1984 and Equilibrium - Battle for Individual Freedom
Duhamel 1
Sarah Duhamel
Mrs. K. Venturini
ENG4U
Friday, June 7th, 2013
Battles for Individual Freedom Dystopia is an imagined place or state in which everything is unpleasant or bad, typically a totalitarian or environmentally degraded one (The Free Dictionary). Characteristics of a dystopian society are shown throughout George Orwell’s novel 1984, and in the 2002 film Equilibrium directed by Kirk Wimmer. Winston Smith, in 1984, is a lower ranked member of society, with an outer party member job. He is watched twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week through telescreens set up throughout Oceania. He always finds the Party’s omniscient leader staring back; also known as Big Brother. Winston becomes over-whelmed with all of the strict rules he has to follow and begins to have thought crimes towards the government. Winston has to be careful or he could find himself in a sticky situation with the government, lose the love of his life, Julia, and be sentenced to death because of his rebellion against the Party by trying to be an individual; instead of a robot. Cleric John Preston, in Equilibrium, lives in a futuristic world where a strict regime has eliminated war by suppressing emotions. Preston is a top ranked government agent responsible for destroying those who resist the rules. When he misses a dose of Prozium, a mind-altering drug that affects human emotion, Preston, who has to enforce the strict laws, suddenly becomes the person over-throwing the government and seeks out individual freedom. Dehumanization, social class disparity and abuse of power
Duhamel 2 are strong themes that Winston and Preston have to overcome on their battles to individual freedom. Dehumanization is to deprive of human qualities’, such as individualism, compassion, or civility (The Free Dictionary). George Orwell’s novel 1984’s main character Winston Smith faces dehumanization in everyday living in Oceania. Winston has been on food rations for many years, there is very little no
Sarah Duhamel
Mrs. K. Venturini
ENG4U
Friday, June 7th, 2013
Battles for Individual Freedom Dystopia is an imagined place or state in which everything is unpleasant or bad, typically a totalitarian or environmentally degraded one (The Free Dictionary). Characteristics of a dystopian society are shown throughout George Orwell’s novel 1984, and in the 2002 film Equilibrium directed by Kirk Wimmer. Winston Smith, in 1984, is a lower ranked member of society, with an outer party member job. He is watched twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week through telescreens set up throughout Oceania. He always finds the Party’s omniscient leader staring back; also known as Big Brother. Winston becomes over-whelmed with all of the strict rules he has to follow and begins to have thought crimes towards the government. Winston has to be careful or he could find himself in a sticky situation with the government, lose the love of his life, Julia, and be sentenced to death because of his rebellion against the Party by trying to be an individual; instead of a robot. Cleric John Preston, in Equilibrium, lives in a futuristic world where a strict regime has eliminated war by suppressing emotions. Preston is a top ranked government agent responsible for destroying those who resist the rules. When he misses a dose of Prozium, a mind-altering drug that affects human emotion, Preston, who has to enforce the strict laws, suddenly becomes the person over-throwing the government and seeks out individual freedom. Dehumanization, social class disparity and abuse of power
Duhamel 2 are strong themes that Winston and Preston have to overcome on their battles to individual freedom. Dehumanization is to deprive of human qualities’, such as individualism, compassion, or civility (The Free Dictionary). George Orwell’s novel 1984’s main character Winston Smith faces dehumanization in everyday living in Oceania. Winston has been on food rations for many years, there is very little no