The idea of a society where there is no freedom and the people have no rights, can be described through the warning foresights of a dystopia. In the novel, 1984, a country has lost all liberties to their government and war is commonly used as a political tool, as our government has done in the past. As our country continues down the path to becoming the dystopia described by George Orwell, it is seen that war is used as a political tool to help the government’s own agenda. By using wars to control the social views of the people, the products and wealth of the country, and the opinions of politicians and government officials, the governments of the United States and the country of Oceania can promote their own ideologies on others. As a reference for comparison, the military state of Oceania controls the Outer Party, wealth, and Inner Party through the use of war. In their society the citizens of the Outer Party were described as “a nation of warriors and fanatics, marching forward in perfect unity, all thinking the same thoughts and shouting the same slogans, perpetually working, fighting, triumphing, persecuting - three hundred million people all with the same face” (Orwell 64). They only had the thoughts that the government gave them, which created no possibility of the people revolting. The only thing the Outer Party knew was how to love the government. They had no entertainment, everything was made for war, and if not then it went to antique shops which were illegal to go to (Orwell n.pag). The main focus of the country was war, and everything else was considered nonsense. This creation of non-war shops also helped the Party trap people who were resilient, because they were able to catch them buying non-war goods from illeg... ... middle of paper ... ... towards the goals of the country from a sense of nationalism (McEnaney 21; Orwell n.pag.). The resentment the people hold for the enemy comes from the government’s war which distracts the people from the government’s actions towards themselves. The ploys the government uses the war for help them achieve their goals by controlling the citizens. The government of the United States and of Oceania use war as a political tool to control the social views of the people, the products and wealth of the country, and the opinions of politicians and government officials. The ways in which war is used as a political tool includes controlling citizens, and products of a country. Both the country in 1984 and the United States use war in similar ways. When comparing the current time with the story of 1984 it is easy to see the similarities in how war is used as a political tool.
Susan Brewer brilliantly illustrates the historical facts of American government propagating violence. Scrutinizing the Philippine War, World War I, World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War and the Iraq War the reader discovers an eerily Orwellian government manipulating her citizens instead of educating them. Brewer states, a "propaganda campaign seeks to disguise a paradoxical message: war is not a time for citizens to have an informed debate and make up their own minds even as they fight in the name of freedom to do just that." pg. 7 The Presidents of the United States and their administrations use propaganda, generation, after generation to enter into foreign wars for profit by manipulating the truth, which it is unnecessary for our government to do to her people.
Deception and a blatant contradiction of facts in the spirit of impunity form the foundation of the construct of modern dictatorship and draconian governance. Leaders with this attitude treat the public office and nation as personal property and deploy the state resources at their disposal for selfish use. Their behavior takes the form of frivolous “surveillances, monitoring, and other control structures founded on lies and ambiguities” (Dean and Orwell 23). The same scenario is exactly what happens at Oceania. The nation is governed by the party headed by the big brother (“Gordon State College” n.p.).
Readers often find themselves constantly drawn back to the topic of George Orwell’s 1984 as it follows a dystopian community which is set in a world that has been in continuous war, has no privacy by means of surveillance and has complete mind control and is known by the name of Oceania. The story follows a man by the name of Winston who possesses the features of “A smallish, frail figure… his hair very fair, his face naturally sanguine [and] his skin roughened” (Orwell 2). The novel illustrates to readers what it would be like if under complete control of the government. As a result, this book poses a couple of motifs’, For instance part one tackles “Collectivism” which means the government controls you, while part two fights with “Romance” with Winston and Julia’s sexual tension as well the alteration of love in the community, and part three struggles with “Fear” and how it can control someone physically and mentally.
George Orwell’s haunting dystopian novel 1984 delves into the closely monitored lives of the citizens of Oceania as the Party tries to take control of society. In totalitarianism, propaganda and terrorism are ways of subjugation with a main goal: total obedience. He aimed to create a “what if” novel, what would happen if totalitarian regimes, such as the Nazis and Soviets, were to take over the world. If totalitarianism were to happen, the leader would be the brain of the whole system. Orwell emphasizes the theme of individualism versus collective identity through Winston, the protagonist, and his defiance to the Party and Big Brother, with a frightening tone, surreal imagery and a third person limited point of view.
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.
...a. Stalin in Russia, Hitler in Germany and Mussolini in Italy all attempted to create a world where everything was controlled by a supreme ruler; there were no rights extended to the citizens of Oceania. To counter every such attempt to create a dystopia, the world gathered and fought as one, so that natural rights can be returned to the citizens, and spread humanity. The fight to create a united and equal civilization is far from over, all over the world these natural rights are snatched from innocent people, in the name or caste, religion, gender and age, to achieve power. George Orwell left an important warning for the future generations, to stand against injustice. It is the duty of every individual to ensure that every civil liberty, included in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in truly extended to one and all.
In George Orwell 's "Nineteen Eighty-Four," the main storyline revolves around a dystopian society whose self-thought has been corrupted by an over empowered governing body. Orwell’s intention was to bring Hitler’s ideas to life. Smith is a middle-aged frail man who is ambivalent towards his government, however is unable to resist the strength of the indoctrination he has been subjected to, during the entirety of his life. As the reader progresses through the novel, ideas of totalitarianism are illustrated throughout the story via Smith’s internal and external conflicts with his government. It quickly becomes apparent that there is an uncopiable amount of government power which is something that is seen as early as the second paragraph. Propaganda
War is a universal phenomenon, it is a violent tool people use to accomplish their interests. It is not autonomous, rather policy always determines its character. Normally it starts when diplomacy fails to reach a peaceful end. War is not an end rather than a mean to reach the end, however, it does not end, and it only rests in preparation for better conditions. It is a simple and dynamic act with difficult and unstable factors which make it unpredictable and complex. It is a resistant environment where the simplest act is difficult to perform. In this paper, I will argue why war is a universal phenomenon and what are the implications of my argument to strategists.
“Now I will tell you the answer to my question. It is this. The Party seeks power entirely for its own sake. We are not interested in the good of others; we are interested solely in power, pure power” (263). Through removing all power from the people, the Party gains the ability to prevent a revolt, or even the idea of a revolt, from happening. Orwell creates a comprehensive and vivid vision of a successful totalitarian government – an eerily effective warning to the future.
The novel 1984 by George Orwell presents the readers an image of a totalitarian society that explores a world of control, power, and corruption. The main idea of government control presents itself in the novel by protecting and listening to the people of Oceania. However, Orwell suggests giving too much power to the government is a mistake because eventually the decisions they make will not be about the people anymore but rather themselves. In 1984, the power and corruption the party has is overwhelming for the people. There are no ways around the beliefs of the Party, the party attempts to control and eventually destroy any mental or physical resistance against their beliefs. The agenda for the party is to obtain mind control over its people and force them to adore their leader. The methods the Party uses to achieve its goal are: the use of constant propaganda and surveillance, the rewriting of history, and Room 101.
Living in a country, people are expected to act and feel a certain way about said country. The people that run the country can make stupid and pity decisions about issues, but can have their country at their backs with mere propaganda. In short term, individuals might feel as if the politics and the things that started wars were important and whoever thought otherwise would be considered a traitor. But if you look back in on the history, or just have and unbiased person point it out, you realize how ridiculous it all seems.
Orwell affirms this stance, “in 1939, there were only five states capable of waging war on the grand scale, and now (in 1945) there are only three - ultimately, perhaps, only two” (Orwell). Orwell constructs the analogy of atomic weapons to complex dominant weapons and combines these warrants to persuade his audience to oppose atomic weapons and elitist oppression of the masses. He concludes by suggesting these weapons may be used to subvert democracy with slavery and craft an oppressive oligarchical regime (Orwell). In addition to previous ethical and pathetic appeals on the dangers of dominate atomic weapons, Orwell contextualizes his two main arguments by suggesting that the possessors of atomic weapons will abuse the power of dominant weapons. No answer exists for these weapons from the helpless populace and thus no rebellion or conflict can transpire. Orwell’s argument ignores the valuable notion of military strategy. How can such dominant weapons be used if the enemy employs tactics to strike at it’s weaknesses. He fails to qualify that weapons do not singularly determine a battle’s victor because first the battle must actually be
In the novel Nineteen Eighty-Four, George Orwell uses a product of his time and use narrative conventions to communicate the universal truth that totalitarian dictatorship should not be tolerated and nations shall do whatever it takes to stop a totalitarian dictator even if it means war to restore peace. The theme of his novel and universal truth goes further through the use of language, war, dictatorship, manipulation, oppression, and rebellion. Based on 1984, Orwell explains in his view what the world would be like after World War Two (WWII) based on the events that took place and explains his universal truth that nations shall do whatever it takes to stop a totalitarian dictator even if it means war to restore peace.
Their daily “Two Minutes of Hate” is how each individual falls onto the Party’s brainwashing bandwagon. This is a clever way the party seeks control over people, but more importantly, their minds. Reassociating words to differing meanings keeps the masses where the party wants them to be mentally. In other words, it keeps the citizens obedient and too distracted to focus on their actual living conditions. Not only that, it also makes it less likely for anyone to rebel against the Big Brother. “It is precisely in the Inner Party that war hysteria and hatred of the enemy is the strongest." Without that drive of outside hatred, people of Oceania would direct their hateful attitudes toward their real enemies: The Inner Party. Constant fear of propaganda keeps the masses at their toes with strong devotion to Big Brother and everything the Party stands for. The slogan is also true in the sense of keeping society together through the means of stopping progress. “It eats up the surplus of consumable goods, and it helps to preserve the special mental atmosphere that a hierarchical society needs. War, it will be seen, is now a purely internal affair.” Because war requires so many resources, the products that are manufactured using the arduous labor of Oceania’s population are expended. This cycle of continuous war ultimately makes the people languid, too tired to rise up
A quote from George Orwell’s novel, 1984, still resonates today as it was published in 1948; sixty-eight years ago. In the novel, his fictional world of gruesome totalitarian power through constant surveillance, prostitution, drug abuse, manipulation, and so on, keep the people of Oceania in control. Though it may seem as if Orwell’s terrifying utopia is just a fantasy, the horrifying fact is that it -- to some extent -- exists today, especially in the United States.