A Comparison of The Crysalids and 1984 A comparison of life in London, Air Strip One (or Great Britain) in the George Orwell novel 1984 and Waknuk, Canada in the John Wyndham novel The Crysalids. Waknuk is a society living after a nuclear attack. The people of Air Strip One (or Britain) in 1984 live in a dictatorship controlled by The Party. Waknuck is an enclosed society similar to Victorian Britain. As people spend all their lives in the town or city they are born they cant experience different cultures and therefore have a lack of tolerance and understanding for differences in the lifestyles of these cultures. The lack of experience of different cultures is not the reason for a lack of a true understanding of these cultures in 1984. The people of London are effectively poisoned against such cultures by the Party and so have no reason to want to experience them. Waknuck is also based largely on Religion - it is a Christian society. Most of the prejudices are formed from the Bible. Any creature that is against the true image of God (or a mutant) is called a Blasphemy. The Christian religion (and indeed other religions) have been the source of numerous prejudices in modern society in Britain (for example sexism and homophobia) and indeed conflicts (for example the conflicts between the Republic and Northern Ireland). In the novel 1984 no-one follows a religion as such, as far as the people of Britain in 1984 are concerned there is no God, the complete opposite of the radical religious views of the people of Waknuk. Most people in Waknuk have been brainwashed by Christianity in the same way many people in Great Britain in 1984 have been brainwashed by the party and Big Brother. Each use repetitive slogans, in 1984 such slogans as: War is peace. Freedom is slavery. Ignorance is strength. are used and more subtly in Christianity in the form of prays and commandments. The Party and Christians each worship a figure, Big Brother and God respectively, neither people can be completely sure of there presence but convince themselves that they exist nevertheless. The power lies with the Party in 1984 but lies with the church in Waknuk The people of Waknuk are unable to comprehend theories such as the Evolution Theory dispute finding fossils and other evidence that would conflict with Genesis. In 1984 conflicting evidence is rarely available and so it is easier for the Party to control the beliefs of its members. Moments in history are constantly altered and exactly what is fact and what is fiction is never quite understood. In each society conformity is required for survival. Those who do not conform to the true image are forced to leave Waknuk and live in the Fringes and live similarly to prehistoric man as savages. In 1984 those who do not conform are vaporized. The situation of society of the Fringes is similar to that of the Proles in 1984, each rejected by the normal population and forced to live away from it in designated areas. The Proles are closest to what life is like in Great Britain today. Modern views and ideas are very rare in Waknuk. Both in Waknuk and 1984 an ideal is constantly trying to be met. In Waknuk this ideal is to fight unceasingly against the evils that tribulation loosed upon [Waknuk] while in 1984 it is to have a society totally under control by Big Brother. In both societies there are those who refuse to conform. Uncle Axcel represents this in the Crysalids and Winston represents this in 1984. The Crysalids is set in the future. But society has regressed, almost started again. Prejudges in the Crysalids often has echoes of Hitlers Germany. Purity of the race is often discussed suggesting similar fascism as the persecution of the Jews during the second world war. Female blasphemes (those who do not conform to the true image as God) are sterilized before being sent to the fringes. In both societies there is evidence of children being taught how to live the correct way. Indeed in both novels there a hints that loyalty to ones country is becoming more important that loyalty to your family and friends. As shown by Aunt Hatrriot in the Crysalids as she refuses to help her sister keep her child (who would be taken to the fringes) and mean her husband would divorce her. Love is practically absent in both societies especially in 1984. Sex is corruption out of wedlock and serves only the function of propagation of the species, a good example of how the people of 1984 are used as instruments for the use of Big Brother. In Waknuk if a married couple have children and three of them turn out to be deviations then the husband has the chance to trade in his wife. This seems similar to instances in a medieval society when one member of a couple was infertile the blame fell to the women, as men were considered superior (as they are in Waknuk). The outlook for the future of each society is very different. The party may one day be overcome by another county or the Proles. This is unlikely. The people of London no longer have any say over the running of the country, it is devoid of democracy. The population is based on war, hate and anger. They have no reason to live other than to serve a Party which completely controls them. As children are brought up they are taught lies by the Party and go on believing those lies for the rest of there lives. The Party has too much power and will doubtless never give it up. Waknuk should improve, the novel is set in the future but society has regressed, almost started again. It has airs of many different periods of history. Similar fascism has gone on in our pasts but is always being overcome as the ideal of equality grows faster. Today we are growing more tolerant of different types of people however in the past people were (and to a large extent still are) discriminated against because of their religion, colour, ideas, sex or because of a disability. The message of the book is not to discriminate against people because of what their appearance or what they think because (as represented by David and Sophie) they are only guilty of standing out of the crowd, not being bad or evil. If this theory is correct, Waknuk has only been set back a couple of thousand years in history its people will come to learn as we have today that differences are a part of life and do nothing more than make it a little more interesting.
The animals were on an emotional high for the next few days. They set up rules, including the seven commandments, and decided to make Snowball and Napoleon (pigs) the leaders. The animals had meetings every Sunday to discuss and vote on what should happen, and the work schedule for the following week. Every single time an idea was brought up Snowball and Napoleon would disagree. This went on for a year. Finally, at one of the meetings Napoleon and 9 dogs jumped Snowball, and chased him off of the farm. From then on the farm became a dictatorship, not a republic as the animals had dreamed of before the rebellion. Napoleon lied to the animals a lot, but none of them were smart enough to realize it. He planted false memories in the animals heads, and manipulated them. He stole food from them and blamed it on Snowball. Then he started to go against the seven commandments, but none of the animals could remember the seven com...
Waknuck is also based largely on Religion - it is a Christian society. Most of the prejudices are formed from the Bible. Any creature that is against "the true image of God" (or a mutant) is called a Blasphemy. The Christian religion (and indeed other religions) have been the source of numerous prejudices in modern society in Britain (for example sexism and homophobia) and indeed conflicts (for example the conflicts between the Republic and Northern Ireland). In the novel '1984' no-one follows a religion as such, as far as the people of Britain in 1984 are concerned there is no God, the complete opposite of the radical religious views of the people of Waknuk. Most people in Waknuk have been 'brainwashed' by Christianity in the same way many people in Great Britain in 1984 have been 'brainwashed' by the party and Big Brother. Each use repetitive slogans, in 1984 such slogans as: "War is peace. Freedom is slavery. Ignorance is strength." are used and more subtly in Christianity in the form of prays and commandments. The Party and Christians each worship a figure, Big Brother and God respectively, neither people can be completely sure of there presence but convince themselves that they exist nevertheless. The power lies with the Party in 1984 but lies with the church in Waknuk.
... Even with the bigoted town of Waknuk and its purity laws, hope is still evident within the events of the Novel.
In the 1930s and 40s, Adolf Hitler used the Jewish people as a scapegoat on which to blame Germany’s problems. This fear of what the Jewish people had apparently created granted the German people free reign to discriminate and detest. This hatred allowed the Nazi Regime to subsist and thrive. The same is true for The Party in 1984. The Party takes away the opportunity to expand one’s mind and freely use one’s body to one’s own pleasure, essentially taking away the humanity from human beings. In George Orwell’s 1984, The Party uses racism, sexism, and anti-semitism as a way to control the masses and quell rebellion.
These examples display the inevitable fact that all over the world subtle but significant events are taking place that appear to signify a shifting toward a totalitarian government, much like the one present in 1984. This is extremely disturbing because most people will agree that the life lived by the characters in 1984, is not one of any value. Though they are “protected” from several of the problems that many of the free world citizens and officials face, they have no control over their thoughts or actions. This leads to unbearable uniformity. It is chilling to know that though George Orwell’s book was written as fiction, portions of it are becoming factual.
War Is Peace. Freedom Is Slavery. Ignorance Is Strength. The party slogan of Ingsoc illustrates the sense of contradiction which characterizes the novel 1984. That the book was taken by many as a condemnation of socialism would have troubled Orwell greatly, had he lived to see the aftermath of his work. 1984 was a warning against totalitarianism and state sponsored brutality driven by excess technology. Socialist idealism in 1984 had turned to a total loss of individual freedom in exchange for false security and obedience to a totalitarian government, a dysutopia. 1984 was more than a simple warning to the socialists of Orwell's time. There are many complex philosophical issues buried deep within Orwell's satire and fiction. It was an essay on personal freedom, identity, language and thought, technology, religion, and the social class system. 1984 is more than a work of fiction. It is a prediction and a warning, clothed in the guise of science fiction, not so much about what could happen as it is about the implications of what has already happened. Rather than simply discoursing his views on the social and political issues of his day, Orwell chose to narrate them into a work of fiction which is timeless in interpretation. This is the reason that 1984 remains a relevant work of social and philosophical commentary more than fifty years after its completion.
At the beginning of the story, there were two leaders, Snowball and Napoleon, who were sharing power. Snowball was good with words, honest, good at arguing, was inventive, and believed in technology. He stayed in touch with the animals, and wanted to make things better for them. Napoleon, on the other hand, was bad with words, dishonest, hated arguing, and was not inventive. He wanted to be above all the animals; he didn't care about making things better. He only believed in serving himself. In order for Napoleon to be above all the animals, he had to get Snowball out of the way. Napoleon did that by getting his dogs to scare him away so Snowball would never come back to the farm. Napoleon was now in total control of the farm and the animals. Napoleon and the pigs started acting like humans - they would drink, wear clothes, sleep in beds, fight, and walk. They did everything that they had once said was wrong.
The rebellion fails due to the blindness of the animals, accepting each other as equal, but do not notice the pigs adding new rules to suit themselves, ‘no animal shall kill another animal without due cause.’
The women in Waknuk are also protective of their loved ones. While there are people like Mary Strorm who will follow everything her husband says and not question him or his religion at all, there are...
The Sealand society wants change where the Waknuk society wants to stay the same. Unlike Waknuk, Sealand does not want to be like the Old People. This is shown when the Sealand woman tells David, “We are the New People – your kind of people.
At the beginning of the story, the Old Major calls a meeting in the barn and speaks about Rebellion and Animalism. Shortly after that the Old Major died’s and then the rebellion starts to take place. Mr. Jones is like a bad guy to the Animals. Napoleon to is also another major villain. But after Jones is gone, all of his tools are burned, and now its time for the animals to take a look around the farmhouse. The name Manor Farm is changed to Animal Farm and the Seven Commandments are established. They then start to begin the hay harvest. During the hay harvest Boxer says, “I will work harder” as his personal motto. The harvest turned out to be a success. At this point the pigs are now beginning to abuse their power. Pretty soon the pigeons are sent to spread the word of the rebellion to other animals. And Mr. Jones tries to recapture the farm in the Battle of the Cowshed.
In the novel 1984, Orwell produced a social critique on totalitarianism and a future dystopia that made the world pause and think about our past, present and future. When reading this novel we all must take the time to think of the possibility that Orwell's world could come to pass. Orwell presents the concepts of power, marginalization, and resistance through physical, psychological, sexual and political control of the people of Oceania. The reader experiences the emotional ride through the eyes of Winston Smith, who was born into the oppressive life under the rule of Ingsoc. Readers are encouraged through Winston to adopt a negative opinion on the idea of communist rule and the inherent dangers of totalitarianism. The psychological manipulation and physical control are explored through Winston's journey, and with Winston's resistance and ultimate downfall, the reader is able to fully appreciate O'Briens reasoning, "Power is not a means, it is an end."
The books Brave New World, by Aldrous Huxley, and 1984, by George Orwell, are alike because they have comparable organizations. By using brainwashing techniques, censorship, and the obliteration of history, the leaders in Brave New World and 1984 control the thoughts and recollections of the people in their societies. Without using these techniques, the societies being controlled could not exist, because the people would not be disciplined like they needed to be. The citizens in these societies are slaves of the leaders, but cannot resist or do anything to change things for themselves.
Animal Farm satirizes the Russian revolution and magnifies the flaws of communism and totalitarianism in the composition of a fairy tale. The book “Animal Farm,” was published in 1945, by George Orwell. Orwell writes to show the result of all people being equal…”but some are more equal than others.” Through a third person perspective Orwell clearly depicts the naïve loyalty of the individuals to the leaders, and the deceptive manipulation by the leading positions. Orwell puts communism and totalitarianism under a microscope and exposes the realistic outcomes these society’s produce, while satirizing with a fairy-tale story of talking animals and tyrannical pigs.
Mr. Jones is overthrown from the farm, and the animals take charge. Three pigs, Napoleon, Squealer, and Snowball emerge as the leaders. These pigs create a system called “Animalism” along with a set of rules called The Seven Commandments that go as follows: