The Soviet Union In George Orwell's 1984

When I first started reading 1984, I was very confused. Who was Big Brother? How did this country get like this in the first place? How would any country get like that? It doesn't help that the protagonist is slightly insane. He doesn't remember much from his childhood and his thoughts on Big Brother and the country range from anger and hatred to a deep love and pride in the country. He keeps referring to doublethink and the different groups that control the society. The cameras in the houses are especially creepy to think about, mainly because with today’s technology, it would be possible for the government to do so. But, what really astounded me was the crazed and animalistic display shown by the people during the Two Minute Hate. It was

The use of the word comrade is a very clear sign that George Orwell also used in the story Animal Farm. But, I do not have an immense knowledge of the Soviet Union. Of course I know the leader during that time and I know of some of the awful things Stalin did, but other than that I have no background knowledge of the life many people lived there. I know it was most likely not as grotesque as the country in this particular story (I believe that Orwell’s beliefs made him exaggerate some of the horrendous things), that is, I’m not saying that life was pleasing for those who had to live in the Soviet Union, but I feel that the people were not as far gone as those in the

Why does any evil person in history do what he or she does? It came clear to me though when reading a quote by Tom Hiddleston, “Every villain is a hero in his own mind.” I genuinely understood then. If you ask every adult in the world what they think about teenagers, most of them would say that teenagers always think that they are right. But, is this only a personality trait of teenagers? Are we not all guilty of this? When looking at a problem we all come up with scenarios, most of the time one person’s brain will come up with a different idea than another’s. If Person A comes up with an idea and so does Person B, most likely both of these people would prefer his idea to someone else’s. So, when thinking of Stalin, Hitler, or any other person in history that the majority of us would deem evil or cruel, you must realize that the things they did, they did because they genuinely thought it was a good idea. Take Hitler for example, most people in the world would agree, as I do, that what Hitler did was horrendous. But, did Hitler do it simply because he wanted to kill people? That is a tough question to answer, but I would say no. Of course one could say that Hitler had absolutely no scruples and probably didn't lose any sleep at night over the genocide, but I think Hitler did it simply for the best interest of the country. Was it a wise and morally correct decision? No.