Examples Of Totalitarianism In 1984 George Orwell

With technological advancements at its peak, the lack of privacy has become a rampant social and economic issue. Some citizens of the United States believe their lives are constantly monitored, compromising their privacy. In fact, “six out of ten Americans believe that it is not possible to go through daily life without having their data collected” (Pew Research Center). As government control progresses, the problem is assumed to continue to grow in power. While technology allows easier access to information and better communication, the backlash could be catastrophic. In the novel 1984, George Orwell predicts to some extent, totalitarianism in everyday life. He uses setting, characterization, and action to set the scene for increasing government control. The setting of 1984 consists of
As time progresses, the fear of data collection and privacy breaches dominates the ever-growing fears of Americans. The government consistently makes us feel comfortable with large companies like Apple, Google, Snapchat, etc. expose our personal information to the public. In the scene when O'Brien begins torturing and interrogating Winston, O’Brien aggressively persuades Winston to admit he knows what has been going on all along. “You have known it for years, though you have fought against the knowledge” (Orwell 203). O’Brien attempts to convince Winston of his apprehension of the party's actions, which includes gaslighting their citizens to believe they know what is best for them. This resembles the current government trying to keep the people out of the loop regarding technological advancements. “The government often relies on private entities to carry out its work. It has them running private prisons, designing location tracking technologies, and developing artificial intelligence (AI) systems that automate government decisions”