George Orwell's Themes

Through 1984, George Orwell predicted what a state which has absolute power over its citizens would look like in 1984 through the terrors of a government with total power over its citizens. The novel touched upon the deeper meanings of human corruption and evil, guiding the reader through the pain and suffering, as well as the joy and what little freedom that the main character, Winston Smith has in the hands of Big Brother, the symbol of the “Party. It is obvious, that Orwell’s intent was to warn the future generations of the dangers of authoritarianism, however even in the modern world we can find traces of 1984’s themes. There are many similarities between our modern day society and Orwell’s 1984, the most significant ones surveillance,

With this capability, the vast majority of human communications are automatically ingested without targeting. If I wanted to see your emails or your wife 's phone, all I have to do is use intercepts. I can get your emails, passwords, phone records, credit cards. (Edward)

Another and probably the biggest contemporary example of censorship is however, widely regarded to be the case of DPRK, a.k.a. North Korea. Currently with television sets hardwired to only broadcast one channel and the private lives of people widely monitored, one cannot find a better example of surveillance in the modern world (North). This signifies the fact that even though life in the 21st century is perceived as a moderately peaceful and free beginning for humanity, authoritative surveillance will still find a way into our private lives, evolving as humanity grows.

Another important trait of authoritarianism is perpetual war. In 1984, Eurasia, Eastasia and Oceania are at constant war at each other, instilling fear and submissive attitudes from the general public, whilst supporting the government and justifying their actions. As Orwell

It is what truly, physically manipulates the freedom and speech of people to be deemed fit to control the population, an obvious example of limiting the intellectual freedom and creativity among people. A pronounced example of censorship in 1984 are the acts of the Ministry of Truth and the use of so-called “Memory Holes” to free the public of Big Brother’s inconsistencies. This is done by using “Speak-Write” machines to change news articles and pictures of the past to prove current party reports legitimate and favorable. Such was the work of Winston, as his job was to find these old articles and mark out the inconsistencies, changing history for the needs of the Party. He believes that if people are able to verify a claim with an external source, even a lie can become truth, as Winston