1984 is a novel of great influence. The novel illustrates many concepts of life in the future through the knowledge of the past. The descriptive theories within the novel are familiar in basic context when we look into the society of today. The author George Orwell has projected an image of the future through the knowledge of his lifetime, which is not far off reality. The novel talks about the social movement to a world of unbearable proportions, which takes the idea of security to the limit.
A feeling of helplessness is bestowed upon the people as the government scrutinizes their every move. The government has created a society of fear, and people automatically fall into line for they cannot escape the eyes of Big Brother who is watching them. Many of the major concepts outlined in detail in the novel are applicable to life in the twenty-first century. The author has defined concepts for several areas, which he perceived the world would progress towards. Orwell’s prophecies as illustrated in the novel 1984 are fulfilled in today’s society.
One of the major prophecies that Orwell outlines in his novel is the idea of the telescreen which can watch anyone at any time this is a reality in today’s society. One of the major connections that Orwell makes about the telescreen of 1984 and today’s society is that you could spy on people. The telescreen might be the most closely compared to microphones and cameras, but there are also many other devices that can be easily used for spying. Within the area of the telescreen anyone could be watched as well as heard, which closely links to the surveillance of today, except people are a little more naive.
Any sound that Winston made, above the level of a very low whisper, would be picked up by it; moreover, so as long as he remained within the field of vision which the metal plaque commanded, he could be seen as well as heard. There was of course no way of knowing whether you were being watched at any given moment. “(Orwell, 6) The notion that “Big brother is watching you” from the novel is not that far off. In fact cameras are being installed all over the place for security reasons, but you do not know who is watching you and what kind of personal information you are giving away.
No matter how far our contemporary world may seem to 1984’s Oceania, any suggestion of government surveillance of its citizens–from the threatened “clipper chip,” which would have allowed government officials to monitor all computer activity, to New York mayor Rudy Guliani’s decision to place security cameras in central park — produces cries of “Big Brother is watching. “(Fitzpatrick 1) The idea that the government would use a computer chip to monitor computer activity is a close comparison to the telescreen.
The telescreen would watch people’s every move as they go about their day, and the chip would allow the same capability. The difference is that it would watch your every virtual move: on the internet, every web site you go to, your online banking, credit card numbers would all be at the hands of the government. The fact that the government is putting cameras in public places is not uncommon. Cameras are in schools, restaurants, banks, convenience stores, some people have hidden security cameras in their homes, and now they are even in parks.
Almost anywhere you go, except for the security of your own home you are being watched. These days, people have voice recorders as well, so they could be recording what you are saying without you even noticing this is mainly used for undercover people such as the FBI. Surveillance is not the only worry, which the telescreen provides, it is also a dangerous tool, which can be used for brainwashing as well. The telescreen can also be linked to the idea of the modern day mass media. In the book the telescreen was used as a device to brainwash and produce propaganda, and as well, just to deliver the news.
The televisions of today can basically viewed in the same manor. Televisions provide the same services to the people that telescreens did in 1984. “The voice from the telescreen paused. A trumpet call, clear and beautiful, floated into the stagnant air. The voice continued raspingly. Attention! Your attention please! A news flash has this moment arrived from the Malabar front. Our forces in south India have won a glorious victory. ” (Orwell, 24) The telescreen is constantly delivering news to the people of Oceania.
The facts and figures about business, the news of the war are all things that can be consistently brought to the attention of the people of Oceania. Although the news is not on everywhere you go, the news of each day can be found at any point in the day. There is accurate and up to date news being presented on several all news stations on the television, or on the radio. The news that the telescreen also delivers capabilities of brainwashing. “At this moment the entire group of people broke into a deep, slow, rhythmical chant of B-B! B-B! B-B! (Orwell, 17) The government has a good knowledge of how to use the telescreens to gain support from the people.
The people in the novel are totally entranced enough to make them chant demonstrating a love for the party. The telescreens serve the purpose of hypnotizing people to develop a new sense of being. The televisions of today are used in the same method to create hypnotizing effects. “The most brilliant propagandist technique will yield no success unless one fundamental principle is borne in mind constantly… it must confine itself to a few points and repeat them over and over. ”
This quote from the Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels indicates the simplicity of brainwashing. After reading this statement, it comes to mind that this is the logic behind many of the television ads today. Many have catchy jingles and or rhythmical chants to stimulate the memory, and entice buyers. There may be different applications for the brainwashing of 1984 and the brainwashing of today, but still it is the same principles. The telescreens of 1984 were not only used for mass media, but for personal use as well.
The telescreen can also be seen as something of an individual communication device, such as current day telephones or microphones and web cameras, combined into one device. A device of instant communication through seeing and hearing between two people at one time. “The picture had fallen onto the floor, uncovering the telescreen behind it. Now they can see us,’ said Julia. Now we can see you,’ said the voice. “(Orwell, 176) The telescreen can see the movements of everyone, and even talk to people in specific locations, apart from all of the masses.
The telescreen could in this instance both see and hear Winston and Julia at the same time, and they as well could be heard by the telescreen. Although the telescreen is more widely applied to the mass communication, it can still be used in the same manor as a telephone in which both people can communicate back and forth to each other. A new technology, being videophones, have a similar purpose to the telescreens, in which they can share a regular phone conversation, while being used to view the actions of the person you are communicating with.
Many people on the Internet use the convenience of a microphone, to talk back and forth, as well as a web camera to be able to see each other, and hear each other at the same time. The current day variation of the telescreen, the videophone is just being introduced and is not widespread as the telescreen is in the novel. However the telephone and devices on the Internet are quite common. There are many devices, which are along the same path as the telescreen, which are used today. Within the novel a government regime is illustrated, and is a prophecy Orwell has described from past knowledge and experiences, and is still very valid today.
The use of the media through the government outlined in this novel is apparent through the many government agencies, which gather and maintain the facts to present to the public. The media is used as a cover-up, but everyone believes it because it is government controlled, and there is no other to oppose it. This is the same situation as was happening in modern times in Iraq. The state controls the media to disperse its propaganda. It is quite clear in the novel that the government can make the public believe anything they want.
For example, the ministry of plenty’s forecast had estimated the output of boots for the quarter at 145 million pairs. The actual output was given as sixty-two millions. Winston, however, in rewriting the forecast, marked the figure down to seventy-five millions, so as to allow for the usual claim that the quota had been overfilled. In any case sixty-two millions was no where nearer to the truth than fifty-seven millions, or 145 millions. Very likely no boots had been produced at all. Likelier still, nobody knew how many had been produced, much less cared.
All one knew was that every quarter astronomical amounts of boots were produced on paper, while perhaps half the population of Oceania went barefoot. ” (Orwell, 36) Since the government controls all known news going to the people of Oceania, they have no room for comparison. The sale of boots became absolutely unreliable. As well, they would have no reason to analyze the given information, since it should be pure as it is straight from the source, and as they would think, a very credible source. There is evidence that this type of deception is still occurring.
Iraqi Press is Government-Controlled. The Iraqi News Agency (INA) is the public information arm of the Iraqi government and is the only news agency currently functioning in Iraq. All Iraqi newspapers are state-controlled and part of the INA. Some of these include: Al-Thawra, Al-Jumhuriya, Babil and the English-language Iraq Daily. ” (http://usgovinfo. about. com/library/weekly/aasaddambio. htm) The people of Iraq were subject to the same kind of government fraudulence as the people of Oceania in 1984. Both governments are alike controlling all facets of the news.
The government and it’s corrupted behavior seeps far beyond recognition and into a pool of deception. It is evident that there is corruption that goes deeper than just controlling the media. Within 1984 there is much government control, spying on the general public every second of the day. There is even an intelligence agency set up with regular people disguised as agents, to regularly monitor people without them knowing. “A man stooped to Obey. The cockney accent disappeared: Winston suddenly realized whose voice it was he heard a few moments ago on the telescreen.
Mr. Charrington was still wearing his old velvet jacket, but his hair, which had been almost white, had turned black. Also he was not wearing his spectacles. He gave Winston a sharp glance, as though verifying his identity, and then paid no more attention to him. He was still recognizable, but he was not the same person any longer. “(Orwell, 178) “It occurred to Winston that for the first time in his life he was looking, with knowledge, at a member of the Thought Police. ” (Orwell, 179) Winston for months believed that he could trust this man, and from this man he was able to acquire what he had thought was privacy.
Although not as extreme, activity such as this goes on within the United States today. There are secret government agencies dedicated to the task of spying. “WASHINGTON — FBI agents soon may be able to spy on Internet users legally without a court order. ” (http://www. wired. com/news/politics/0,1283,46852,00. html) The agencies are watching people just like in 1984, and now will likely be able to watch people even more readily, as they will be able to spy on people on the internet, and follow their every move, seeing what web sites they visit.
The FBI does much the same thing as the though police in the novel, since they use cameras to observe and record people, and they use microphones to gather evidence, which is along the same lines as what the telescreens are used for. As well there are people that look like average people, but they are really undercover agents getting information just as in the novel, when Winston sees what he thinks as a regular person, transform into an agent of the thought police. The government not only condones the idea of getting private information, it also acts upon it.
In the novel the facts are evident that many people are being killed, because they have knowledge or have done something to oppose the government. This is very closely linked to regime in Iraq, which has killed many Iraqis. “Some Eurasian prisoners, guilty of war crimes, were to be hanged in the park that evening, Winston remembered. This happened once a month and was a popular spectacle. “(Orwell, 22) The government wished to punish those who were guilty of knowledge or thoughts, which opposed it’s power and strength. In Iraq the same type of things occur, there are many people who have been imprisoned and then killed.
Executions: Saddam Hussein’s regime has carried out frequent summary executions, including: 4,000 prisoners at Abu Ghraib prison in 1984, 3,000 prisoners at the Mahjar prison from 1993-1998, 2,500 prisoners executed between 1997-1999 in a prison cleansing campaign’, 122 political prisoners executed at Abu Ghraib prison in February/March 2000, 23 political prisoners executed at Abu Ghraib prison in October 2001, At least 130 Iraqi women beheaded between June 2000 and April 2001”
The situation in Iraq is of course a lot more extreme than in the novel. The idea however is that in both cases the governments are so strong and controlling that they have become corrupt and will not allow any threats to exist within the society at large. Language is another one of Orwell’s prophecies. Orwell predicts that there will be one ordinary language that everyone will be fluent in and then there will be another special purpose language. The language that the people of Oceania use apart from the regular English, is called Newspeak, and is very similar to today’s language of the Internet.
Newspeak has condensed words in the English language to create new words, and there is the addition of many new short forms for words. “He unrolled the message that he had set aside earlier. It ran: times 3. 12. 83 reporting bb dayorder doubleplusungood refs unpersons rewrite fullwise upsub antefiling. In oldspeak (or standard English) this might be rendered: The reporting of Big Brother’s Order for the Day in The Times of December 3rd 1983 is extremely unsatisfactory and makes references to non-existent persons.
Rewrite it in full and submit your draft to higher authority before filing. “(Orwell, 39) In modern terms, the creation of Internet lingo has come about in the same general way, creating new words out of existing words. People combine phrases such as “What is up” to become “Sup”. The words “Be right back” simply become “BRB”. The language, just as Newspeak in 1984 is used as a special purpose language. Neither languages are known nor used by all, but are used in a certain context to create a faster method of communication, which can be easily deciphered and put into regular English.
There are some places that use multiple languages, a main language that the people that the citizens use, and one or two that are for others. Oceania uses standard English or oldspeak for general conversation, as well as Newspeak. The Newspeak mainly used for official government things. “Down at street level another poster, torn at one corner, flapped fitfully in the wind, alternately covering and uncovering the single word INGSOC. ” (Orwell, 6) In Quebec the same idea applies.
The people in Quebec are multilingual, speaking both French and English, but on government things such as signs, French is always used. Because the predominant language in Canada is English, it is therefore established that there should be English and French used in Quebec. This is similar to Oceania, because people on an everyday basis use English, but Newspeak is also known, and used for certain purposes, mainly for official documentation such as Winston uses in his work at the ministry of truth, and for brainwashing and propaganda.
Things such as signs use newspeak for general use. The word INGSOC as previously o mentioned is a short form for English Socialism. If in fact the government had written English Socialism on a sign in the street, then the effectiveness would be lost, because absolutely everyone would know what that meant. The same applies in Quebec, the people of Quebec do not want to lose their culture by giving in to the demands of the English speaking Canadians, but they do not lose the connection to the rest of Canada, and offend them by not offering any English at all.
Therefore English is used as a secondary Language in Quebec, and French is used as a secondary language in Canada, and everyone is accounted for. The same thing applies in Oceania, because there is a dictionary for newspeak, therefore it is an official language, and it is used on the news somewhat and on sign postings, so therefore everyone is happy because those who speak it are not left out. The author clearly outlines several theories of his within the novel, which have come true in modern day.
George Orwell’s first prophecy is about a piece of technology, which we can quite easily relate to modern day because it is quite like a television or a communication device such as a camera or microphone. This was important since it was one of the main ideas of his novel, relating to spying, and it has become quite prominent within our society as well as in the novel. Next the author outlines the type of government, which is quite overpowering, which again in co-ordinance with the telescreen presents one of the main ideas in the plot of the novel and is quite emphasized.
The type of governance described is in effect in some countries around the world today. Finally the author has described in detail the use of a new language that has become useful for brainwashing, and government propaganda. This language can be related to today as we have created a new language of our own for special purposes and there are places that deal with a double languages, just as in the novel. The concepts that this novel introduces are so realistic that it has influenced many around the world for many years.
