1984 Doublethink Analysis

George Orwell’s 1984: How Doublethink is the Most Powerful Weapon for Control

Being able to believe two paradoxical statements at one time sounds impossible but it is more common than believed. It is called doublethink, which is the ability to hold two contradictory beliefs on a topic and wholeheartedly believing them both at the same time. This term was coined by George Orwell and it becomes the main tool for control over the citizens of Oceania in his novel 1984. Orwell created a totalitarian future in hopes it would serve as a warning to preceding generations as to how the government can metamorphose into having complete power over a population to the point where they even control the thought process of the human mind. Through government

Throughout the book the slogans of “war is peace, freedom is slavery, [and] ignorance is strength” is a forced acceptance by all citizens (Orwell 16). These particular slogans, that exemplify doublethink, are plastered everywhere. The illogicalness of doublethink completely surrounds the citizens, constantly exposing them to it. The second characteristic of monopoly over mass media is quite evident in Winston 's life. Government employees run the internet, newspapers, and radio/tv announcements. The idea of a first amendment in nonexistent. In fact, any action that represents the exercise of the first amendment is a guaranteed visit from the Thought Police for thoughts that are incongruent with the Party. Lastly, the country is run by one single party called the Party. Within the party are different divisions of rank among the employees. Inner party employees are ranked the highest, then Outer Party followed by the paroles, representing the non-governmental citizens. All Oceania is overseen by a metaphorical man called Big Brother which represents the “eyes” of the government. Even though there is not actually one person deemed Big Brother, he is the “embodiment of the

The reason doublethink is so powerful is that it causes confusion which “disrupts people’s stable mental framework” (Hassan). Without the stability, people become more prone to mind control because they lost a sense of their own reality which causes them to seek truth from a trusted authority. This is comparable to a student being confused on a math problem and going to the teacher, a trusted authority, for help. However, in the case of 1984, the government is the trusted authority. The government then feeds their “truth” that consists of doublethink to the public, in turn making them more confused because “the more one utilizes doublethink, the more one becomes insane. This insanity is the exact intention of the Party” (Tuzzeo 11). Thus the cycle of confusion and doublethink never end making each citizen completely dependent on the