In the book, “1984” by George Orwell, the author uses an important theme that a totalitarian government’s greatest strength and source of power as well as its weakness is language. The censorship of language and communication can change and affect human instinct as well as manipulate the mind. It can gaslight people into believing anything, while simultaneously stripping away freedom. To begin, this novel is set in a hyper dystopian/futuristic society where everything is controlled, even people's thoughts. Passion is forbidden as well as one sense of individualism. If you break a rule, you die and these rules are revealed to be more and more insane with heinous repercussions. Everyone seems to be fully under control, a drone for the government, everyone except for a man named Winston whom the story centers around. Throughout the story, we follow Winston and his perspective as he meets someone else who seems to share the same sense of enlightenment as himself and slowly starts unraveling the constructs of this totalitarian government. …show more content…
The double negative is a good representation of the concept of “doublespeak” which at best, needlessly simplifies phrases and at worst mindlessly indoctrinates. To us, these words seem somewhat ridiculous because to us it's the opposite of what's true but this is just one of many examples of how the government uses language to influence the people of Oceania who have no choice but to listen and follow the