Through history, many civilizations tried to gain absolute control over their society. For example, the Nazis wore their prisoners down to destroy their honor by torturing them endlessly, starving them until they became easy to manipulate, acting as the Nazi’s puppets. However, the Nazi party was not successful in taking total control over all aspects of society. Soon enough, they were taken down, ending their power abruptly. Though History only continued to repeat itself as attempts at totalitarianism failed, Big Brother’s Oceania was able to accomplish the impossible, to successfully maintain absolute power through the use of fear, strong human instincts, and control over the human thought. The party was able to use fear to control the …show more content…
There are occasions when a human being will stand out against pain, even to the point of death. But for everyone there is something unendurable--something that cannot be contemplated.” (Orwell 234). Every human being is afraid of a situation that carries possible threat or harm. In such situations, it is natural instinct to go into a “fight or flight” mode, to stay and fight or to run away to escape the threat. This reaction is wired into all humans, for it is crucial for them to survive, to act accordingly to save themselves. However, fear has an emotional response which varies from individual. It is this response that creates their fear of fear, which can be identified as a phobia. A phobia is directed to an object or situation where one realizes that their fear is unreasonable, but they instinctively react. Especially when stressed or nervous, confronting one’s phobia is even more difficult and a bigger feat to accomplish. By knowing how fear and phobias work in humans, the Party was able to manipulate such fears to create advantages. As a result, the Ministry of Love was created, symbolizing people’s fears, intimidating them to conform to the Party’s regulations. “The thing that is in room 101 is the worst thing in the world”
Fear a powerful emotion, once it is born it is merely impossible for it to perish. Fear corrupts, tortures, and haunts all. Humans have a horror encrypted into their core. With the power of holding one's fear forms the feeling of paranoia leading to the most holiest power of all, control. Throughout history paranoia has been used to control mass populations and indoctrinate their mind. A common example of this, is the reign of Joseph Stalin; dictator of the Soviet Union who used the paranoia of death and being sent to concentration camp to control his citizens and sustain power. George Orwell, a man who recognized this demoralizing form of dictatorship and was terrified, of what might come if no one rebelled against this. Furthermore he
With the power hungry Party and the most acknowledged face of Big Brother watching and monitoring everybody, the story of “1984” by George Orwell expresses the utmost control over their people and have the absolute power with their country Oceania. The Party believes that Big Brother will live on forever, because of the constant removal of those who are unfaithful and the rewriting of history. However, with the example of the main character showing disobedience against the Party, there is a chance for this type of ruling to fail and be destroyed by the people. The main possible cause of the fall of Big Brother is most likely the underestimation of the power of the people.
1984 has come and gone. The cold war is over. The collapse of oppressive totalitarian regimes leads to the conclusion that these governments by their nature generate resistance and are doomed to failure. The fictional world of George Orwell's novel, 1984, is best described as hopeless; a nightmarish dystopia where the omnipresent State enforces perfect conformity among members of a totalitarian Party through indoctrination, propaganda, fear, and ruthless punishment. In the aftermath of the fall of capitalism and nuclear war, the world has been divided among three practically identical totalitarian nation-states. A state of perpetual war and poverty is the rule in Oceania. However, this is merely a backdrop, far from the most terrifying
In the face of fear people often betray the ones closest to them. Other automatically give up without the need of torture because the fear is so strong it controls the ability to make decisions. Fear is often a powerful emotion that come with selfishness and every person for themselves idea. Sometimes people can overcome the pain or fear for a loved one but in Orwell’s book 1984 shows how fear can override that love and can force people to betray the person closest to them. Fear causes selfishness and survival instincts to activate. A person who is the kindest person and is very altruistic in many different ways but when face with their greatest fear that person could fail or betray their loved ones. “All you care about is yourself,” in a crisis, a person might give up sensitive information or put another in harm's way(Orwell page, 292). Even after you can pretend that they did not mean or it was only a trick but at the time they meant every selfish word they said.
The Society of Oceania is ruled by a totalitarian power hunger all-knowing government that seeks power and control over its people and society by a figure known as Big Brother. The poster of Big Brother is a so called figure head of the government that installs fear
A society cannot survive when it is based on hate and power gain. I agree with Winston, that if a society was founded on hatred and complete control “It would commit suicide”. In order for a society to prosper it needs all of the things that are not present in the world of 1984. George Orwell shows his fear though his novel of how society could end up if the government became power thirsty and without a checks and balance system. In order for a Civilization to move forward, people need to have love, passion, and the ability to think for themselves because without the ability to think and feel emotions, the mind cannot produce new ideas if it is not allowed.
Big brother and the Party are watching everyone in Oceania almost 24/7 with telescreens and thought police. An example explaining the telescreens in the novel is, "The instrument (the telescreen, it was called) could be dimmed, but there was no way of shutting it off completely". (1.1.3) They always being monitored and all their facial expressions, actions or thoughts can be seen and reported to the party if it’s not something in which they like. The only time anyone is completely safe is for the few hours in the night when you sleep. Big brother makes everyone believe that there was no past and that there was no history before the present. History is being altered, and since there is “no past” no one has proof that the past is better than before the revolution occurred. Everything is based on the proles, this kind of society isn 't sane; it is very unappealing and unpleasant.
The Party also uses the element of instability to keep the public on its feet. One day the ration of food is lower than the next, and they're praising on the news channel the amount of food they are allowed. They're never at war with the same country, but people are not encouraged to notice these changes since they are trained to just accept them as the beaten-down manipulated robots that they are. This is how corrupt Oceania's society is. The ones with the power and the voice have all the say and everyone else in the society follows and accepts. Everything is aseptic in Oceania. Also, there are no emotions since people are afraid of the surveillance on the street and the telescreens in their homes. The Thought police are everywhere, therefore,
Based on events from the past and what is shown in 1984, I believe a society focused on fear and hatred will not be able to flourish. O’Brien argued, in the novel, that The Party has control over external reality because nothing exists outside the mind, only The Party exists (Orwell). Winston responded to this by saying that a society that lives on fear and hatred would have no vitality, it would disintegrate, and it would commit suicide (Orwell). I personally agree with Winston because a society needs to breathe or have freedoms in order to survive. In essence, I believe a society based on hate and suffering, such as what O’Brien described, could not exist for long, and the intoxication of power and thrill of victory could not be enough motivation for people to continue living without friendship or love, and I could not live in such a suffering society.
“No one is free, even the birds are chained to the sky.” Bob Dylan said this probably not knowing its profound connection with George Orwell’s novel “1984”, but the as well could be in “1984”. Orwell depicts a totalitarian dystopian world where there is no freedom and citizens are being brainwashed constantly. Without any sense of individual fairness, people work for the party just like the gear wheels in a machine. In order to achieve this, the politicians in “1984” suppress people’s thinking and eliminate their freedom by creating fear through propaganda, strict laws and incessant surveillances.
Dictators rule with absolute power, through many means unknown to the majority they manipulate and sculpt the people to their own desire. The totalitarian regime of Oceania is no different, except they have almost complete control over their citizens. The techniques they use to control the civilians are both hidden and openly used. The "inner party" has almost completely forced the outer party (the majority of the party) into utter submission, to follow their rules and regulations to the exact. Using these amazing techniques they rule over the citizens of Oceania with and iron fist. In the novel Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell, the Government of Oceania controls the citizens by using fear and propaganda.
Power is the catalyst which establishes government, leaders, societal hierarchies and civilisation. It is an inseparable part of human nature, which is reflected in pop culture and literature. In an excerpt from 1984 by George Orwell, the theme of power and the abuse of power is privileged, and the allocation of the power in that society is discussed. Lord of the Flies, contrarily, depicts a scenario in which the individual has complete power, and constraints of authority and civilisation are removed. In the trailer, the composer uses film language such as dark music and jump shots to chaotic scenes to demonstrate the effects of complete freedom and the danger of it. Winston Churchill’s 1947 commentary that “Democracy is the worst form of
“Self-preservation is the first law of nature.” (Samuel Butler 1675) It’s common sense and hard wired into the minds of all humans and animals, that if your safety is questioned then your minds will make you do anything to return to whatever makes you feel peace. Playing on common fears of people, will strengthen power and will erase any inquiring into their policies (commandments). Orwell not only wanted to show fear in a fictional sense, but in the non-fictional sense as well. Orwell produced this by the characterisation of the pigs, with the progression of pig to man and this general stigma of pigs being used to describe man; this is largely evident at the end of the novel, “The creatures outside looked from pig to man, and from man to pig,
state controls all aspects of people’s lives. Oceania’s entire population is under totalitarian rule and is
In George Orwell’s 1984 Power is gained most effectively through control, fear and violence. Compared to a government like that of America’s, 1984 creates a more threatening structure of government where the public is limited from freedom and happiness. 1984 shows a world of a society where only the upper class has power and freedom from the harsh treatment that the general population receives. The idea of Big Bother makes the population of Oceania believe they are being watched over by a powerful force and oppresses them so they feel powerless and unable to do anything against a “great” force like Big Brother. The well-being of others depends on their willingness to agree with Big Brother and abide by their laws, if you think otherwise then you will be an accuser of thought-crime will be vaporized and removed from society or harshly punished through rigorous treatment and torture methods as was Winston and Julia. Power creates problems for others in which they do not deserve.