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The Soviet Union In George Orwell's 1984

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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 …show more content…

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 …show more content…

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.

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Marcelo Navarro Mr. duryea English 12 March 15, 2018 Inhumane The Book 1984 is a book based on a totalitarian government where the government has complete and total control over every aspect of someone's life. In 1984 you couldn't even have privacy in your own home, you would be under constant supervision and if you were caught doing something illegal the thought police would come and arrest you. In 1984 the government controlled its people through fear, the people of 1984 where always scared of being caught doing anything illegal and where also scared because the government would bomb itself saying that they were in a war. This book shows what could happen if people would let

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The ability to control, manipulate and scare the citizens, was an important tactic in the book 1984. Big Brother and the Party, the rulers of Oceania, went to many extreme circumstances to keep control and order over the citizens of Oceania. There are many instances in real life where the technology compares to the book 1984. The book 1984 focuses on Big Brother and his control over the citizens of Oceania.

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It’s not a question that many historians try and explain the motives behind perpetrator actions in violent events. History has recurred throughout time, especially in the 20th c. when it comes to genocide, where massive groups are involved in mobilizing the same type of destruction. Why then, is it so easy for many ordinary people to commit such horrible violence? This is the question that both James Waller and Daniel Goldhagen try to answer in their books about the perpetrators in the Holocaust. Waller provides a general model, which can be applied to genocide and mass killing events, that explains the sequence of events which lead an ordinary person to perpetrate evil.

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1984 controls the characters through the Party’s means of control from the use of limited language to force the people to think the way they do to the constant watch they have over the people, never giving them a moment to think on their own or have any free will to say or think of what they wish. Through these laws and actions, the characters get separated into different groups, those who will respect and obey the Party. These characters follow and worship Big Brother through any means necessary, even when they are wronged in the end due to their loyalty or a slip up, no matter what they had done in the past. The characters can fall into fear and hate as well, the two emotions the Party values. This allows them to live, always following the

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Once Hannah Arendt says “The sad truth is that most evil is done by people who never make up their minds to be good or evil”. Society shapes and influences people in many different ways. From back then to now the way people are shaped and influenced has changed drastically. Today many people are influenced and shaped by music, social media and famous people. Back then people were influenced and shaped by first class citizens, wealthy people, and the differences between whites and blacks.

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Through the twists and turns of the book, the reader is plunged into the world of Big Brother. In 1984, the character Emmanuel Goldstein accomplishes three things; he is a symbol of hate,

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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.

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Do you ever feel like you're being watched by the government?The novel 1984 by George Orwell is about a man named Winston that lived and a Society where the government called big brother’s stride to regularly every aspect of public and private life. In this novel the author Orwell Portray the perfect totalitarian society. The party controls all information and history of the town. The party also manipulated the minds of the children and the town. Big brother’s role and Oceania were to control any and everyone and the town.

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Holocaust survivor Primo Levi once said, “Monsters exist, but they are too few in number to be truly dangerous. More dangerous are the common men, the functionaries ready to believe and to act without asking questions.” Throughout history the many have followed the few, the powerful individuals have been able to manipulate our views and change our morals, no matter how flawed the ideals may be. Specifically, there have been instances of human history where an incompetent leader has been able to take advantage of human nature and direct misinformed populations to commit atrocities. For instance, during World War Two, Adolf Hitler convinced millions of Germans that the Jewish people were responsible for German hardships, this led to genocide

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The book 1984 describes a totalitarian society where citizens are forced to renounce all liberties for the sake of social order. They are guided by the rule of a single figurehead called Big Brother, whom the they are manipulated to entrust their lives to. This figurehead exercises his powers of governing every aspect of the people 's lives by observing and manipulating the populace. Big Brother also divides his subjects into classes as a means to keep the populace oppressed. Throughout this literary narrative the main character, Winston Smith, struggles to survive in this society as he struggles to fit the conventional mold that is preached.

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Some are ethical egoists that gravitate towards the perspective of philosophers such as Friedrich Nietzsche, a man who believed that only the human will defined morality and that is only through the “will of power” that people could reach a higher moral state which Nietzsche called the “Übermensche” (German for overman). Nietzsche believed that nothing could legitamanly stand in the way of this, which later became a major influence on Hitler’s interpretation of morality. No matter how many apologists protest that Hitler misinterpreted Nietzsche, it is really no surprise that this philosopher, which deemed any individual’s desire for power to be relevant, lead to so much evil. Another philosopher often parodied by those with evil intent was Thomas Hobbes. He was a man that believed that rights only stemmed from the power of authority.

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Power can have the persuasive action in undoing the moral ethics of one’s character. This can be seen throughout history, such as World War II and proven by the actions of Napoleon in the allegory, Animal Farm, by George Orwell. As Lord Acton said “Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” In history what was viewed as a villain, is never the same as the perception. A leader does not begin wanting to do wrong, they start with the best intentions, but power is a tricky thing.

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Totalitarianism in 1984 and the Real World The concept of a totalitarian society is a major theme throughout the novel 1984. This theme of totalitarianism can also be applied to the world today. The definition of totalitarianism, a concept used by some political scientists, is a state which holds total authority over the society and seeks to control all aspects of public and private life wherever possible. Totalitarianism can be related between the novel 1984 and current events in the real world. George Orwell incorporated the theme of totalitarianism into his novel 1984 to display the ever changing world around him during the time it was written.

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