Doublethink In George Orwell's '1984'

Question 1:In what ways is Oceania not only morally and spiritually bankrupt but physically ugly and bleak as well?

George Orwell’s concept of doublethink indicative of a fascist worldview through the use of portrayal of a totalitarian government that controls citizens and suppress any form of expression or individuality. The totalitarian government was the main reason the setting had become a dystopia. Winston Smith was constantly had tension between his conformity shown exteriorly and his rebellious views interiorly. He knew what the Party was doing was wrong but he continued to conform by changing records and obeying Big Brother. The Party caused citizens like Winston Smith and Julia to doublethink due to their totalitarian ways, they were against the government however they conformed to not meet the same fate Syme had, by being vaporized and vanishing from all records like he didn’t exist.

The book 1984 by George Orwell has a lot of iron in it. Throughout the entire book every party character is governed in ruled by the idea of doublethink. As Orwell writes “double sink is basically the power of holding two contradictory beliefs in one’s mind, and accepting both of them”. This is an amazing example of that only because it is not humanly possible to fully grasp the meaning of this. Winston is surrounded by several ironic things, for example when he goes to rent an apartment with Julia he believes that he is safe and out of harm's way because it is in the prole side of town. However he soon finds out that the man renting them the room was in fact a member of the thought police and there was a camera located behind the picture.

Of all the factors that can drive human action, knowledge, power and freedom are perhaps the most connected. In the novel 1984, George Orwell explores how taking away these three concepts prevents double-thinking and individual expression.

Throughout part one of George Orwell's 1984, Winston Smith is characterized as a convict of thoughtcrime. He thinks negatively of Oceania's Party and silently rebels by writing his beliefs in a diary. Although writing isn’t considered illegal, detection of such action is punishable by death (6). While writing down whatever came to mind, Winston wrote the line "DOWN WITH BIG BROTHER" over and over again, later exclaiming how he didn't care if he was shot in the back of the neck for doing so (18).

In his novel 1984, George Orwell created a nightmare vision of the future in which an all-powerful Party exerts totalitarian control over society by forcing the citizens to master the technique of "doublethink," which requires them "to hold simultaneously two opinions which cancel[] out, knowing them to be contradictory and believing in both of them." (3) Orwell's doublethink is usually regarded as a wonderful literary device, but, of course, one with no referent in reality since it is obviously impossible to believe both halves of a contradiction. In my opinion, this assessment is quite mistaken. Not only is it possible for people to believe both halves of a contradiction, it is something they do every day with no apparent difficulty.

Doublethink is basically a manipulation of someone’s mindset. Generally, Doublethink allows them a sense of belief in contradictions, and it makes them also believe that the party is the only institution that distinguishes between right and wrong. The manipulation stronghold is where Winston work, the Ministry of Truth. Proof is when a person or someone is well evidenced that something of the party I lie or contradiction, he immediately thinks that thought or fact it’s a sham

Envision yourself living in Soviet Russia at the peak of the USSR regime. Your thoughts, ideas and feelings are all enslaved working in the field of “equality” while Stalin watches from his porch. George Orwell's timeless classic, 1984, takes place in a dingy, dystopian future ruled by a totalitarian government that controls its people through a combination of manipulation and fear. The Thought Police enforces the austere rules set by The Party based on their ideology of Ingsoc which demands the complete submission of the mental, physical and moral status of the people. First published in 1949, 4 years after the end of World War II and 2 years after the start of the Cold War, 1984 serves as a social outcry and warning for all its readers. Finishing

George Orwell's 1984 is very relevant to today because many of the issues that the book covers are still occurring today. One of the topics the book covers is power and how there are people getting special treatment just because of the position of power they have or how much money they make. Today people who have important positions like politicians, CEOs and people who work with the law like lawyers and judges. These people make a lot of money, so they are able to influence things like politics and they can easily get what they want. People who do not have the same amount of income as they do they have less of an influence on politics and they have to work harder to get what they want.

On October the 5th my class and I went on a trip to the Old Vic to watch a play called “1984” (nineteen eighty-four) This play was originally written by George Orwell in 1949.

The Ministry of Truth, which concerned itself with news, entertainment, education, and the fine arts. The Ministry of Peace, which concerned itself with war. The Ministry of Love, which maintained law and order. And the Ministry of Plenty, which was responsible for economic affairs. Their names, in Newspeak: Minitrue, Minipax, Miniluv, and Miniplenty. (1.1.8) Employing the concept of doublethink, the Party gives ironic names to its branches as a way to euphemize what they actually are.

Privacy is an important issue, especially in the United States where the NSA looms over the internet, tracking your every move. Privacy is what allows you to maintain your own individualism, what makes you a person and especially your freedom. A growing debate concerning Orwell’s 1984 relevancy is quickly on the rise. Orwell’s fear of a totalitarian society led him to write this book as he lived during the totalitarian movement in Russia. The fear of a totalitarian society spreading sparked his fear and wrote this book to make people understand that it is not beneficial to society. I feel that with the the National Security Agency in the United States, the issue and relevancy of 1984 has never been higher. The public is discovering on a daily basis that the NSA has much more control than previously thought. Despite the fact that 1984 was published in 1949, it is still very much a relevant topic today as the United States gradually turns into the level of surveillance that Orwell had predicted in his novel.

“1984” is a story which takes place in what was then the future of England. The book illustrates a dystopian society in which a government figure named “Big Brother” rules above all. The country is surrounded by eyes so to speak, devices called “telescreens” are in houses and buildings to monitor what all of the citizens are doing via camera. Coupled with that is the existence of the “Thought Police” whose sole job is to monitor citizens from committing “thoughtcrime” which is essentially thinking ill of “Big Brother.” Not revealed until the last section of the book but still prevalent is the methods of dealing with those who betray the government.

In 1984, George Orwell uses his characters as a literary device to communicate a message about society. In this dystopian novel, there is a mood of despair and hopelessness, and a warning about the terrible effects a totalitarian society would have on the West if not careful. Written in 1849, George Orwell uses both the internal and external world to convey his fears towards the totalitarian governments around him, in both Spain and Russia. In 1984, Orwell employs multiple themes: psychological control, physical control, and control over history and other intellectual materials as tools to control, suppress, and manipulate the citizens of Oceania.

Those familiar with George Orwell’s “1984” will recall that “Newspeak was designed not to extend but to diminish the range of thought.” I recently felt the weight of this Orwellian ethos when many of my students sent emails to inform me, and perhaps warn me, that my name appears on the Professor Watchlist, a new website created by a conservative youth group known as Turning Point USA.