Topic 1: What warning does the novel carry for readers at this point in time about where their society is heading?
Introduction
NINETEEN EIGHTY-FOUR’s society carries a warning to our society about where we might be heading. However I believe that we are already at a parallel with the society in NINETEEN EIGHTY-FOUR . Taking the focus of the media it becomes very clear that our society is very similar to the one in NINETEEN EIGHTY-FOUR if to a lesser extent. Looking at the media shows that the media have control over what we know and therefore what we think. Therefore who ever controls the media controls our thoughts, both here and in NINETEEN EIGHTY-FOUR . By showing the similarities between NINETEEN EIGHTY-FOUR and our world through the media it becomes clear that our society is very closely related to that of NINETEEN EIGHTY-FOUR .
Control of our knowledge
The media controls our knowledge of the outside world. If we don’t listen to the news we don’t find out what is happening in other countries. The media can be very selective about what stories they broadcast; they will broadcast the news that they think the public will want to hear. An example of this in our world was the September 11 attacks. We heard lots of news about how approximately 7000 people died but we didn’t hear about:
o The floods in India which killed thousands of people
o The 32700(approx) people who died from hunger and curable diseases on September 11.
In NINETEEN EIGHTY-FOUR Ingsoc controls the media. They decide what the people need to know and so effectively control their knowledge. If the party says that Oceania is at war with Eastasia then for all the people know it is. This is also true if the party says that Oceania is at war with Eurasia. Effectively the media controls our knowledge – we know what they choose to broadcast.
Control of media
Every media group is controlled by somebody. Whoever controls it controls what is broadcast to the public. The extreme case of this is in NINETEEN EIGHTY-FOUR . The party controls the media and so all stories go through them. They broadcast what they think it is necessary for the people to know and that is the end of the story. The party is basically the media and everything they say is always correct. If it turns out to be incorrect they change their records so that it is correct.
Thinking back into history, many important events have occurred in history since the publication of 1984 by George Orwell in 1949. In no specific order there would be the Holocaust, The creation of the United Nations, NATO (North Atlantic treaty Organization), and even The Iron Curtain being established. After 1984 was published huge events also occurred in history. There was the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Korean war, the Vietnam War, the creation of the Berlin Wall, and the destruction of the Berlin wall, Joseph Stalin dies, and Khrushchev gains power....etc, etc. No matter when a book is published the events in history will always surround it, such as this book.
“"Propaganda is as powerful as heroin, it surreptitiously dissolves all capacity to think” by Gil Courtemanche connects to the sad fact of using propaganda as a deadly weapon to feed people with false information and stop them from thinking. George Orwell’s novel, 1984, describes a totalitarian dystopian society where the Party is constantly brainwashing its citizens with information that is beneficial to its own rights. On the opposite side, people are working for the party just like dominated slaves for their masters without knowing what’s going on. But, in order for the party to achieve this goal, they have to use different techniques of propaganda in Oceania to create fear for people so that they can obey the rules. The use of propaganda in the society of 1984 takes away freedom from individuals because of the absence of privacy, thinking and making decisions.
The novel 1984, by George Orwell, made me paranoid. It made me suspicious of our government's power and intentions. I became aware of the potential manipulation which the government could impose upon us. I came to see that the people I believe to be wholly dedicated to the well-being of society, the people I rely so heavily on to provide protection and security have the power to betray us at any given time. I realised that in my naivety I had gravely overlooked the powerful grip government has over society, and what it can do with that power.
it has operatives all over keeping an eye out for cops or law enforcement, this
George Orwell has created two main characters that have conflicting traits believe in the idea of love in a world where it is forbidden. Although both are secret rebels of the Party and share the same hatred for the Party’s totalitarian power, Julia and Winston display a remarkable number of differences between each other. The differences between them include their morality, their motivation towards the rebellion, and their personalities.
The novel, 1984, written by George Orwell, gives readers an insight to a possible frightening future where one government has complete and definite control of the people. But “control” might not be the term to describe such a rule. The Party dominates every aspect of life. There is not a single thing that is not under the Party’s rule. Feelings, history, language, statistics, and even human nature are submissive to the Party. They corrupt the mind so much that there is no longer a line that separates truth from a lie. Slogans are repeated through telescreens on a daily basis so the people are gradually forced to believe in illogical statements. Upon first glance, it may seem that a 1984 society is not even imaginable in the world we live in currently. But is it really logical to make such an assumption so quickly? Do we know that what we see on the news and read in our history textbooks is completely accurate? The Internet is one of the most powerful technologies our world has, consisting of an insurmountable amount of information, which is not always what it seems. Ultimately, there are so many things that we do not know, some of which is being held a secret from us. Modern day society shockingly has evidence of a transformation into a menacing 1984 society because of similar government actions and abuse of advanced technology.
By controlling any and all mass media, both governments more easily controlled the ideas of the people. If someone were never exposed to a certain idea or belief by the media, most likely he or she would not imagine that idea on h... ... middle of paper ... ... Times 20 October 2001:
... and as such, its job was to support the goals of the Party. The purpose of everything in Soviet Russia was to build up socialist society, and therefore the primary job of the media was the same. Outside events did not matter as much as the message from the Party and the Party’s ultimate goals. Therefore, like much of society behind the Iron Curtain, the press was tightly controlled and focused on the will of the Party to the detriment of education about the outside world.
News is all around us and is readily available to everyone. There are many flaws in the system that hurts the authenticity of the news when you see it. The media is indirectly part of the political system. Most news is either considered liberal or conservative by many.
In “Reporting the News” by George C. Edwards III, Martin P. Wattenberg, and Robert L. Lineberry, the main idea is how the media determines what to air, where to get said stories that will air, how the media presents the news, and the medias effect on the general public. “Reporting The News” is a very strong and detailed article. The authors’ purpose is to inform the readers of what goes on in the news media. This can be inferred by the authors’ tone. The authors’ overall tone is critical of the topics that are covered. The tone can be determined by the authors’ strong use of transitions, specific examples, and phrases or words that indicate analysis. To summarize, first, the authors’ indicate that the media chooses its stories that will air
News is often described as the ‘window of the world’, but sometimes what we see on the news isn’t necessarily the true facts of what is happening around the world. News is often very subjective, especially in television, and sometimes the best pictures are picked over the best story. As journalists, we are responsible for society and frequently news leads viewers to a narrow-minded view of the world, often showing them what we want them to see rather than what they need to see. As Harcup explains (2009, P3) ‘Journalism informs society about itself and makes public that which would otherwise be private.’
Media in 1984 was completely bias for the party. Winston who worked for the media knew “ every word he murmured into speakwrite, every stroke of his ink pencil, was a deliberate lie” (Orwell 183). The people of 1984 are being completely lied to because of technology. Now that the party has technology to trick people's minds it is taking away their freedom to think for themselves. This is also the same for the modern media “ 74% say that news organization tend to be bias” (Mitchell, Gottfried, Barthel, Shearer 2). People in the modern world believe that most of the news organizations are bias just like the people in 1984. The commonwealth in 1984 are forced to believe in the news media provided because “ big brother is watching you” (Orwell 3). They must watch the same news source because they are forced to. Although in the modern world people have the freedom to chose their news source but, “ 76% of americans say they usually turn to the same sources” (Mitchell, Gottfried, Barthel, Shearer 1). The development of technology has lead to multiple news sources to be developed but people still only turn to one source. Yet people know they are still bias and still continue to watch. This scenario turns people in the modern world just like people 1984. They are forced to watch the same media but know they are bias. This causes the modern world to reduce their own freedoms like the people in 1984 whose are
The media holds an enormous amount of control and influence over society and the way
"Critical Reception." Nineteen Eighty-Four: Past, Present, and Future. Patrick Reilly. Boston: Twayne Publishers, 1989. 11-23. Twayne's Masterwork Studies 30. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 5 May 2015.
...of Nineteen Eighty-Four are not going to be forgotten any time soon. Psychological manipulation is quite possibly the most realistic of the themes. In conjunction with psychological manipulation is physical control. The Party is a totalitarian government and controls every aspect of life. Technology is yet another important theme. Technology is what gives the Party their power and influence. Big Brother, the symbol, as well as the telescreens are motifs that help drive the main conflict.