Motivation also comes in handy when it comes to surveillance. The Big Brother is one person; how could he possibly watch over millions upon millions of citizens? The answer is simple: he does not. Well, not by himself. The protagonist of the story, Winston, gives us insight on the Ministry of Truth, where his main daily task is to manipulate information and make it be exactly as the Big Brother wishes it to be. Not everyone who works at the Ministry of Truth is manipulating information, though. More likely than not, there are people hired by the government to watch everyone through the telescreens. Not only are there trusted members of the society watching the telescreens, but there are also groups that promote informing the government of
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Take the United States, for example. Before the thirteen original colonies broke away from Great Britain, a sizeable amount of the North American coast belonged to Great Britain. However, the modern-day United States citizens were divided. Some citizens found themselves very loyal to the crown, but a large portion of the citizens, as well as some of the people in power, wanted to break away from Great Britain. A huge rebellion occurred, turning brother against brother, until it eventually left the United States as a completely separate nation from Great Britain. The 1984 government is completely cognizant of the fact that rebellions are a real possibility, but the Big Brother has already squandered all opportunities for rebellion. The Inner Party is content with their lifestyle, for they are living a lavish, comfortable lifestyle within the society. Why would a happy citizen overthrow their government? Chances are, they would do no such thing. The Outer Party members would be the ones most likely to consider a rebellion, but they are being surveilled the closest. The Outer Party may contain the highest mental capacity of the three casts, but due to the constant surveillance, a rebellion is not going to have enough potential to occur. (Orwell 210). Winston wrote in his diary, “If there is hope it lies in the proles” (Orwell 69). Winston means exactly as he wrote: if any hope of a rebellion is there, it must lie within the proles. He thought this way for a few reasons. The proles make up about 85 percent of the total population of Oceania. The sheer number of proles there are in the society alone would be easy enough to start a rebellion with, but there is one teeny tiny problem. If a rebellion is to take place, it has to be led by an Inner or Outer Party member with the mental capacity to lead a rebellion. Since both are being heavily watched, the proles would have to lead the
Take the United States, for example. Before the thirteen original colonies broke away from Great Britain, a sizeable amount of the North American coast belonged to Great Britain. However, the modern-day United States citizens were divided. Some citizens found themselves very loyal to the crown, but a large portion of the citizens, as well as some of the people in power, wanted to break away from Great Britain. A huge rebellion occurred, turning brother against brother, until it eventually left the United States as a completely separate nation from Great Britain. The 1984 government is completely cognizant of the fact that rebellions are a real possibility, but the Big Brother has already squandered all opportunities for rebellion. The Inner Party is content with their lifestyle, for they are living a lavish, comfortable lifestyle within the society. Why would a happy citizen overthrow their government? Chances are, they would do no such thing. The Outer Party members would be the ones most likely to consider a rebellion, but they are being surveilled the closest. The Outer Party may contain the highest mental capacity of the three casts, but due to the constant surveillance, a rebellion is not going to have enough potential to occur. (Orwell 210). Winston wrote in his diary, “If there is hope it lies in the proles” (Orwell 69). Winston means exactly as he wrote: if any hope of a rebellion is there, it must lie within the proles. He thought this way for a few reasons. The proles make up about 85 percent of the total population of Oceania. The sheer number of proles there are in the society alone would be easy enough to start a rebellion with, but there is one teeny tiny problem. If a rebellion is to take place, it has to be led by an Inner or Outer Party member with the mental capacity to lead a rebellion. Since both are being heavily watched, the proles would have to lead the