1984 By George Orwell
1984 was once intended as a futuristic novel; however currently the books ideas are partially realistic. Right from the get- go, the reader is indulged in a society where freedom and rights are restricted. One’s individual thoughts were perceived as too dangerous and that the infamous “Big Brother” is always watching. So serious were these restrictions that there are spies implanted in the society to maintain this order. Moreover, the purpose of the police is not to bring justice to illicit actions, but only sought to limit improper thought. The main character becomes paranoid about the ideas he is having and if society will ostracize him for these ideas and kill him. Thus, the reader is led right into the conflict of being the only person to not believe in something, and the consequences of such an extreme reality.
Personally, I have no idea how this problem may be resolved so I will just parallel the book to our current society. Following 9/11, many Americans and people that live in America felt that their civil rights were being infringed upon by the increase of security. Whether some may believe this to be true or not, the point is that the government also referred to by some people as “Big Brother” has the capability of watching us with the increase of technology and the ability for these corporations to sell information. In addition, the theory that ideas will become polarized and very radical can be some what seen in our society today. Even in everyday politics no one speaks about the reality of the situations, but instead what party they belong to, and how much the other person is an idiot. Therefore, by confining our principles to only fit in one box we are inherently becoming polarized as well. I do not mean that if someone always felt liberal or conservative on a topic that they have polarized viewpoints. What I mean is that if someone has a predetermined view on a topic because it fits the group that they belong to that’s when the blind faith can lead to a very dark future as this type of thought is easy to control. As a result, I need to read more to speculate more possible similarities between Orwell’s views on a futuristic society and our society today.
I am also reading 1984, and I really like how you connect the book to our current society and the whole mess of politics swirling around right now. It’s scary to think that the ideals of 1984 can actually be connected to our modern day society. It’s going to be interesting to see how this problem is going to be resolved and what happens to Winston at the end of the book. Personally, I think he will be executed by The Party, but not before sparking thought into the other people around him. What do you think?