To any regular student, two and two equals four, analyzing is a chore, and George Orwell’s 1984 is nothing more than the psyche of the novel’s protagonist, Winston Smith. However, when such a student disregards a mundane way of thinking and adheres to Thomas C. Foster’s, How to Read Literature Like a Professor: A Lively and Entertaining Guide to Reading Between the Lines, it becomes blatantly obvious that two plus two could indeed equal five as Smith’s psyche could very well as easily become theirs. No novel is ever simply just a novel and with chapters such as “Nice to Eat You: Acts of Vampires”, “It’s All Political”, “Yes, She’s a Christ Figure Too”, and “...Except Sex” from Foster’s literary guide provide insight into the abstractness …show more content…
Even though he had his sovereignty ripped away from him, Smith felt nothing short of adorance for the face of the Party, and it becomes apparent as to how Big Brother immortalizes. “Big Brother is watching,” is assurance for the Party members that he is always with them, but the reality of the posters are that no one has freedom nor do they have privacy. Citizens of Oceania are exploited, and this is exactly the kind of vampire Foster was describing in his guide to analyzing literature. Big Brother is an old, beguiling character who can win the heart of those he leads with mere propaganda and keep rebellion at bay by altering facts, events, and teachings so that there is only a uniform ideology. However, Orwell may have created the character for political reasons due to the events surrounding the date the novel 's year of publication. A few years before the date Orwell published his novel, 1984, the major powers of the world were involved in World War II. The war was a battle against communism, which Big Brother’s Party epitomized. Foster explains in his thirteenth chapter that when an author writes politically, they tend to favor a particular party and speak out against the opposing Party. Orwell did just this in his
Sigmund Freud once said, “ The conscious mind may be compared to a fountain playing in the sun and falling back into the great subterranean pool of subconscious from which it rises.” Throughout the book 1984, Winston is conflicted between what he wants to believe and what he has to believe. Orwell characterizes Winston’s constant struggle between his conscious and unconscious mind through his dreams, his diary, and his reactions to torture in the Ministry of Love.
The first use of literary devices in George Orwell's 1984, is situational and verbal irony. Throughout 1984 Orwell is relaying what he believes a totalitarian government would look like in using the phrases "War is Peace," "Slavery is Freedom" and "Ignorance is Strength" (Orwell, 4). This suggests that Big Brother is trying to make people believe the opposite of what is true. Such a thing would help them by allowing for more control when they can change a person’s way of thinking. Furthermore, he says that Winston believes that O'Brien is thinking the same way about the government as he is, but as it turns out he is a member of the Thought Police (Orwell, 17 and 239). George Orwell has proven in this text that one never really knows the motivation of a person when it comes to a totalitarian government. At first, Winston thinks that O'Brien and he are on the same page when it comes to the government;
Thirty-three years ago, the unpleasantry that novelist George Orwell dreamt of never became the reality he predicted it would in 1949. The year 1984 was supposed to take society on an absolute turn for the worst, becoming a global dystopia in which everyone lived under the regulation and dominance of one of three totalitarian superstates. Orwell wrote of this future in his book 1984, creating the fictional universe of Oceania in which the lives of Winston Smith and the other characters in Oceania seemed genuinely real, especially by use of various literary devices. Motifs such as the linguistic concept of Newspeak and the majority of society’s convergence of feelings towards the Party and Big Brother appear multiple times throughout the pages of the novel. Through such recurring ideas, a major theme stands out - the lack of self-expression. Living under an authoritarian and oppressive government, party members such as Winston are forced to follow the socialist policies of Ingsoc. In the book it is written that, “The two aims of the Party are to conquer the whole surface of the earth and to extinguish once and for all the possibility of dependent thought” (Orwell 193). If everyone were to give into the Party, self-expression would be entirely eliminated because everyone and everything would be censored. With such motives made clear, Winston along with a minority realize the absurdity in the Party’s ways. Nevertheless, many more others do not, loving Big Brother and embracing
Following World War Two, Europe was thrown into chaos and despair. The major world countries, such as the Soviet Union and America, were still suffering from the wide spread fear caused by Hitler and fascism. From this fear, George Orwell’s 1984 was born. It served as a warning to where he feared the world’s leading countries were headed, and the dystopian that he fretted would become a reality. While the party may have held total dominance, it would not be able to control human nature forever. In George Orwell’s 1984, he posits through Winston’s observations of the proletariat that while one individual would not be able to overpower the party, the collective group would.
2. The introductory chapters in George Orwell’s 1984, acquaint the reader with the harsh and oppressive world of Oceania. The reader experiences this world through the perspective of Winston Smith, a protagonist in the novel. Orwell illustrates Winston’s life in a society that is controlled by a totalitarian regime; the Party. Like many other citizens in Oceania, Winston is subjected to physical and phycological cruelties, however, his individualistic and pensive qualities cause him to question the orders of the Party.
Throughout literature, authors have incorporated specific traits into a character’s world to express their views on political topics. From Huxley’s Brave New World to Orwell’s Animal Farm, the characters in each are heavily exaggerated to voice the author’s opinion of the current times. One of the most glaring examples of this political representation is George Orwell’s 1984. About a young man, Winston Smith, and his interactions with the Thought Police, the Resistance, and Julia—his forbidden love--- in a utopian society, Orwell represents the fears of many citizens in the 1940s: the rise of a totalitarian superpower. George Orwell, the author of 1984, wrote this novel at this time for a specific reason, incorporated characters that
George Orwell’s 1984 is probably one of the most famous political novels in History. It´s strong criticism to authoritarianism, government abuses and sameness makes it one of the most analysed novels of the twentieth century. Hence, Orwell uses a lot of literary devices such as vivid imagery, symbolism of color and all sorts of allusions to convey the reader into his powerful criticism of authoritarian societies and how the promote the decay of free-thinking and individualism, which his the meaning of his narrative prose.
One of factors the reader is immediately introduced to, is the incessant and haunting image of ‘BIG BROTHER’ and the power it asserts across all of Oceania, described as being “so contrived that the eyes follow you about as you move” (3). This highlights the uneasiness felt with the presence of this totalitaristic state and the helplessness obediently accepted by the people. BIG BROTHER is the representative for government group ‘the Party’ and is used as a way to communicate with the people through posters and a telescreen. The posters often come paired with captions such as ‘BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU’, ensuring that the nation stays aware of their severe lack of freedom and reminding them that any attempt to deter from what is acceptable would be futile. Incidentally, the main character, Winston Smith, is one that has not yet forgotten his memories of a more liberated time and holds onto the possibility of once more reaching freedom. This hope is gradually being repressed by the forces of society alongside the depressing atmosphere of London in year 1984. With the people’s memory becoming increasingly vague over time, it gives the Party more leverage to build off of this absence of consciousness to create a perfectly functioning, mindless society. Smith’s memory loss is made prevalent when “He tried to squeeze out some childhood memory that should tell him whether London had always been quite like this….But it was no use, he could not remember: nothing remained of his childhood except a series of bright-lit tableaux occurring against no background and mostly unintelligible.” (5). This also shows his association of the past with blankness, lacking depth, leaving space to be filled with BIG BROTHER’s propaganda. Also, the events Orwell writes about in this novel are often interpreted
George Orwell’s “Nineteen Eighty-Four” is heavily influenced by the totalitarian governments present during the World War 2 era and serves as a warning to the world about the restriction of individualism that might occur if this type of government took over. Orwell, living in the 1940’s, was a witness to many totalitarian governments across the world and realized their danger. Orwell’s message, or “warning” can be seen through the character Winston Smith and the rise and fall of his individuality.
In the novel 1984 by George Orwell is about a totaltarin government attempting to destroy individuality. 1984 takes place in a oceania society driven by propaganda , that every citizen of oceania must interact with a daily intake of propaganda created by the government so that control is maintained. In this story Winston is on a mission to rebel against the people who dictate every part of his life i.e. “Big Brother”. Winston also on a quest to find someone to share is beliefs with. Today’s society has reflected on 1984 is many ways just different forms.
In 1984, the first large figure of power that readers are introduced to is Big Brother, the man of unspeakable power behind the all-controlling Party. During Winston’s torture at the end of the book, O’Brien reveals that “Big Brother is the embodiment of the Party,” (Orwell 214) even though
In the novel 1984 by George Orwell, the totalitarian government is adamant that all citizens not only follow its policies, but wholeheartedly agree with them. In order to maintain his individuality and avoid the Thought Police, Winston lies about his allegiance to the government and his beliefs and thoughts. He learns that his lies are weak and shallow after he is caught, and he eventually realizes the true power of his lies when he deceives himself. The totalitarian government Orwell presents encourages deception as a means of survival, increasing the government’s power when the citizens are eventually driven to lie to themselves. As the Party grows stronger and individuality crumbles, Orwell displays the loss of humanity as a result of a government built on deception.
Since the 16th century the idea of a Dystopian type society has been a common literary theme, as well as the dangers of Totalitarianism throughout literature. Totalitarianism is defined as a concept in which the government holds total authority over the society, and controls all aspects of its public and private life. A Dystopian society and Totalitarianism are two underlying themes that can be easily found in the novel 1984 by George Orwell. 1984 was composed in the year 1949 because Mr. Orwell wrote this book as a predication of how the world might be in the future – 1984. In this novel, the obsessive, overprotected government is known as the Inner Party, and their leader is Big Brother who appears everywhere
This book starts in London on April fourth, 1984. The book is written in partly third person, and partly in first person. The book is divided into three distinct parts. The first part is showing you the main character, Winston Smith and his differences and frustration with the world he works and lives in. The country or the “Super state” he lives in called Oceania is run under a government called INGSOC (English Socialism). The leaders of the nation are called "The Party." The Party is divided into two sections, The Inner Party, and The Outer Party. The "Rich" and the "middle-class." There is a third group of people called "The Proles," or "The Proletariat" who are the lower class or the poorer class. The main leader of this government is called “Big Brother” and there also a very famous conspiracy theory about a traitor of the state by a person called “Emmanuel Goldstein” who was part of the inner party and then betrayed the state. The book is about the life of Smith with his frustration towards the government and the society he lives and the journey he embarks on from hating the party to finding comfort in another party worker and to eventually falling in love with big brother. The book is divided into three parts with the first part explaining the dynamics and structure of the new world. The second part focuses on how Smith finds solace by committing “though crime” as his act against the party and finally,
In the novel 1984, written by George Orwell, “Big Brother” is the face of the party in control of the dystopian society of Oceania. Big Brother plays the role of what might be considered the most important character in the novel; without this character, the government would have much less control over the public. It is because of Big Brother that Winston and Julia get themselves a private apartment, and it is also because of Big Brother that they get caught later in the novel. He is shown to be “larger than life” as Winston Smith is told that Big Brother exists as the embodiment of the party, and can never die. In a sense, Big Brother symbolizes the party