Essay On 1984 By George Orwell

Power is when those in higher authority control the lives of innocent people. Based on the novel 1984 by George Orwell, students in English 10 Honors were required to participate in "The Game." This activity occurred for one week and took place during school hours. "The Game" gave students an idea of what citizens who live under a totalitarian government in a dystopian society experience daily. Students followed the provided rules, some of which included wearing a red ribbon, wearing a blue clothing item, and using a blue pen for writing. If a student did not follow these rules, they had to deal with the consequences of being written up by the Thought Police. In the book 1984, citizens live under a totalitarian government and are treated inhumanely.

Because of this, citizens who do not follow the rules the party has set in place will be punished. Through my participation in "The Game," I learned about the effects of the harsh totalitarian government.
Based on my experience of "The Game," I thought of myself differently. My view of my classmates stayed the same throughout the whole experience because I was hoping that everyone would follow the rules, but that was not the case. On the first day of "The Game," some of my peers had already broken the rules, but I tried my best to abide by them. I wrote in my first journal entry, "It is now the first day of "The Game." I am trying my best to not break any rules. I am not sure if the Thought Police have reported any of my classmates, and I definitely do not want to be the first" (Kalai 1). Ever since "The Game" started, I felt paranoid because I feared breaking the rules. I did not want the Thought Police to report me for something I had mistakenly done without notice.

Before playing "The Game," I thought this sort of government was very unfair to the people since it was so harsh. However, after reading the book, I can feel some connection to what the characters were feeling. According to Bill Drexel, a Shwarzman Scholar at Tsinghua University, "the power of surveillance technology to work against minorities is considerable, and nowhere is this clearer than in Kashgar. It should be a warning" (Drexel 2020). People in power have the dangerous potential for surveillance technology to target and oppress minority groups. Kashgar, a city in China where the Uighur people are heavily monitored and persecuted, highlights this problem's real-life significance. "It should be a warning" means that Kashgar should serve as an example for the rest of the world to consider the potential harms of mass surveillance technology toward minority groups. The book's main character, Winston, kept a diary of his feelings and thoughts since he was being forced to keep them to himself because of the strict government. While playing "The Game," I felt similar to what Winston probably felt because I had to refrain from doing things I would typically do. I did feel more empathy for Winston, along with the other citizens, while participating since it was the same type of thing that the characters in the novel were going through. It was a bit draining and disappointing not being able to