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George Orwell's The Rise Of Hopelessness And Censorship

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The Rise of Hopelessness and Censorship Throughout the dystopian novel 1984, Orwell illustrates a nation with no ambition by incorporating varying tones, irony and paradoxes into the writing. The meanings of irony and paradox possess similarities because the two literary devices contain contradicting thoughts. However, a paradox reveals the truth through a contradicting statement while irony differs by containing humor. Additionally, the author's tone creates a tremendous influence on the citizen's judgments by placing emphasis on certain words or expanding on the characters' thoughts. The three literary devices assist the focusing on Big Brother's philosophies of submitting every persons' thoughts and controlling every movement. The control …show more content…

Winston describes feeling lifeless and grasping no hope in the beginning of the novel because the party was always watching. “Asleep or awake, working or eating, indoors or out of doors, in the bath or in bed-no escape” (27). Residents in Oceania that recognize the repetitive viewing of the government, perceive a lost hope for the society. With no hope for the society, Winston “was alone...What certainty had he that a single human creature now living was on his side?...the party would endure forever” (26). When describing the Party at the beginning of the novel, Orwell's tone portrays hopelessness as the citizens fall entrapped by Big Brother. Towards the middle of the novel, a tone of fear overwhelms the citizens. The Thought Police reviews all writings, and if the writings happen to go against the governments' teachings: death follows. “But before death, there was the routine of confession… groveling on the floor and screaming for mercy, the crack of broken bones, the smashed teeth and bloody clots of hair” (103). Evaluating the thought of death for certain writings eliminates any thought provoking idea going against Big Brother. Since the party controls every thought and idea, “no emotion was pure, because everything was mixed with fear and hatred”(126). Throughout the novel, tone instills feelings of hopelessness and fear because independent thoughts and actions disappear from citizen's

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