1984 By George Orwell Analysis
Jorge Elizondo
Period 1
What a Wonderful World.
In 1948, a man by the name of George Orwell released a book which interpreted his views on what he thought the future would look like. The book was entitled, 1984. Orwell describes a chilling depiction of how the power of the state could come to dominate the lives of individuals through cultural conditioning. This anti-utopian world is filled with pervasive government surveillance, and incessant public mind control. Was Orwell a prophet, or just another man brought up in a world of evolving industry and war? "Don't you see that the whole aim of Newspeak is to narrow the range of thought?...”(book 1 chapter5). Newspeak in 1984 is a language that “Big Brother” uses to narrow an individual’s
vocabulary. Instead of multiple words with one meaning, words are erased from existence to shorten the amount of words in the dictionary. For example, the Ministry of Truth in Newspeak is spoken as Minitrue. Having a larger range of vocabulary allows one to expand his/her mind. Today’s Newspeak is “Politically Correct Speech”.
“’What I mean to say, there is a war on,’ said Parsons”. The world of 1984 was dependent on war “War is Peace.”; “Big Brother” used war to keep peace among everybody beneath him. The department that handled war in 1984 was The Ministry of Peace. War in the United States is run by the Department of Defense. Like the Ministry of Peace, The Department of Defense uses patriotism to unite all citizens to face a common enemy.
In war, history is written by the “Winner”; case in point, The Ministry of Truth. Everyday citizens of the United States rely on the Evening news as "legitimate news", to give people the impression that "things are getting better", and that all people agree with the popular way of thinking. Individuals in 1984 get their “Evening News” on telescreens, giving them the impression that their country prospers as a successful country.
“Winston was able to remain outside the range of the telescreen”. 1984 is full of telescreens to monitor crime that is committed by individuals. Telescreens in every room also display propaganda, the “evening news” and plays patriotic music that runs 24 hours a day, without the option of being turned off. Todays “telescreens” are called televisions. Televisions also display the same programing as the “telescreens” in 1984, 24 hours every day. The only difference between the television and the telescreen is that the television can be turned off.
Some would argue today that Orwell’s gloomy warnings for 1984 have turned out to be nothing, but if one concentrates hard enough, his book may be the key to the future. Many of Orwell’s predictions from 1984 can be found in the 21st century, and when compared to today are almost no different from one another, from simple everyday speech to the Department of Defense. Is 1984 a book of prophecies or just another novel that seems to be right on with today’s “civilized world”?
Period 1
What a Wonderful World.
In 1948, a man by the name of George Orwell released a book which interpreted his views on what he thought the future would look like. The book was entitled, 1984. Orwell describes a chilling depiction of how the power of the state could come to dominate the lives of individuals through cultural conditioning. This anti-utopian world is filled with pervasive government surveillance, and incessant public mind control. Was Orwell a prophet, or just another man brought up in a world of evolving industry and war? "Don't you see that the whole aim of Newspeak is to narrow the range of thought?...”(book 1 chapter5). Newspeak in 1984 is a language that “Big Brother” uses to narrow an individual’s
vocabulary. Instead of multiple words with one meaning, words are erased from existence to shorten the amount of words in the dictionary. For example, the Ministry of Truth in Newspeak is spoken as Minitrue. Having a larger range of vocabulary allows one to expand his/her mind. Today’s Newspeak is “Politically Correct Speech”.
“’What I mean to say, there is a war on,’ said Parsons”. The world of 1984 was dependent on war “War is Peace.”; “Big Brother” used war to keep peace among everybody beneath him. The department that handled war in 1984 was The Ministry of Peace. War in the United States is run by the Department of Defense. Like the Ministry of Peace, The Department of Defense uses patriotism to unite all citizens to face a common enemy.
In war, history is written by the “Winner”; case in point, The Ministry of Truth. Everyday citizens of the United States rely on the Evening news as "legitimate news", to give people the impression that "things are getting better", and that all people agree with the popular way of thinking. Individuals in 1984 get their “Evening News” on telescreens, giving them the impression that their country prospers as a successful country.
“Winston was able to remain outside the range of the telescreen”. 1984 is full of telescreens to monitor crime that is committed by individuals. Telescreens in every room also display propaganda, the “evening news” and plays patriotic music that runs 24 hours a day, without the option of being turned off. Todays “telescreens” are called televisions. Televisions also display the same programing as the “telescreens” in 1984, 24 hours every day. The only difference between the television and the telescreen is that the television can be turned off.
Some would argue today that Orwell’s gloomy warnings for 1984 have turned out to be nothing, but if one concentrates hard enough, his book may be the key to the future. Many of Orwell’s predictions from 1984 can be found in the 21st century, and when compared to today are almost no different from one another, from simple everyday speech to the Department of Defense. Is 1984 a book of prophecies or just another novel that seems to be right on with today’s “civilized world”?