the next advancement in controlling peoples day to day life. During the events of 1984, Winston deals with the constant monitoring of his everyday life, even to the point of paranoia sets in. Orwell best words this with “Always the eyes watching you and the voice enveloping you. Asleep or awake, working or eating, indoors or out of doors, in the bath or in bed—no escape. Nothing was your own except the few cubic centimetres inside your skull”(Orwell 34). This shows Winstons utmost terror and was obsessive about being monitored to the point where it controlled his

The Khmer Rouge and Big Brother have their own areas or factions. Comparatively, The Khmer People’s Representatives Assembly(KPRA) and Big Brother and the inner workings of the Party and very different. However, the things they controlled and enforced were very similar. The KPRA was an assembly of the many different peoples of Cambodia, consisting of farmers, soldiers, workers and so on. However, these representatives helped control the areas that the Khmer Rouge used to grasp power over its people. Overall the the KPRA held no actual power but to appoint judges and various other actions and policies that were given by the Khmer Rouge. This can be seen in “The executive branch of government also was chosen by the KPRA. It consisted of a state presidium ‘responsible for representing the state of Democratic Kampuchea inside and outside the country….The judicial system was composed of ‘people 's courts,’ the judges for which were appointed by the KPRA, as was the executive branch”(Khmer Rouge Political Structure). This compared to the structure of the Inner party and Big Brother is very similar. The KPRA backed by the lurching shadow of the Khmer Rouge controlled every aspect of the people 's lives and did so in a fashion that gave all power to the Khmer Rouge itself. This is rather similar to the Inner Party and its