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Similarities Between The Handmaid's Tale And 1984

1435 Words6 Pages

Zophine Saitua-Rippell
Ms. Reeve
ENG3U6
12 Jan 2022
Looking to the Past with a Warning for the Future: The Dystopian Worlds of The Handmaid’s Tale and 1984
There is something incredibly compelling about a well-crafted dystopian novel. They are set in a believable world, which can be seen to reflect the concerns of the time in which they were written. However, the novels hold an even greater relevance in that they are somewhat prescient and seem to have held warnings of some of the difficulties facing us today. While all dystopian literature is not equal, Margaret Atwood and George Orwell are renowned authors who have created exceptional dystopian worlds in their work.
Margaret Atwood’s book, The Handmaid's Tale follows the life of a woman …show more content…

Both the Republic of Gilead and the Party employ constant surveillance to keep their citizens in line. In The Handmaid’s Tale, there are the Eyes which are Gilead's secret police and intelligence forces. Offred, along with everyone else in Gilead, is fearful of the Eyes; she knows what will happen to her if she’s caught. Traitors are subjected to torture or public execution. The Gileadian population lives in constant fear; aware of the horrible punishments they face, public opposition is non-existent. Furthermore, they use self-surveillance, having the Handmaids walk in twos to monitor each …show more content…

The technology is certainly there for a high level of surveillance, and the books stand as a warning against its potential misuse.
Censorship and propaganda are also tools employed by the governing regimes in both novels. In The Handmaid’s Tale, the news was tailored to put the regime in a good light, and the population would never know the extent to which the news stories that they heard were true.
Even more prevalent is 1984’s use of propaganda. The Ministry of Truth, for example, is responsible for the falsification of historical documents. The documents themselves contain self-contradicting words, meant to deceive people into believing that the Party is always right. Furthermore, the Party has created a language to make unorthodoxy impossible. It dissolved all concepts and words that go against the

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