1984 Dystopian Disaster

Grasheyella 1 Medlyn Grasheyella Mrs. George- Ross Honors English 1- Period 3 7 October 2014 1984: Dystopian Disaster “The beauty of a dystopia is that it lets us vicariously experience future worlds- but we still have power to change our own” (Allie Condie). A dystopian society is an imaginary place where people live miserable and often fearful lives. In dystopian societies the government likes to force people to act exactly the same, obeying all of their harsh guidelines. This usually ends up in a complete failure, since there's always that one unique person who stands out from the crowd, and disagrees with the beliefs of the government. In the novel Nineteen Eighty Four the author George Orwell, depicts a dystopian society with his use of government control and the changing of the past. Nineteen Eighty Four is a dystopia and this is seen through immense government control. The Party's true intentions shown in the quote, “A world of fear and treachery and torment, a world of trampling and being trampled upon, a world which will not grow less but more merciless” (Orwell 267). The Party does not seek power for the good of others, but for their own benefit. They solely want pure power. By brainwashing the people and telling them what to believe, they gain that power. They can control the people's actions and thoughts, proving how controlling Oceania's government actually is. This is proved in the quote, “We can control matter because we control the mind. Reality is inside the skull. You will learn by degrees, Winston. There is nothing that we could not do” (Orwell 265) The people of Oceania are completely brainwashed by the Party. They all live controlled lives and are completely oblivious to it. The Party's need for power will always be satisfied as long as people believe in their guidelines mentally. It is evident that government control is one of the elements that prove this society is a dystopia. On the other hand, Oceania had many other problems related to their dystopian society, that did not relate to government control. The changing of the past signifies how Nineteen Eighty Four is a dystopia. The Party manipulates children, already at a young age. This is shown in the following quote, “In the old days, before the glorious Revolution, London was not the beautiful city that we know today. It was a dark, dirty, miserable place where hardly anybody had enough to eat and where hundreds and thousands of poor people had no boots on their feet and not even a roof to sleep under” (Orwell 72). The Party manipulates the history as a form of control over the population. The two main reasons they do this are to remove any standard of comparisons and to protect the dependability of the Party. If the people of Oceania found out that the people of the past had a better standard of living, the Party would not get as much respect and people wouldn't rely on them as they do currently. The Party also believe that they can control the past, present and future proved in the quote, “Who controls the past controls the future... who controls the present controls the past” (Orwell 248). The Party brainwashes the society making the only people capable of rebellion, the ones who can look past the principles of doublethink and see the future being actively changed. While you may be able to rebel in your head, you can't go against what the government says. Publicly or even in the privacy of your home, making the slightest amount of thought freedom you would have completely useless. It is apparent that changing the past proves that Nineteen Eighty Four is a dystopia. Government control and the changing of the past display a dystopian society in the book Nineteen Eighty Four written by George Orwell. The Party seeks power, not for the greater good, but for their own benefit. The people of Oceania are being brainwashed, and they are completely oblivious to it. The government lies about the past and conveys that it was a dark and miserable place to live. They also control every thought that anyone makes, so that no one has any freedom at all. In conclusion, the people of Oceania are being manipulated by the government without even realizing it. The government is taking advantage of the citizens and in the end the main protagonist became a victim of the government's brainwashing.