Does The Government Have Too Much Power In George Orwell's 1984

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In the novel, 1984, George Orwell depicts a dystopian society where the government holds all power and have complete control over the population. This government, infamously known as Oceania, had successfully created a new language called Newspeak. However, this new language is not a more advanced form of communication, it is one of the many ways the government sought to control the population. The main way Oceania asserted its control over the people was through the fear and love of Big Brother. They did this by depicting the face of Big Brother on what was known as a telescreen that constantly spied on the community. With telescreens essentially everywhere, it was impossible for anyone to truly express themselves; if seen they would have been punished by the government. With technology growing at a rapid pace in today's world, we have to ask the question; Is our government turning into a controlling power such as Oceania? Technology has grown exponentially in a span of only fifteen years. The cell phone for example in 2001 had limited features, but the smartphone of 2016 has more than quadrupled the features of the 2001 cell phone. Today’s modern smartphone has the capability to connect to the internet, snap clear photos, take video, play games, and …show more content…

People are placed on the list by typing certain words anywhere on the internet; these words include: militia, hostage, shooting, attack, assassination, and much more. Common everyday words place those who do not want to be watched in danger. With such a high amount of people already being monitored, it becomes easier to picture our government slowly becoming a controlling power such as Oceania. However, spying is not limited to smart devices, they are present on every street