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Government In 1984

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1984 is a futuristic novel about a world where the government has become overpowering. Called Big Brother, the government monitors people’s actions, words, and even thoughts. The main character, Winston Smith, begins the novel trying to rebel against this. There are many parallels that can be drawn between the United States today and the governmental enterprises of the novel, as will be explored in this paper. The story 1984 by George Orwell is set in London where a depression is taking place, people are poor, starving, and have no clothes. There are these large pyramid government buildings that rise above the skyline and look down on the people. There are cameras and microphones everywhere and the government is watching the citizens every second of every day, they are even watching them through their own …show more content…

The government is monitoring people’s thoughts and beliefs. It is even illegal to have a diary. This is one of the earliest crimes Winston breaks. He spends his evenings mingling with the poor (called proletarians) congregate, as he is able to slip under the radar more in those areas. It is in these prole slums that Winston purchases his diary. Right from the beginning, he is not optimistic about his future, and is sure that he will be caught eventually. This pessimism is another constant theme in the novel, and it reflects and general distrust of the government, and fear of inevitable downfall. One day in the story, Julia slips Winston a note that reads “I love you”, and it’s obvious that Winston feels the same about her but it's difficult for him to express this because of the government watching and listening to everybody all the time. Eventually Julia and Winston meet where there is privacy and “have a date”. They know this is dangerous because if they’re caught by the spying government, they could be killed or separated and sent off to work in intensive labor camps for the rest of their

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Big Brother spying on its citizens demonstrates how large governments utilize constant surveillance to ensure their

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The actions and behaviours of the citizens are monitored by telescreens implanted in the citizens’ homes at all times. All citizens are constantly reminded that “‘BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING [THEM]’” (2). Since one small mistake can lead to the vaporization of a person, citizens have no choice but to profess their love for Big Brother and the Party if they wish to live. Moreover, the citizens are also forbidden to love or care for anyone else other than Big Brother.

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He contacted O’Brien, a supposed opponent of Big Brother. In Oceania, writing one’s though against Big Brother is mere disobedience, making love with an unofficial partner is taboo and lustful selfishness, none of it being a true rebellious nature. When the moment Winston spent with O’Brien were tangible steps for Winston as it marked the beginning of actual legitimately rebellious act against Big Brother. But to Winston own demise, O’Brien true nature is shown being an ally of Big Brother, it wasn’t known until Winston and Julia were

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It is obvious that the government is the biggest thing in the book “1984” and how much the government controls the population is astounding. Although there are many obvious ways that Big Brother controls the population, “Newspeak” is probably one of the worst, if not the worst and most intense control mechanism. With “Newspeak” not only is what people say controlled, but it is also restricted, it is made so that the language used is modified and people cannot say certain things even if they wanted to. “Newspeak” is a way in which the government in Oceania controls what the people say and believe. Big brother is the ruler of Oceania, and while it might not directly be said that he is a dictator, it is very much obvious that everything that

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For instance, the party members are constantly under surveillance due to the two-way telescreens in 1984. It’s important to understand that this mindset that someone is watching continuously will submit you to following orders. This is because of the worry that someone is always watching. When Julia and Winston first met at a rendezvous point, they had to abandon their community work and find spots in which there was no chance of being caught (Orwell 62). This escape from the indoctrinated routine of constantly being hyper-aware of “getting caught” is what’s kept so many people in line.

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Not only are they being watched by the telescreens, but they are also constantly being eavesdropped on by the thought police which further limits the freedom of the citizens making sure they do not say or do anything to undermine the authority of the government. Through

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1984 follows a man named Winston Smith who resides in Oceania, a country ran by a totalitarian government called INGSOC. The government controls almost every aspect of peoples’ lives and going against the government results in elimination or torture. Surprisingly, 1984 relates significantly to several of today’s societies and governments, including the United States, Russia, Cuba, and North Korea in ways of mass mind control, electronic intrusion, and endless war. The USA PATRIOT Act allows the government to get a hold of an individual’s private records without a warrant.

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They know the whereabouts of innocent people. Does this not create an unsettling discomfort? Frighteningly, there are no limits on what the government can see, there are no limits on how far they can go to invade privacy, and there are no limits on what they can do with their citizens’

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Winston eventually meets a woman named Julia who he is both enamored and repulsed by. His feelings of lust come from her striking and unusual beauty, while the feelings of disgust stem from the abolition of sex within Oceania.

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In other words, they are doing what the government wants them to do; they want the people to become mindless zombies in order to check if there is any rebellion and avoid it. In an event that the individuals realize that the government is being/becoming unethical, it will lead to anarchy and the overthrow of the government. In the same manner, we see this in the 21st century. Edward Snowden, a former Central Intelligence Agency employee, released top secrets about the U.S. and the amount of data they collect on its citizens. The NSA’s, the thought police of the 21st century, average data collection of the U.S. for a month (emails and Skype calls.

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The Power of the Government “War is peace, Freedom is slavery, Ignorance is strength.” (Orwell, 7) These are the three strongest aspects of Oceania’s government. This is the phrase that they keep instilled into every citizen’s mind to spark fear and keep them from rebelling. George Orwell’s novel 1984 is a perfect depiction of the effects of running a society as a complete dictatorship.

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In this book they talk about some capabilities of Big Brother. “Winston kept his back to the telescreen … it was over though , as he well knew even a back can be revealing.” They surveillance members of the organization 24/7, so Any little move they made was known. Winston’s job was to change the past. “Who controls the past controls the future, who controls the present controls the past”.

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The paperweight Winston bought at Carrington’s shop is a clear example of a material that was not destroyed in the novel until the thought police saw it. The diary Winston kept is also an important symbol in the novel which shows the audience how Winston tries to write for the future. However, he keeps it in secret because although it is not illegal, he is sure that he will be punished if he is

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In 1984, George Orwell depicts a dystopian society pervaded by government control and the obsolescence of human emotion and society. Winston is forced to confront the reality of a totalitarian rule where the residents of Oceania are manipulated to ensure absolute government control and servitude of the people. The theme of totalitarianism and dystopia is employed in 1984 to grant absolute power to the government and ensure the deference of the people through the proliferation of propaganda, the repudiation of privacy and freedom, and the eradication of human thought and values. The repudiation of privacy and independent thought and the ubiquity of government surveillance is employed to secure absolute power to the government over the populace

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The book 1984 describes a totalitarian society where citizens are forced to renounce all liberties for the sake of social order. They are guided by the rule of a single figurehead called Big Brother, whom the they are manipulated to entrust their lives to. This figurehead exercises his powers of governing every aspect of the people 's lives by observing and manipulating the populace. Big Brother also divides his subjects into classes as a means to keep the populace oppressed. Throughout this literary narrative the main character, Winston Smith, struggles to survive in this society as he struggles to fit the conventional mold that is preached.

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