The Importance Of Control In George Orwell's 1984

Through 1984, George Orwell predicted what a state which has absolute power over its citizens would look like in 1984 through the terrors of a government with total power over its citizens. The novel touched upon the deeper meanings of human corruption and evil, guiding the reader through the pain and suffering, as well as the joy and what little freedom that the main character, Winston Smith has in the hands of Big Brother, the symbol of the “Party. It is obvious, that Orwell’s intent was to warn the future generations of the dangers of authoritarianism, however even in the modern world we can find traces of 1984’s themes. There are many similarities between our modern day society and Orwell’s 1984, the most significant ones surveillance,

The greater good of the society is not more important than our right to privacy. In George Orwell’s “1984” he discusses a horrible totalitarian government where everyone is being watched at all times and killed for breaking their harsh rules. Sure, our government hasn’t gone to that extent yet, but it has so many similarities to our present day society. In George Orwell 's 1984 he says “any sound that Winston made, above the level of a very low whisper, would be picked up by it;.... He could be seen as well as heard” (orwell, pg 4) .Orwell is talking about a telescreen a camera of some sort that is always watching the people of Oceania .

Using psychological manipulation and fear through war, falsehoods, and torture, Big Brother retains absolute control over one’s thoughts and actions, and thus strips the individual of humanity. Although the society illustrated in George Orwell’s novel seems implausible, Orwell aimed to reflect certain aspects of the time period in which he lived and warn readers of the impending future he foresaw. The rise of tyrannical governments during the 1940s, such as Hitler in Germany and Stalin in Russia, fueled Orwell’s paranoia and thus resulted in Big Brother, the representation of totalitarian government he predicted could arise. This, along with the seemingly constant warfare and the inherent loss of highly valued democratic ideals provoked Orwell’s allegory as a way to warn the general public. As a result of the communist and fascist dictatorships of Orwell’s time, 1984 sought to reflect the tactics of manipulation, fear, and stripping one’s individuality employed to control the population by illustrating the principal theme of totalitarianism.

Surveillance is used as the eye over the population. In 1984 it is Big Brother who sees and hears every step you take, while in America it is the National Security Agency (NSA). By governing the people with lies and limitations, a government can do as it pleases. If the people do not know what is right and wrong, they can easily be fooled. The first point is doublethink, in 1984 the party uses the idea of continuous war as an act of doublethink.

Has our nation ever thought about how the government could be manipulating people in believing in anything with the power of language? That is exactly what the book, 1984 by George Orwell does. The government in 1984 controls their people with the fear of having no privacy. In a result from not having privacy, the government can tell who is going against the Party and if they talk bad about the Party then they will be taken away and “vaporized”. Also, if the people do not believe in everything the Party says then they also will be taken away.

The novel 1984 makes us ruminate our society and the technology given to us today by making us second guess the power that the government can have over us. Who is behind the camera? Winston Smith, the main character in the novel has lost all his freedom to the totalitarian “Big Brother.” Winston Smith lives in a world of duplicity where everyone 's being watched at every waking moment, this terrifies Winston because he is not able to think or speak wrong opinions without having the Thought Police take him away. The horror of 1984, the complexity of the future created by Orwell is a recognizable one, even in the 21st century. It 's easy to see how those in control can, through manipulation and propaganda, make pain simply for the sake of being

In George Orwell’s novel 1984 there is an organization called “The Party” This organization is a political party that has total control over the lives of it’s members and the people it governs through a totalitarian regime. “Big Brother,” a metaphorical political leader that represents the values of The Party in the novel, is always watching these people through surveillance and informants. (Orwell, 1984, 2008) While this political party is fictional, it does bear an eerie resemblance to the dominating party of the Democratic German Republic (DGR), called the Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SUPG.) (Britannica Online 2016) The SUPG maintained control convicting or deporting anyone who they considered an enemy of the party. Evidence of any party disloyalty was found through surveillance of individuals.

In 1984, a dystopian novel written by George Orwell, proles are represented as being generally incompetent in the ability to think and rebel against their stolen rights. However, as the story progresses, Winston comes to a realization that proles are the only ones with the character of human beings and the strength to gain consciousness to overthrow the party. Through this characterization of the proles, Orwell satirizes the detrimental effects of Stalin’s totalitarian government in employing total control and perpetual surveillance of the people in USSR to maintain an established hierarchy. The nature of how the system views the proles is clearly visible through the treatment and description of the proles in the eyes of Winston. As mentioned in the text, “the Party taught that the proles were natural inferiors who must be kept in subjection, like animals...”, Winston along with other members of the party were embedded with the idea that it’s conventional for the members of the party to treat the proles in a degrading manner similar to the ways in which they would treat animals.

With diverse ethnicities, occupations, and ideologies, individuality is an innate part of humanity. Independent thought and reasoning is encouraged as means to a smarter and safer society. However, in the dystopian novel 1984 by George Orwell, the ruling government strives to alienate humanity’s individuality in an attempt to consolidate power. Orwell depicts an oppressive society ruled by the ruling class called the Party, where Winston, an individual, struggles against the totalitarian government. By the end of the novel, Winston is destroyed and the Party continues to dictate conformity among the masses.

Under the dictator Kim Jong Un, freedom of speech is basically nonexistent. Speaking out against the regime is a dangerous act that can result in the death of you and your entire family. In Oceania, the society in Orwell’s 1984, even having an anti Big Brother (Oceania’s equivalent to Kim Jong Un) thought will result in death. Throughout the novel, Orwell shows the deterioration of a man’s humanity at the hands of Big Brother. George Orwell’s 1984 explores the freedom of human thought and what can cause that to be manipulated; it serves as a warning against a government that will take away the main facet of humanity: freedom of thought.

Eyes constantly follow every movement; ears hang on every word. In a terrifying futuristic world, the government controls everything from the current economy to ancient history. Big Brother, the blindly accepted leader, is a phantom figurehead that the people of Oceania follow like sheep. George Orwell shows the most effective means of control in 1984 is intimidation, which is conveyed through the government’s use of surveillance and torture. The Party controls its citizens though different forms of surveillance, including telescreens and the Thought Police.