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Aspects of totalitarianism in 1984
Totalitarianism in 1984
Repression and totalitarianism in 1984
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More handpicked essays just for you.
Aspects of totalitarianism in 1984
Totalitarianism in 1984
Repression and totalitarianism in 1984
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Recommended: Aspects of totalitarianism in 1984
They use paranoia and fear in order to keep their power over their citizens. The main character, Winston Smith, is not immune to this paranoia. Throughout the novel, Orwell continuously presents instances when the Party utilizes fear and paranoia to retain the control they have over the citizens of Oceania.
Throughout Oceania, Paranoia is portrayed which causes anxiety and fear among the people. The anxiety and fear brought into the city can make the population to easier to control. The party uses things such as military propaganda, posters of Big Brother, telescreens, and numerous security cameras to prove to the people that they are constantly being watched, which puts fear into all lives. Throughout the book 1984, numerous people are executed because of doing things that the party would not allow, and other words would be considered unorthodox. The citizens of Oceania continuously fear doing anything that could possibly be considered unorthodox, because any misbehavior could lead to jail and then death.
Through the forms of manipulation and modernization, the Party manages to ensure and ascertain control, especially involving technology. Oceanians cannot expect privacy due to the Party’s use of advanced surveillance by placing telescreens and covert microphones all across Oceania. The image and slogan, “… BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU” is a constant reminder that the citizens of Oceania are being observed and their actions can be potentially exposed following penalizing actions (pg.2). With Big Brother’s face publicized on posters, telescreens and even coins, it often becomes difficult for citizens to dissent the rules of the Party as most are soon willing to believe what the Party informs them. Oceanians are used to living in a constant state of supervision with invasive machinery, which is so advanced that even the “smallest” sign of “abnormality” “could give you away” (pg.62).
Different factors played a part in the change of the world from 1500-1750 to reach the modern world that we see today but the printing press and the way it impacted the spread and accessibility of literature and how it connected to newfound religious ideas was by far the most powerful. To begin, the printing press led to the spread and accessibility of literature. The creation of the printing press led to a big domino effect as “printing made books less expensive and more available”1 allowing for a larger quantity of writings to be produced for a cheaper price for the consumer giving more people the opportunity to purchase and read different works evidently leading to increased literacy rates. The printing press also affected the spread of writings as “printing revolutionized the speed and range of distribution of texts”2. This increase of speed and range can be concluded due to the fact that literature before the printing press had been handwritten.
One of which involves the use of scare tactics, such as posters featuring a large face with the words, “BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU” underneath in bold, white letters. This should not only be unsettling to the reader, as the intimidating tone of the poster makes citizens believe that their every move is being watched, but it should also be of concern because of the message behind the slogan. It is threatening punishment of those who partake in any actions to undermine the government, thus creating a society in which everyone is afraid of going against the government. The same goes for the Party’s slogan, “WAR IS PEACE, IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH, FREEDOM IS SLAVERY” as the Party is trying to convey the message that the operation of the current societal system, where people are being oppressed from speaking up for their beliefs, is for the benefit of the people (Orwell, 4). This leads many to trust the government’s decisions, regardless of whether they provide benefits to the people or cause more damage to their well-being, resulting in a complete blind following of the government.
Another tactic used by a totalitarian government will use is the control of information. For example, you must always have your tele-screens on so that the party can use their propaganda against the citizens of Oceania; CANT FIND REAL WORLD EXAMPLE HERE. Another form of information that is controlled by the party is Oceania's history. In fact, Winston works in an agency for the party which rewrites everything such that the party is never seen as making mistakes.
Your lockers and bags can be searched, your phones can be confiscated by teachers, and surveillance cameras in the hallways and parking lots shows that no matter what you do not have the right to privacy. Additionally, even when you send out an email or text it does not go straight to your desired destination. It goes from your device to an archiving service and then to the person you want to receive it. This service can find any contact you have made with anyone electronically within seconds. So many forms of communication and technology usage is tracked and many Americans do not even realize.
Orwell’s dystopia filled with skepticism and paranoia reflects the real paranoiac world that existed during World War II and the Cold War. Two types of paranoia existed in Orwell’s dystopian nation, Oceania: the paranoia of citizens and the paranoia of the Party. The people of Oceania had to be robots, because they could be prosecuted if they thought or acted out of line with the Party’s beliefs. While this already would be difficult, the people of Oceania were under constant surveillance as Winston explained, “There was of course no way of knowing whether or not you were being watched at any given moment” (Orwell 6). Factors such as never knowing when one was being watched contributes to the paranoia of the dystopia and emphasizes the oppressive nature of the Party.
By limiting the amount of information their civilians have the party is able to make them believe whatever they want. They believe that by having people only know what is necessary then they won’t be able to dissent. The limitation of education in Oceania also makes it extremely easy for the party to oppress conformists rather than people who acknowledge the faults of the Party. This can be especially evident in the lives of the proles. The proles will never be able to rebel “until they become conscious” but at the same time “until after they have rebelled, they cannot become conscious.”
The Party controls everything and even erases and rewrites history to make the people of Oceania only know what they want them to know. The manipulative Party used many
While there are still debates on the exact scope of government surveillance, the fact that there have been steps taken to limit its excesses shows that the United States values individual rights. As technology advances and security threats evolve, it will be important for policymakers to continue to evaluate the role of surveillance in national security and ensure that privacy protections are not sacrificed in the name of
Imagine being followed everywhere by a government agent. They’re watching your every move, and they’ll report you if you even make a wrong facial movement. This is essentially the case in George Orwell’s novel, 1984. Run by an English socialist government called the Party, the people’s every move is watched through telescreens. Citizens are not individual, but rather an extension of the Party.
Whether it is taking our freedom of speech away to some extent; to being able to go through our mail looking for possible harmful things. They are doing it to protect us; not to hurt
Many people might say that the privacy of modern day American citizens is being violated, that to similar to the world of 1984. The novel 1984 written by George Orwell is about a totalitarian government who oppresses its people and controls all aspects of their lives. The government is symbolized by Big Brother, people are monitored their entire day for flaws in their thinking towards Big Brother. I believe that privacy of American citizens is being violated and that people should not give up aspects of their personal privacy for greater good of society.
It is an invasion of privacy, which is almost completely gone in this society. This is one of the main themes of the book because it controls everyone, just like the Party wants to