1984 is a remarkable book in which George Orwell predicts what the future off governments around the world will become. Big Brother, the leader of the party, sees, hears, and knows everything. An act as innocent as purchasing a diary is now a crime and can be punished by death. Even though Winston works for the party, he does not agree with what they stand for and he hopes to expose them as the frauds they really are. He begins to suspect an officemate of his, O’Brien is a member of the group that plans to over through Big Brother and his manipulative government.
One day at work, Winston receives a note from a lady whom he had originally thought was an informant to the party. The note reads, “I love you” and she and Winston develop a relationship that must be kept a secret from big brother. Even though Winston is sure he and Julia will be caught for their relationship, he continues to stay with her and resents the party even more as time passes.
O’Brien decides to have Winston and Julia over to his house to confide in them his hatred of the party as well. However, while the three are at the apartment, the party police break in and arrest all three of them. But as it turns out, O’Brien is a devoted member of the party who has be assigned the task of getting Winston and Julia to complete an act of open rebellion.
The Story ends with the “break-up” of Winston and Julia, due to the brain washing Winston was subjected to. While it appears as though the hero has lost in this story, Winston’s acts will lead to more rebellions just like his, which will help gain control back from the party.
1) Do you think that George Orwell was at all accurate in his depiction of what governments can develop into?
2) If Our government were as controlling as the one in 1984, do you think you would be able to recognize it and stand up for your rights, or do you think you would fall for the manipulations of the party?
11 comments:
Firstly might i say that 9:00 on Sunday is a great time to write your primary blog and that these "party police" fellows leave a bad taste in my mouth. Anywho to answer your second question I would stand up for my rights if I was able to recognize it but i might not be able to if our government had a strong hold on the media and how gradually the change occurred.
With the second question, of course people will stand up for their rights, but the way the government portrays things may make everyone not even notice what is going on. This depiction could be accurate in the future. With the way technology is developing and how power hungry certain rulers are, I would not be suprised if someone took this type of control. Look in North Korea for example, those people think every country in the world is in love with them and jealous that they are so great and powerful because of the media there. There may not be the fancy machines, but this is exactly what is happening there.
I would stand up for my rights. I would try and do as much as possible to make the governement the way that the society wants it to be like. Governments should make laws with regards to what their people what. I agree with sean that many times the government does a great job or hiding what they are really trying to get at in the world. They make you believe that what they are doing is right and good for the society, but truely tey could be hurting society greatly.
I do think that George Orwell was a little bit accurate in his depiction of the future. We obviously don't have someone watching us 24/7 but we do have surveillance cameras, and phone taps which can invade our privacy.
2)If the government was as controlling as they are in the novel 1984, I would recognize that I need to stand up for my rights and would act on that impulse. Although it would be risky to stand up to the government, the principle of the matter is greater than the risk. There are certain rights the government cannot violate and 1984 certainly depicts some of these.
I don't know if I would be able to recognize it if the government controlled everything do well, however if I did I would certainly try to stand up for my rights.
I don't think that governments would ever be so radical in their control. Government is the vehicle of the people, and without popular support it would eventually be overthrown. As a result i think that it's near impossible for such a government to survive because the people would eventually retaliate, no matter how much brainwashing was used.
1. Yes, I believe George Orwell is very accurate in his depictions of what government can turn into. Obviously, our government in the United States is nothing like this, but other places such as Iraq, definatly have little, if any rights.
2. I would hope that I would recognize it but if that was the only thing I knew, then how would one know that there is something different, something better? If I was exposed to our government now and then the government in 1984, I would definatly regognize it. However, I would be terrified to stand up for my rights if death was the punishment. I don't think that I would.
I do think that given enough time and the freedom to do whatever they want to do without the close watch of at least a few departments of the government, I think George Orwell could come pretty close in his discription of the disaster of a government. You can even look at what happened with Hitler in the Holocaust: there are countless similarities in the way that Hitler and Big Brother handled things. The government surivived on fear and hate. I think if our government continues running with the system of checks and balances and the many departments of governments like we have today, we will be okay.
I do not feel that Orwell was accurate at all. This novel was entirely fiction and I dont feel as though it has any real truth to it. I have read the novel myself and yes, I too find it disturbing, but I also never once felt like I could parrallel it to American government. Obviously, within governements that are corrupt, actions like this may occur. Never though, would it be possible to monitor and keep tabs on such a large scale.
Thread graded, closed
Post a Comment