Mass-Surveillance In George Orwell's 1984

In a post- WWII society rampant with dystopian versions of the future, few novels capture the most evident dangers of totalitarianism and the exercising of mass-surveillance better than George Orwell’s 1984. Through examining Winston’s introspective moments while committing “thought crimes,” it is clear that institutionalized fear works to empower Big Brother by using party members own subconsciouses’ against themselves; a tactic which shows how the psychological impact of a surveillance state is just as, or even more effective than any physical enforcement effort to suppress the free-will of party members. With this in mind, Winston’s resistance experiment against Big Brother is one that not only seeks to test the limits of party supervision of his body but also his mind. From the time the reader is introduced to Winston, it is evident that his sentiments and loyalty to the party are in question. He explores the “prole” side of Oceania, outside direct party surveillance, and purchases an illicit diary that “even with nothing written in it...was a compromising possession.” (1.1.14) Furthermore, Winston intentionally manipulates the layout …show more content…
The party’s culture of overwatch is so severe that it has turned every party member against one another, so much so that “It was terribly dangerous to let your thoughts wander when you were in any public place...to wear an improper expression on your face was itself a punishable offense.” (1.5.65) However, this knowledge also leads to morbid irony, as Winston uses it to convince himself that O'Brien's demeanor is evidence of rebellious fervor: “there was a fraction of a second when their eyes met...Winston knew- yes, he knew!- that O'Brien was thinking the same thing as himself.” (1.1.33) In reality, this is just another form of Big Brother manipulating Winston’s thought process while surveying