Dehumanization In 1984

The books The Long Walk by Stephen King and 1984 by George Orwell are set in dystopian societies. This greatly affects the text in many ways, whether through strict rules or oppressive government. Governments in dystopian societies utilize fear and surveillance to dehumanize their citizens. In order for dystopian governments to dehumanize their citizens, they must first gain complete control. They often accomplish this by creating strict rules or impossible situations. This is demonstrated in 1984 when Winston, the protagonist, explains how the government prevents rebellion, "Until they become conscious they will never rebel, and until after they have rebelled they cannot become conscious" (Orwell 61). This quote shows how the government, INGSOC,

They are being forced to walk four miles per hour until they cannot anymore and are killed. The final participant receives everything they want for the rest of their life. However, the odds are incredibly against them and the contestants do not realize that until it is too late, "Well he's a murderer! That's what he is, a murderer!" King 49. The major, the one coordinating the event, is seen as an idol until the boys start realizing ninety-nine of them are going to die and that means nothing to the major. The government utilizes dehumanization to make them realize how insignificant they are in their society. As the walk progresses, the conditions continue to worsen and more contestants are killed. The protagonist, Garraty, starts to realize how cruel this event is. As he continues walking he learns to accept that his friends he makes on the walk will die; in fact, he will witness their deaths. He starts seeing his friends become less and less humane. ''His skin has gone scaley with dehydration. His eyes had sunk into hollowed sockets" (King 196). That quote shows just how the conditions affect the

They take the last guy out behind a barn somewhere and shoot him too" (King 111). Although this is not the truth, this still reinforces the idea that the government does not happen to the walkers. They are mistreated to the extent that they believe even if they win the event, there is no hope for themselves. To further show the government's knowledgeable neglect, they not only kill the walkers who fail to maintain the pace of four miles per hour, but they do so with unnecessary cruelty. Sebbins was a participant that decided to try and walk off the course and the government decided to utilize him as an example of what happens to those who rebel. Unlike the other contestants who were simply shot and killed with precision, Sebbins was purposely shot in places that would keep him alive and draw out his death for a longer duration, "The blue snakes of Olson's intestines were slowly slipping through his fingers" (King 202). Not only was Sebbin's death unnecessarily cruel, it was televised and done in front of a crowd to provoke more fear and prevent other possible