Comparative Essay Assignment 1984 And V for Vendetta George Washington once said, “Government is not reason; it is not eloquent; it is force. Like fire it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master.” George Orwell’s satirical novel 1984 is based on the life of Party member Winston Smith, a free thinker, and his battle to restore humanity that has been snatched from the residents of Oceani0a since the totalitarian rule of Big Brother. V for Vendetta, a satirical film directed by James McTeigue, revolves around the actions of an antihero named V and his struggles to re-establish humanity in individuals by rebelling against the government’s rule. In both satires, 1984 and V for Vendetta the concept of humanity is exaggerated in the …show more content…
But they cannot because they are stuck in their own paradoxical situations (“Catch-22”) and because they have still not realized the fact that the Party leaves them alone and lets them indulge in children, sex, food and access to the lottery in order to keep them busy and prevent them from revolting. However, their humanity marks them as what they are: the lower class that is kept ignorant in order to prevent uprisings. The proles are loyal to each other in a way that the Party members can never be, but because they are not concerned with the ideologies that oppress them, they are not aware of how their power could affect the world that they inhabit. In 1984 the proles are only made fun of because although they have the strength to rebel they do not and are too busy indulging themselves in petty concerns, like a lack of cooking-pots (Orwell 73). They are even ridiculed by the arch-enemy Goldstein who dismisses them as divisions of low people who are destined to remain powerless. Big Brother does not concern himself with them and ridicules them as ordinary masses that do not have the intellect for an uprising despite their strength in numbers. Similarly, in V for Vendetta, the proles are dissatisfied with Norsefire, but they do
Ridley Scott and George Orwell both continually depict control in their texts through the utilisation of various techniques, in order to portray the effect this has on the characters of Blade Runner and 1984 respectively. This is done by both Scott and Orwell expertly and provides the audience with further insight and depth of the characters. Orwell and Scott respectively utilise the surrounding setting of their protagonists to depict the control that they are under, each author does this by likening their protagonist to the setting and displays evidently that the setting has impacted the characters. Motifs and symbols are utilised heavily by Scott and Orwell to further emphasis the control that is currently
The text After the First Death by Robert Cormier and the film V for Vendetta directed by James McTigue represent terrorism in ways that allow us as the audience to respond differently to each. The terrorists, V in V for Vendetta and Artkin in After the First Death both perform terrorising actions; however, I sympathise and correspond with V but consider the opposite for Artkin. V is seen as a revolutionary as he has a considerate and rational mind, he eradicates only those who commit immoral deeds to the society. In contrast, Artkin is presented as an emotionless killing machine able to murder without remorse. Thus, I feel hatred and fear towards Artkin, although both terrorists share similar motives. The terrorists are masked to hide their identities; however, we perceive them to have different ideas. Both terrorists use violence to present their ideas of anarchy, I understand V’s motive is to prevail justice for the people, therefore, deem his actions as necessary, whereas Artkin is willing to murder innocence to acquire freedom. After the First Death and V for Vendetta, both portray that terrorism has unseen motives and ideas, which make me as an audience question whether terrorism benefits or destroys the society.
In “1984,” Orwell portrays Winston’s secret struggle to undermine the totalitarian rule of Big Brother and the Party in Oceania. The different government agencies, such as the Thought Police and Ministry of Love, exercise unrestricted totalitarian rule over people. Winston actively seeks to join the rebellion and acquire the freedoms undermined by the Party. On the other hand, Heinlein’s brief narrative, “The Long Watch,” depicts a contrasting struggle championed by Dahlquist against the power hungry Colonel Towers and the Patrol. In his struggle to prevent the total domination of the world by the Patrol, Dahlquist chooses to sacrifice his life. Le Guin’s “The
Through the dystopic texts of 1984 written by George Orwell and V for Vendetta directed by James McTeigue, the concept of a cautionary tale is portrayed by the dystopic qualities present in the highlighted texts. To which a dystopic text is an exploration of restrictive and controlling societies which reflect modern day concerns. To portray the texts as a warning story, Orwell and McTeigue give depictions of the dystopic qualities of their worlds, through the loss of independence and freedom and emphasise the importance of the individual through its loss in the dystopic societies.
Of the many symbolic masks, the Guy Fawkes mask stands out as one of the most effective, often being used as a “masked identity” in order to make profound statements. Not only does this secret identity create more attention to the “masked one” but it also diverts attention to the cause rather than the identity. Literally using a mask, Fawkes was the main influence of the character “V”, in James McTeigue’s, V For Vendetta. V’s connections and motivations to Guy Fawkes, his attempt to justify himself as a terrorist, and V’s concealment of his true identity, collectively define the message that V conveys to his audience: to break parliament and take control of their own country.
George Orwell was the pseudonym for Eric Arthur Blair, and he was famous for his personnel vendetta against totalitarian regimes and in particular the Stalinist brand of communism. In his novel, 1984, Orwell has produced a brilliant social critique on totalitarianism and a future dystopia, that has made the world pause and think about our past, present and future, as the situation of 1984 always remains menacingly possible. The story is set in a futuristic 1984 London, where a common man Winston Smith has turned against the totalitarian government. Orwell has portrayed the concepts of power, marginalization, and resistance through physical, psychological, sexual and political control. The way that Winston Smith, the central
In the book “1984” written by George Orwell in 1948, the proles are presented as an impoverished, powerless and massive group of people. Nevertheless, they are free, unlike the rest of Oceania. They are not checked by the Party on what they do and think; therefore the proles are the only ones able to take Big Brother down.
450-650 Cristian Ruiz Quiroz ERWC 4 Mr. Martinez 1984 and Enemy of The State The book 1984 and the movie Enemy of The State have many common similarities and differences. The book 1984 has different technology compared to Enemy of The State. The movie enemy of the state has far more advanced technology. From having technology in space and trackers.
President John Adams once said that “Fear is the foundation of most governments” he felt that a monarchy or an aristocracy was the best form of government because by having people fear you, you are able to control the citizens minds by fear. The parties in both 1984 and V for Vendetta used this concept of fear to instill their power over that greater population. The party have one person that was consider the outsider or the enemy of the party that everyone hated, they both had a society in which there was only 1 leader that made all of the decisions about everything and they limited the people’s ability to as they please and be one with themselves.
George Orwell uses his novel 1984 to convey that human beings, as a species, are extremely susceptible to dehumanization and oppression in society. Orwell demonstrates how a government’s manipulation of technology, language, media, and history can oppress and degrade its citizens.
The first similarity between 1984 and V for Vendetta is that the society is being run by totalitarian rule. It is the government that controls the lives of the people and how the society should be run. In 1984, ‘Big Brother’ aka the Inner party, is the figure that keeps an eye on the people and
The novel I have chosen to write about that is set in a different time but is still relevant to this day is “1984” by George Orwell. Orwell effectively uses theme, characterisation, imagery and symbolism to help us appreciate the themes he runs throughout the book that have just as much relevance then as they do now. This is despite Orwells’ book being first published in 1948.
Literacy has been used in many forms throughout time and one of these forms is to revolt against unfair governments and totalitarian governments. These forms of literature often demonstrated another type of totalitarian government, the film ‘V for vendetta’ directed by James McTeigue and the novel ‘1984’ written by George Orwell are great examples of this. V for vendetta shows a totalitarian government in an alternative London and 1984 shows a totalitarian government in a fictional world.
The first similarity between 1984 and V for Vendetta is that the society is being run by totalitarian rule. It is the government that controls the lives of the people and how the society should be run. In 1984, ‘Big Brother’ aka the Inner party, is the figure that keeps an eye on the people and uses telescreens to watch their movement while in V for Vendetta;
In V for Vendetta, a widespread of ideas/issues are explored such as what defines being a terrorist?, governments abuse of power and corruption, and the importance of freedom. This is shown through the use of conventions by offering V’s perspective on the governments through Evey’s perspective and voice, symbolism and characterisation. V’s perspective suggests that its government has turned into a totalitarian society that should be destroyed and build more of a democratic society. Also, that totalitarian societies benefits those people in power, and detriments those who are not, such as the citizens, and forces them to conform and lose individuality which is the complete opposite of a more desired government like a democratic one, in where the people is able to influence and has a voice in the government’s decisions. As V’s perspective is presented through Evey, this shows a powerful narration of her perspective on V as it is in first person, which influences the viewer greatly.