1984 And The Left Hand Of Darkness

1631 Words4 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: The human condition in literature

The two books Nineteen Eighty-Four and The Left Hand of Darkness help to define humanity and truth. Humanity is the condition, quality or fact of being human collectively. The definition of truth is things as they are, things as they have been, and things as they are to come. Truth cannot change because it does not reflect a personal perspective. These books illustrate how humans relate towards themselves, friends, enemies and humanity as a whole.

Truth allows humans to stand-alone. When they find truth they are able to be one against the whole. "Being in a minority even a minority of one did not make you mad. There was truth and there was untruth, and if you clung to the truth even against the whole world, you were not mad."(Pg.171, Nineteen Eighty-Four) This fact allows Winston to fight against the party. Truth is a powerful weapon that can defeat all odds. "One voice speaking truth is greater force than fleets and armies, given time." (Pg. 27, The Left Hand of Darkness) Genly Ai knew that eventually the people of Winter would accept the truth, however it would only take time.

Truth cannot be changed by man but can only be distorted. This fact is illustrated in both books. "The shortcomings are in the messenger, not the message." (Pg. 106, The Left Hand of Darkness) Genly Ai knew that sometimes when the responsibility of the truth is on one person it could get distorted. The truth can also get distorted when the people holding the power are in charge of keeping the truth. "Everything faded into mist. The past was erased, the erasure was forgotten, the lie became the truth." (Pg. 62, Nineteen Eighty-Four) When truth is distorted one loses the freedom to decide if one wants to support truth or untruth.

When people's friendships go untested they believe a friend would do anything for them, but when the trials come the trials end in betrayal. Winston believes he will stay true to Julia no matter what happens. "If I could save Julia by doubting my own pain, would I do it? Yes, I would." (Pg. 184, Nineteen Eighty-Four) After Winston betrays everyone except Julia, he still believes he can withstand his torture and not betray Julia. "You have whimpered for mercy, you have betrayed everybody and everything. Can you think of a single degradation that has not happened to you? Winston had stopped weeping, th...

... middle of paper ...

...ston is a part of his country by force, he eventually is brain washed by O'Brien and changes his hate for Big Brother to love for him. "Down with Big Brother!" (Pg. 18, Nineteen Eighty-Four) "He loved Big Brother." (Pg. 236, Nineteen Eighty-Four) He loses his freedom for he feels that freedom is the ability to die hating Big Brother. "To die hating them, that was freedom." (Pg. 223, Nineteen Eighty-Four) Winston is brain washed and as a result he loses the freedom to make his own decisions about whom he will hate and whom he will love.

These books show that though the relationships between humans might be different, the principals are the same. These principals include the fact that humans will stand-alone when they have the truth on their side because truth cannot be changed. Secondly, when friendships are tried, they will break because of one's love of him self. Moreover, the death sentence is not a necessary way to punish one's enemies. Lastly, being part of a group can be helpful because an individual belongs, yet harmful because of blind loyalty. The relationships people build with others are a reflection of their beliefs of truth and humanity.

Show More
Related

  • A Case for Free Will

    2065 Words  | 5 Pages

    “He has finally learned to love big brother” was how George Orwell in his novel 1984 described Winston, conversion to the party are represented by big brother at the end of the novel. It is easy to believe that at this instance, after torturous reeducation that Winston has endured, he has lost free will and no longer be able to freely choose to love big brother but was forced to, against hiss will. Therefore Winston was never free to love big brother, and in fact not free at all after his “reeducation.” But if we are to accept a definition of free will that stipulates that we are able to produce and act on our own volitions we must accept that Winston has retained and has chosen to love big brother out of his own free will.

    Read More

  • 1984 Government And Totalitarianism

    918 Words  | 2 Pages

    While government as an institution can be used for benevolent purposes, George Orwell’s novel 1984 contends that when taken to an excess in the form of totalitarianism, government becomes dangerously self-serving.

    Read More

  • How Did The Montgomery Bus Boycott Impact The Civil Rights Movement

    1290 Words  | 3 Pages

    On December 5, 1955, thousands of African Americans in Montgomery, Alabama walked, carpooled, or hitchhiked to work in an act of rebellion against segregation on buses. This bus boycott was not the first of its kind – black citizens of Baton-Rouge, Louisiana had implemented the same two years prior – but the bus boycott in Montgomery was a critical battle of the Civil Rights Movement. Though the original intent of the boycott was to economically cripple the bus system until local politicians agreed to integrate the city’s buses, the Montgomery Bus Boycott impacted the fabric of society in a much deeper way. Instead of only changing the symptoms of a much larger problem, this yearlong protest was the first step in transforming the way all Americans perceived freedom and equality. Though the boycott ended when the Supreme Court ruled bus segregation unconstitutional, this was not directly caused by the refusal to ride buses, and thus cannot be defined as the primary triumph of the boycott. Instead, the Montgomery Bus Boycott succeeded in changing the consciousness of millions of Americans, specifically southern blacks. A revolution of the mind was the greatest success of the Montgomery Bus Boycott, and this transformation occurred due to the small validations throughout the boycott that African Americans, as unified, free citizens, had power.

    Read More

  • Essay On Diamond Cartel

    761 Words  | 2 Pages

    Should diamonds be seen as such highly sought-after, luxury goods, and marketed and sold at such extravagant amounts? While some individuals might be of the impression that diamonds are lavishly priced, because of limited supply, it is of my opinion that a very shrewdly-created cartel disguises the very reason for these “rare” gems seemingly being worth your “pretty penny”.

    Read More

  • Montgomery´s Bus Boycott

    901 Words  | 2 Pages

    Commonly, Rosa Park’s arrests for refusing to yield her seat on a bus for a White man is a popular misconception of being the primary stimulant that kindled the uproar of the historical boycott of Montgomery’s buses known today. Contrarily, unprecedented, racially provoked violence, and discriminative and segregated events prior to Parks’ conviction motivated leaders to organize their communities for the challenge to break barriers of government’s disregards to Negro’s rights and race equality. Parks was the catalyst that spread to the community for the immediate need for change. Despite, Negroes limited sources, and assumptions they were impressionable and unintelligent; nevertheless, their stance made an economical impact to public transportation, crippled businesses’ revenue, and pressured the government to arbitrate laws against segregation. Within the short period of Parks’ arrest, Negroes were able to brainstorm various strategies that led to the success of the boycott, which included but not limited to the following: proper marketing, assertive leaders, and implementing a civil plan.

    Read More

  • 1984 And The Second Coming

    754 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the early twentieth-century, many people felt as if their societies were headed for a horrible downfall. With the Great Depression taking place, many people found great comfort in those individuals who rose to the occasion to help the people. Those such as Hitler, who promised jobs and a better life, also provided a scapegoat, just as Big Brother did in 1984, written by George Orwell. However, there were also those individuals who felt that the world was going to come to a rapid end if people did not learn to appreciate the things that had been given to them, as William Yeats speaks of in "The Second Coming". In both pieces, the author has a very evident fear of the future and what is to come.

    Read More

  • Chinas soft power undermining America

    687 Words  | 2 Pages

    Bearing in mind that the threat of China’s dependency on imports of natural resources has the potential to threaten the official ideology of Confucianism, the real threat is to the interests of the state and the Communist Party of China, because the future of the party and stability of the country is dependent on the continued growth of the Chinese economy. Maintaining the flow of raw materials is the main objective of the PRC because without them the economic engine of the China would be at a stand still, which has the potential to be seen by the people of China as a weakness and flaws in the current governing system. China should continue developing trade relations and international connections because the PRC has been remarkably successful in creating a network of countries who will be loyal in business and political reform. China has has a strategic focus on building relations with nations whom America is not keen on. This has also perpetuated the realization the the Chinese system of governance provides a second option to the ‘Western Consensus’, as a viable means for successful economic growth coupled with strict government control. China must operate multilaterally to continue the trajectory of relation and loyalty building in other countries. This will assist china with the key pillar goals of, building a comprehensive national power; advance incrementally in order to consolidate a position of strength, and maintaining stability, and with the objective that China will be in the position to continue imports of raw material to Chinese industry in the event of a sea trade embargo from opposition countries like the United...

    Read More

  • George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four 1984

    1236 Words  | 3 Pages

    To accomplish this, Orwell utilizes the theme of individuality versus tyranny, foreshadowing, and irony, in order to fully extract all possible motives behind Winston’s actions.Many countries, such as the United States, are founded on principles of individuality reigning over tyranny, more specifically, the freedom of choice. However, in the futuristic Oceania, run by “Big Brother”, such freedom and individuality is, for the most part, completely suspended. To act impulsively, or choose to oppose Big Brother, is a “thoughtcrime” of dire consequence. This is the basis behind the Inner Party’s control of Oceania. Winston however, from the commencement of the novel, showed that he was not willing to conform to such a tyrannical society. From his writing “DOWN WITH BIG BROTHER” in his diary as the novel opened, to his relationship with Julia, which was considered sexcrime in Oceania, Winston proved his thoughts were antiparallel to those of the Inner Party.

    Read More

  • 1984: The Control Of Reality For Control Of The Masses

    1113 Words  | 3 Pages

    Paragraph 1: History: Explain Revisionism Its Process How it affects the present. Paragraph 2: Psychology: Artificial Scarcity: Affects Human Behavior Maslow Theory of Human Behavior. Paragraph 3: God: Big Brother has taken the place of God: Omnipotent and Omniscient, and is under the control of the party. Among the many themes expressed in the novel 1984 by George Orwell, the most interesting and frightening is the concept of creating an alternative reality to control a mass population. The Inner Party stays in power by shaping the thoughts and opinions of the masses and it does this by creating a reality where everything suits whatever it is the party needs to be believed.

    Read More

  • The Conflict Diamonds of Africa

    1039 Words  | 3 Pages

    A beautiful precious diamond can last forever, but what most people do not know is that a majority of our diamonds come from Africa. The civil wars in Africa over diamonds began around 1961 and ended in 2003. Conflict diamonds were rampant and it would be difficult to say if any jewelry sold prior to 2003 was conflict free. Conflict diamonds are diamonds that have been mined and were controlled by African rebels. The rebels would use the profits from selling conflict diamonds to fund illegal activity and to purchase more weapons for their armies. While rebels had control of the diamond mines they killed approximately 4 million people and countless families were displaced.

    Read More

  • The Truth About Blood Diamonds

    2857 Words  | 6 Pages

    It’s hard to imagine that a mineral could be fueling wars and funding corrupt governments. This mineral can be smuggled undetected across countries in a coat pocket, then be sold for vast amounts of money. This mineral is used in power tools, parts of x-ray machines, and microchips but mostly jewelry. Once considered the ultimate symbol of love, the diamond has a darker story. "Blood" diamonds or "conflict" diamonds are those mined, polished, or traded in areas of the world where the rule of law does not exist. They often originate in war-torn countries like Liberia, Sierra Leone, Angola, and Côte d'Ivoire were rebels use these gems to fund genocide or other questionable objectives. Even with a system known as the Kimberly process which tracks diamonds to prevent trade of these illicit gems, infractions continue as the process is seriously flawed. The continuation of the blood diamond trade is inhuman, and unethical, and in order to cease this illicit trade further action to redefine a conflict diamond, as well as reform to the diamond certification prosess is nessasary.

    Read More

  • The Civil Rights Movement

    983 Words  | 2 Pages

    “You all treat us so bad,” just like we are animals.” Those are the words voiced by Mrs. Rosa Parks, a Negro seamstress. Whose refusal to move to the back of the bus and give her seat to a white man, touched off the enormously successful bus boycott of Montgomery, Alabama in the winter of 1956. But on a greater magnitude it fueled the Civil Rights movement of the Negro American. This incident almost single-handedly galvanized Negroes to insist on equal rights according to the laws of the United States government and to end segregation of all public places.

    Read More

  • The Psychoanalysis of 1984

    1027 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...he views of the Party. "Do it to Julia! Do it to Julia! Not me! Julia! I don't care what you do to her. Tear her face off, strip her to the bones. Not me! Julia! Not me!" (Part 3, Chapter 5). Winston’s mind is considered cured the moment that he turns on the one person her truly loves.

    Read More

  • Triple Bottom Line Case Study

    886 Words  | 2 Pages

    Santarossa, B. (2004, January 13). Diamonds: Adding lustre to the Canadian economy. Retrieved November 06, 2017, from https://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/11-621-m/11-621-m2004008-eng.htm

    Read More

  • Diamond Mining Essay

    805 Words  | 2 Pages

    Although artificial diamonds are very popular when it comes to science and the evolution of technology, for some people such as; collectors and jewellers may think that artificial diamonds are nothing like the real thing, and that they aren’t authentic enough. Which could possibly affect their sales.

    Read More

More about 1984 And The Left Hand Of Darkness

Open Document