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Similarities Between '1984 And Anthem'

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From a young age, humans learn that truth comes from authority. This concept is addressed in the dystopian novels 1984 by George Orwell and Anthem by Ayn Rand when they convey the possibilities of a totalitarian society. The controlling governmental figure in 1984, Big Brother, uses psychological torture to convince his citizens that life is better when he is in charge. In Anthem, the society has reverted to times before electricity and everyone is convinced through their loss of information that individual thought, even if it is to advance society, is dangerous. Regardless of both novels differing, they are unified through their author’s warning that the destruction of individualism by the government can quell the growth and progress of humankind. …show more content…

They have the opportunity to choose what they want to watch and when with no fear that they are being monitored. Telescreens are everywhere in 1984, they promote pro-government propaganda and, unlike television sets, allow Big Brother to constantly see what his citizens are doing. Winston lives in paranoia of being caught by the Thought Police due to the way Big Brother makes himself ubiquitous, “always the telescreens watching you and the voice enveloping you” (Orwell 27). By monitoring citizens, limiting language, and regulating activities, Big Brother has full control. Having complete control also means having complete knowledge. Complete knowledge is what the World Council of Scholars lack in Anthem. Equality 7-2521 makes this discovery when he tries to show the scholars his electricity. If the World Council of Scholars truly had all the knowledge like Big Brother, they would have been ecstatic about the invention of electricity and the benefits it could bring to their society. However, because they are small-minded, “they lept to their feet, they ran from the table, and they stood pressed against the wall” (Rand 70). The differing amounts of knowledge of those in charge can be seen through how they govern their society. Big Brother knew everything because he was fearful of his citizens acting against him when he is unaware; the World Council of Scholars were small-minded because they were fearful of …show more content…

The same is for Equality 7-2521 who frees himself by running into the Uncharted Forest and is later met by Liberty 5-3000 who followed him. In both novels, the vibrant colors of nature, “the leaves had edges of silver that trembled and rippled like a river of green and fire flowing high above us” (Rand 78), is juxtaposed with the dull greyness of the city, “a creature of the indoors, with the sooty dust of London in the pores of his skin” (Orwell 119). Winston and Equality 7-2521 freely express themselves and their love whilst in the woods; however, Winston would not have experienced this freedom if it were not for Julia while Equality 7-2521 experienced this freedom because of his need to get away from his old society. Winston was only momentarily free when Julia helped him, Equality 7-2521 used his own courage and bravery to escape his situation permanently. Due to both character’s need for freedom, they were eventually caught and tortured. Winston gave in to the torture and was placed back in society as a loyal Party member with no yearning to be free. On the other hand, Equality 7-2521 broke out of the Palace of Corrective Detention, showed his invention to the World Council of Scholars, and escaped to the Uncharted Forest when they criticized his invention. “He has the courage to be independent, to commit what are considered sins so that he can forge a new path for himself and

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Comparisons and Contrasts of Fahrenheit 451 and Anthem The novel Fahrenheit 451 is written with aspects of a society similar to that of Anthem in relation to their futuristic governments and dynamic characters. Montag in Fahrenheit 451 is faced with multiple challenges comparable to those of Prometheus in Anthem. Although each character plays a different role, they are both striving to achieve freedoms and happiness. The wellbeing of themselves and others is predominately the main concern for both Montag and Prometheus.

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Collectivism is the idea that a group 's needs must be put before the needs of oneself and the society functions as “we” rather that “me”. Throughout the stories one sees how each author portrays the use of a collectivist society though uniqueness, equality, and transgression. There are many similarities between the novella Anthem by Ayn Rand and the story “Harrison Bergeron” by Kurt Vonnegut Jr. In Anthem and “Harrison Bergeron” one could see that a similar theme is that going against the grain causes consequences. According to “Harrison Bergeron” a ballerina states that “ ‘Harrison Bergeron age fourteen,’ she said in a grackle squawk, ‘has just escaped from jail, where he was held on suspicion of plotting to overthrow the government.

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In 1984 by George Orwell and “Harrison Bergeron” by Kurt Vonnegut they show how blind faith in a government leads to the psychological manipulation of the mind to make sure there is absolutely no chance of rebellion. In 1984, the Party and Big Brother are the supreme beings of Oceania and they change the way people think to suit the Party’s needs. The Party has consistently made the citizens feel like they have everything they need and that they are winning all the battles to boost morale. “Returns now completed of the output of all classes of consumption goods show that the standard of living has risen no less than twenty per cent over the past year.” (Orwell 58)

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Anthem Essay The novel Anthem written by Ayn Rand demonstrates how society can force people to obey. How no one will dare to be different, and the feeling of guilt and shame washes over when you are. The fact that massive groups of human beings can be mislead and conform to few leaders can be a terrifying mentality. Conformity is an important part of a successful culture or nation, but it can lead to disaster.

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Midterm Essay 1984 by George Orwell and The Anthem by Ayn Rand are both novels about people who live under a totalitarian regime and who go against their governments. In 1984, Winston Smith works for his government’s media outlet. He reads books, articles, magazines, and anything they tell him to and then translates them into a new, more limiting, language for the people to read. He gets caught going against the government and is tortured until he changes and agrees with the Party. In The Anthem, Equality 7-2521 lives under a government that makes every single person equal.

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What would it be like not to have any freedom? To lack emotion? To not be able to think for yourself? No one really knows the answer, and it’s probably best we don’t know, but a few authors have tried to show what they think it would be like. George Orwell and Ayn Rand both experienced the rise of communism during World War I and World War II, and they each wrote their own version of dystopian futures that show what it would be like if something like communism grew to be the only government in the world.

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Both 1984 and Anthem have very oppressive governments, but their laws are completely different from one another. In 1984, the government is strange when it comes to rules, there is nothing that is illegal, the people are allowed to do whatever they want, but if they do anything or even look slightly suspicious, the “Thought Police” will kidnap, torture, and kill anybody who has gone against the government. The government believes that if people are allowed to have emotions, they will become angry at the government, and revolt, and that’s why emotions are illegal (I will call it illegal because even though there are no laws, doing certain things will get you in trouble, so to avoid confusion, I’m going to continue saying it’s “illegal”), including emotional attachments to other people. People having sex for the purposes of procreation is perfectly legal, but having sex because you love the

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In Winston’s believes, liberation is an entity hidden behind a mist of futility, an endless cycle of failed uprisings caused by the insolence of the general masses. The cycle also represents the situation that Winston finds himself within, regardless of his awareness he is still paralyzed by the irrational animalistic instinct to cower in fear of the party’s promised punishment. Resulting in his apathy towards revolution which causes him to abstain from any true revolutionary undertaking; as a result, the cycle of despair continues infinitely. Moreover, the paradox may highlight the extent of Winston’s indoctrination by the party. Winston views the revolution as fantastical due to the Proles oblivious nature, which is an assumption that is made by Winson as a result of party propaganda, which states that all “proles and animals are free”.

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The novel, 1984, can be most closely compared with the popular book and movie series, The Hunger Games. Overt comparisons between the two novels include their futuristic approach and the dystopian societies that emerged after periods of war. Additionally, both novels highlight poverty as a highly effective method of control. Building on that method of control, both novels have a strict hierarchy of society used to control the masses.

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