“Who controls articulation?” Jamila Lyiscott asks in her video for TED Talks, “because the English language is a multifaceted oration subject to indefinite transformation.” The English language began in England and traversed the world through substantial colonization. As a product of those colonies, the language evolved into separate dialects, developing unique idioms, slang, and word spelling according to each area of the globe. That centuries long process has crucially demonstrated that no matter the age, education level, or opinions of one’s audience, culture will in some way have an impact.
In the novel 1984, George Orwell talks about how privacy is scarce and how the government controls our lives in a totalitarian government. George Orwell in his novel, 1984, published in June 8, 1949 addresses the topic of what he thinks Oceania will look like in 1984, based on how things were back when he wrote it. Orwell's claim is supported in today's modern literature in the article “When Euphemism Disguises Truth: George Orwell’s Foresight” by Bernard A. Weisberger saying that when the general atmosphere is bad, language must suffer and then later saying that the German, Russian and Italian languages have all deteriorated in the last 10 or 15 years, as a result of dictatorship. The surveillance capabilities used by Big Brother were that “any sound that winston made above the level of a very low whisper, would be picked up by it; moreover , so long as he remained within the field of vision of the metal plaque commanded he could be seen as well as heard.” As you can see, surveillance has been a big issue and there have been technologies used to spy.
Only Human? In the novel 1984, George Orwell utilizes figurative language as well as vivid diction to convey that totalitarian rule of a society will lead to dehumanization. The first time Winston sees the man sitting at the table across from him, he notices that “his spectacles caught the light and presented to [him] two blank discs instead of eyes” (55). Using a metaphor, Orwell compares the man’s eyes to “two blank discs,” bringing to mind the concept of emptiness, or a lack of emotion.
Language: “The voice came from an oblong metal plaque like a dulled mirror which formed part of the surface of the right-hand wall.” (2) “Day and night the telescreens bruised your ears with statistics proving that people today had more food, more clothes, better houses, better recreations... Not a word of it could be proved or disproved... It was like a single equation with two unknowns” (74) L(1) George Orwell, the author of 1984, uses figurative language within this quote with a perfectly crafted simile.
What is a hero? A hero is someone who has the ability to rise above challenges and is brave enough to sacrifice himself for others. In the novel 1984 by George Orwell, by definition, Winston Smith can be considered the novels hero. This is because of his strength and bravery to go against the party. While reader can admire Winston, they can over exceed his actions.
Question: How does George Orwell use language to convey a dystopian world? Through the use of figurative language, and atmosphere, George Orwell manages to convey language as a powerful tool in Dystopian Societies. In Orwell’s book “1984” George Orwell conveys language by actually restricting certain words, and creating a new language in entirety, named “Newspeak” which is created to minimize any negative concepts stirred by the followers of the Dystopian Society, which removes and limits “bad” words that pose a threat to the society. Which in turn, Orwell manages to create entire languages, such as Newspeak, as an official “language” in Dystopian Societies by masking rebellious, and “bad” words, and instead replacing them with colloquialisms
We first see this idea show up through George Orwell 's 1984. Within this totalitarian novel, the government aims to reduce the meaning of language as well as the number of words possible. Although when we read Orwell 's novel we fear the society he creates, in some ways we are subconsciously slipping into ‘newspeak’. As our society develops, we begin simplifying words, and create an easier way of communication. Today we live in a fast pace moving society, we as humans now want to be able to get from point A to B as fast as we can.
There are some who would argue that "Our civilization is decadent and our language — so the argument runs — must inevitably share in the general collapse" (Orwell 529). Some would refute this saying that our language is not dying but evolving and to a certain degree they are right. The English language has evolved over centuries of time even splitting into multiple dialects such as British, Australian, and American. Each has their own terms, phrases, and even words that the others do not use. These people who seek to destroy Orwell's essay would say that this evolution is natural and that nothing should be done to stop it.
Although many don’t like to admit it, language is constantly changing in our modern day society. However, the change in George Orwell’s 1984 is entirely different than the change we are seeing today; ours is thriving and expanding whereas in 1984, the language is diminishing and devolving. In the novel, the Party—primarily Big Brother—controls the refinement of language, and it is done to “narrow the range of thought [and] make thoughtcrime literally impossible because there [would] be no words which to express it” (Orwell 46). The ultimate goal of eradicating language is to curb the freedom of thought and destroy the public’s imaginative will, which in turn would lead to the perfectly obedient country Big Brother wishes for.
While most language is meant to facilitate communication, some language is meant to deceive or harm and should be regulated to a certain extent in order to protect those affected by this overly confusing or offensive speech. In his essay “Politics and the English Language”, Orwell focuses on corruption in language, specifically in the realm of political language. Orwell claims that “political speech and writing are largely the defense of the indefensible”. Rather than clearly expressing their ideas, politicians use
Thesis: In the novel “Nineteen Eighty-Four”, “Newspeak” and various other principles, are implemented by the Party in order to manipulate and diminish the people’s thoughts, so as to fulfill its own political agendas. The Party is able to diminish the people’s thoughts, as the Newspeak language only comprises of words that are relevant to particular concepts and subject areas that the Part approves of. Additionally these have been given only “one rigid definition” [Pg 53, Part I, Section V].
Language now-a-days has become more and more “slovenly”, causing to downgrade the way we attempt to use it. That is what George Orwell recites in his essay “Politics and the English Language”, criticizing the way contemporary writers of all kind compose their own, and in cause of wanting to come out sounding intelligent, it backfires instead. The outcome from it results as an incorrect form of doing so. It tends to hide the truth, instead of expressing it. There’s also those who do it out of habit, which isn’t all that great either.
The English language has evolved with society, and its culture. George Orwell, author of “Politics and the English Language,” argues that the English language has suffered a significant decline in terms of the way humans interact with one another, and the way it is written. Orwell effectively uses logos, perspective, and didactic language in order to emphasize his point. By doing so, Orwell provokes the reader to rethink their choice of words used on a daily basis in hopes to become a more accomplished, and well-spoken writer and speaker. Orwell provides a plethora of evidence exhibiting what he feels are dying metaphors, pretentious diction, meaningless words, and more.
In the article, “Politics and the English Language” by George Orwell, it is conspicuous that “ the decline of a language must ultimately have political and economic causes”(Orwell 1), and the causes would reinforce the falling of a language indefinitely just like the relation between a failed man and drinking alcohol. Even though the Essay was written in 1946, it still remains timely for current students. According to Orwell, the modern English language becomes “ ugly and inaccurate because our thoughts are foolish, but the slovenliness of our language makes it easier for us to have foolish thoughts” (1). The trend of writing with lack of veracity and surplus of meaningless words leaves a loophole for political language to slip through and the misuse of language can spread by imitation among the students who are learning the language which push them into a pattern with using ready-made phrases.
Along with this, Orwell openly portrays his anger revolving around the destruction of the English Language. In prior writings, Orwell displays his disgust at the evolution of language and his unhappiness in the migration of shorter, unexaggerated sentences to the lengthy wording of simple phrases. In Orwell's writing titled “Politics and the English Language,” he states “no modern writer of the kind I am discussing- no one capable of using phrases like “objective consideration of contemporary phenomena”- would ever tabulate his thoughts in that precise and detailed way,” a passage which thoroughly depicts Orwells contempt of modern writers. By incorporating Old English language into his writings, Orwell subtly displays his unrest with the modernization of our language.
