“If you want a vision of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face – forever”. George Orwell’s Nineteen-Eighty-Four (1984) may appear to be merely a classic work of dystopian fiction, but as we delve deeper into the purpose and presentation of the text, we begin to appreciate the clear didacticism adopted by the author. 1984 goes beyond simplistic ideas to give a presentation of the future that is dominated by cynical fatalism. Orwell’s entirely pessimistic approach to human potential has been shaped by his own contextual issues, and questions our ability to maintain functioning society without a descent into the kind of oligarchy that he represents. Conversely, Fritz Lang’s iconic 1927 sci-fi film Metropolis, adopts an approach
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Instead, This cynical outlook is primarily established through the fatalistic attitudes of its characters. Critically, it is important to note at this point that despite O’Brien’s claim that Winston is “…the last man…” and the final vestige of human resistance, rebellion – at least at a personal level - is not absent. Many of the characters of the book are indicative of this rebellion. From Syme, who “speaks too clearly and too plainly”, to the “unquestioning” Parsons, and a host of others; Winston, Julia and perhaps O’brien himself, the majority of named characters in the book are convicted thought criminals. The prevalence of thought crime suggests that at some level, in Parson’s case in his sleep, the suppressed population is aware of the corruption of the natural …show more content…
This is in stark contrast to 1984, where the character most able to fulfill this role (O’Brien) is found to be a sadistic traitor. This difference is fundamentally fueled by Metropolis’ optimism, which has itself been influenced by Lang’s context. The purpose of Lang’s film was to present the possibilities available to a future Germany – a particularly important aim in a country recently devastated by the First World War. Freder’s character – a symbol of communication between government and people, is the means through which Lang believes a positive outcome can be reached. This worldview was very much in keeping with the principles that originally underpinned the attempt at German democracy through the Weimar republic, and it is an outlook that was eventually realized several decades later. However, there is certainly an element of pessimism present in Metropolis – that without this communication between the upper and lower classes of society, power would remain unbalanced in the manner shown at the beginning of the film, and through the entirety of
Instead, This cynical outlook is primarily established through the fatalistic attitudes of its characters. Critically, it is important to note at this point that despite O’Brien’s claim that Winston is “…the last man…” and the final vestige of human resistance, rebellion – at least at a personal level - is not absent. Many of the characters of the book are indicative of this rebellion. From Syme, who “speaks too clearly and too plainly”, to the “unquestioning” Parsons, and a host of others; Winston, Julia and perhaps O’brien himself, the majority of named characters in the book are convicted thought criminals. The prevalence of thought crime suggests that at some level, in Parson’s case in his sleep, the suppressed population is aware of the corruption of the natural …show more content…
This is in stark contrast to 1984, where the character most able to fulfill this role (O’Brien) is found to be a sadistic traitor. This difference is fundamentally fueled by Metropolis’ optimism, which has itself been influenced by Lang’s context. The purpose of Lang’s film was to present the possibilities available to a future Germany – a particularly important aim in a country recently devastated by the First World War. Freder’s character – a symbol of communication between government and people, is the means through which Lang believes a positive outcome can be reached. This worldview was very much in keeping with the principles that originally underpinned the attempt at German democracy through the Weimar republic, and it is an outlook that was eventually realized several decades later. However, there is certainly an element of pessimism present in Metropolis – that without this communication between the upper and lower classes of society, power would remain unbalanced in the manner shown at the beginning of the film, and through the entirety of