Thoughtcrime In 1984

Under constant surveillance by a man known as Big Brother, the citizens living in the dystopian society in George Orwell’s 1984 are constantly monitored for betrayal of the government, also known as Thoughtcrime. Through people on the streets and devices known as telescreens, the government watches every movement, every word, every decision a person makes. Surrounding this concept of totalitarianism and Thoughtcrime is the idea that the government often manipulates and constructs the memories of a person, explaining some of the narrative improbabilities in the novel. This also strips the individuality of a person away, simply making them pawns that the government has complete control over in their society. Using this idea, the construction
Since the time a person is born, they develop different memories based on the environment they live in and the people around them. In a society such as 1984 where citizens are taught from a young age to idealize the government and every decision the government makes, the construction of memory is not so much based on personal experiences, but more so the information the government feeds them as to limit Thoughtcrime. Thoughtcrime is a major fear of the Party and it is viewed as so serious that the government feels the need to control the memories and instinctual reactions of humans (Fitzpatrick). By doing so, the government has essentially taken away all freedom of thought and the individuality of a person, making them all basically the same as far as their way of thinking. Additionally, this implies that those who were brought up during the time of the Party have essentially been living meaningless lives (Dilworth). For a character such as Winston who was born before the creation of the Party, he managed to hold onto some of his childhood memories and what the world was like before the Party. Members in similar age to Winston and older are the only ones who hold onto memories of the past, while the younger generations are fed propaganda of the Party and have all of their memories created by the government. “Nothing was your own except the few cubic centimeters inside your skull” (Orwell 27). This might be true for the older Party members, but for the younger generations, nothing is truly their own if everything they own, think, or speak is created by the Party. However, older Party members are still at the mercy of the government, as their memory, thoughts, and actions can still be