“A World of Nightmares Never Seen Before”:
The Authenticity of Government in Alan Moore’s V for Vendetta During 1945, the leader of Nazi Germany, Adolf Hitler, killed himself where only a few months later were the bombings of the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. These events eventually led to the conclusion of the Second World War. However, shortly after came the dawn of the Cold War, a time where there were tensions between the two superpowers of the Soviet Union and the United States of America. These tensions combined with the nuclear bomb both sides had at their disposal led to fear about an all-out nuclear war among people; luckily it never escalated to that point. Alan Moore’s comic, illustrated by David Lloyd, V for Vendetta, published between the years 1988 and 1989, attempts to create a realization of an …show more content…
This government, known simply as Norsefire, remains in power through fear, intimidation, and conformity alongside surveillance systems managed by the government bodies known only as the Eye and Ear as seen in figure 1[]. However, in light of their methods, it appears odd that the people of Great Britain are never actively doing anything against them, only ever rioting once V, the main protagonist of the comic, destroys a tower which then cripples the Eye and Ear as demonstrated in figures 2 and 3.[] This then raises two questions. Why did the people of Great Britain allow the Norsefire government to come into power, and moreover, is the Norsefire government a legitimate government? Through the lens of John Locke’s social contract, the legitimacy of any government can be determined through two requirements: “it must be based on consent and serve the public good”[]. Consequently, as a result of this description, it becomes evident that the Norsefire government was a legitimate government because of how the people of
The Authenticity of Government in Alan Moore’s V for Vendetta During 1945, the leader of Nazi Germany, Adolf Hitler, killed himself where only a few months later were the bombings of the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. These events eventually led to the conclusion of the Second World War. However, shortly after came the dawn of the Cold War, a time where there were tensions between the two superpowers of the Soviet Union and the United States of America. These tensions combined with the nuclear bomb both sides had at their disposal led to fear about an all-out nuclear war among people; luckily it never escalated to that point. Alan Moore’s comic, illustrated by David Lloyd, V for Vendetta, published between the years 1988 and 1989, attempts to create a realization of an …show more content…
This government, known simply as Norsefire, remains in power through fear, intimidation, and conformity alongside surveillance systems managed by the government bodies known only as the Eye and Ear as seen in figure 1[]. However, in light of their methods, it appears odd that the people of Great Britain are never actively doing anything against them, only ever rioting once V, the main protagonist of the comic, destroys a tower which then cripples the Eye and Ear as demonstrated in figures 2 and 3.[] This then raises two questions. Why did the people of Great Britain allow the Norsefire government to come into power, and moreover, is the Norsefire government a legitimate government? Through the lens of John Locke’s social contract, the legitimacy of any government can be determined through two requirements: “it must be based on consent and serve the public good”[]. Consequently, as a result of this description, it becomes evident that the Norsefire government was a legitimate government because of how the people of