George Orwell’s novel, 1984, depicts a dystopian society completely commanded by a totalitarian government, called the Party, through psychologically manipulative tactics. The Party is separated into two classes, the higher ranking Inner Party, who operates directly under a mysterious figurehead known as, Big Brother, and, the Outer Party, composed of intelligent, but uninformed citizens working for the Inner Party, generally unaware of the power Big Brother has over them. In order to maintain control over the citizens of the nation of Oceania, Big Brother and the Inner Party use various psychologically manipulative tactics, including, indoctrination, propaganda, threats, torture, surveillance and fear, to maintain virtually complete control
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Children in the Party all enlist as Junior Spies, recruited to spy on Proles and even their own families. Winston notes that the children “love” participating, and “love” Big Brother (24). The Party’s inclusion of children ensures there are, “no tendenc[ies] whatsoever to rebel against the government” as the children get older, and it creates generations of Party supporters (24). In addition to the Junior Spies program’s influence, Children are also put into schools where they learn Party regulated information from Party regulated sources. For example, Winston points out a textbook that claims, “2+2=5”, obviously untrue, but the people do not question its validity, because it is what the Party says. This confusing, contradicting information is made slightly clearer to the reader by Winston’s almost equally as inconceivable explanation of “doublethink”. Winston defines doublethink as, “to hold simultaneously two opinions which cancelled out, knowing them to be contradictory and believing in both of them” (36). In short, doublethink was a way to convince the people that the Party’s ever-changing lies are truths, regardless of inconsistencies or perceived impossibilities (36). Winston is especially knowledgeable on the subject of doublethink due to his work as an Outer Party member in the Ministry of Truth. Winston describes his job as and the Ministry as a whole as a place where, “the past was …show more content…
The Party’s laws are all implied laws, [t]houghts and actions, which when detected mean certain death are not formally forbidden” and are enforced through, “endless purges, arrests, tortures, imprisonments, and vaporizations” (216, 217). The enforcement agents are telescreens, Junior Spies, the Thought Police, Inner Party members and anyone willing to turn someone else in. Winston is the ultimate example of the power that can be implemented through fear of physical pain. Like a child being spanked by his parent, similarly, the Party reprimands its suspect members with varied levels of torture, or simply eliminating the person altogether. Winston, who was once adamantly anti-Party and daringly rebellious, writing things like, “DOWN WITH BIG BROTHER”, having a forbidden sexual and emotional relationship with a woman and openly speaking of his hate towards the Party, can not overcome the fear of torture (19). Not surprisingly, Winston is caught and turned in to face the Ministry of Love, ironically, the group that is in charge of torture. He endures the horrors of starvation and violent beatings valiantly for a time, but ultimately succumbs to the power of fear, turning into a normal, brainwashed Oceanian. His change occurs in the infamous room 101, with one of the leaders of The Ministry of Truth, O’Brien. O’Brien has been torturing Winston for months trying
Children in the Party all enlist as Junior Spies, recruited to spy on Proles and even their own families. Winston notes that the children “love” participating, and “love” Big Brother (24). The Party’s inclusion of children ensures there are, “no tendenc[ies] whatsoever to rebel against the government” as the children get older, and it creates generations of Party supporters (24). In addition to the Junior Spies program’s influence, Children are also put into schools where they learn Party regulated information from Party regulated sources. For example, Winston points out a textbook that claims, “2+2=5”, obviously untrue, but the people do not question its validity, because it is what the Party says. This confusing, contradicting information is made slightly clearer to the reader by Winston’s almost equally as inconceivable explanation of “doublethink”. Winston defines doublethink as, “to hold simultaneously two opinions which cancelled out, knowing them to be contradictory and believing in both of them” (36). In short, doublethink was a way to convince the people that the Party’s ever-changing lies are truths, regardless of inconsistencies or perceived impossibilities (36). Winston is especially knowledgeable on the subject of doublethink due to his work as an Outer Party member in the Ministry of Truth. Winston describes his job as and the Ministry as a whole as a place where, “the past was …show more content…
The Party’s laws are all implied laws, [t]houghts and actions, which when detected mean certain death are not formally forbidden” and are enforced through, “endless purges, arrests, tortures, imprisonments, and vaporizations” (216, 217). The enforcement agents are telescreens, Junior Spies, the Thought Police, Inner Party members and anyone willing to turn someone else in. Winston is the ultimate example of the power that can be implemented through fear of physical pain. Like a child being spanked by his parent, similarly, the Party reprimands its suspect members with varied levels of torture, or simply eliminating the person altogether. Winston, who was once adamantly anti-Party and daringly rebellious, writing things like, “DOWN WITH BIG BROTHER”, having a forbidden sexual and emotional relationship with a woman and openly speaking of his hate towards the Party, can not overcome the fear of torture (19). Not surprisingly, Winston is caught and turned in to face the Ministry of Love, ironically, the group that is in charge of torture. He endures the horrors of starvation and violent beatings valiantly for a time, but ultimately succumbs to the power of fear, turning into a normal, brainwashed Oceanian. His change occurs in the infamous room 101, with one of the leaders of The Ministry of Truth, O’Brien. O’Brien has been torturing Winston for months trying