When George Orwell’s epic novel 1984 was published in 1949 it opened the public’s imagination to a future world, where privacy and freedom had no meaning. The year 1984 has come and gone and recent advances in technology have emerged. These new developments have empowered the government, and help to highlight the similarities between the American government and the government in 1984. Although many cannot even begin to accept the disturbing similarities shared between America’s government today and that of George Orwell’s 1984, they do exist. Today’s American government mirrors the government in 1984, because in both societies the government violates one’s basic right to privacy, and misleads their citizens into supporting their war efforts.
The governments of 1984 and America both violate the privacy of their citizens. In Orwell’s 1984, the government violates its citizen’s privacy by monitoring them, using telescreens and the “thought police.” Knowing that “at any rate they [the government] could plug in your wire whenever they wanted to,” one could never achieve peace of mind. One has “to live-did live, from habit that became instinct-in the assumption that every sound they made was overheard…and every moment scrutinized.” (49) The citizen’s right to privacy has been taken away, and furthermore, citizens in Oceania are not just being watched, but every one of their actions is studied closely. If one is suspected of a “thought-crime,” they are harshly punished. The people in each society are forced to bottle up their emotions and thoughts about their government, and suppress their urge to rebel against the Oceanic Party.
The Term Paper on Ten Ways the Government Invades Privacy Today
... public, which violates the Fourth Amendment privacy rights of law-abiding citizens (The Government Sector — Greatest Menace to Privacy By Far ... over the masses to keep people from committing thought-crime, by planting the fear of “always being. ... something%E2%84%A2-campaign Bennett, J. (n.d.). Orwell’s 1984: Was Orwell Right? Retrieved from INSTITUTE FOR HISTORICAL REVIEW : ...
This creates a sense of uneasiness for the citizens and a need for a safe place to go where they can freely express themselves without being watched. Likewise, the government today restricts the privacy of its citizens. Around every corner lay security cameras, often causing citizens discomfort. The cameras discourage citizens from expressing their opinions as they are being watched, and their reputations are at stake. Also, once someone is seen committing a “crime,” or any other suspicious activity, they are certain to be caught by the police. At this point, one may believe that the Orwellian government monitors its citizens to a much greater extent than America’s government, however, this is untrue.
A recent news story covered by Fox News states that the average person is caught on camera 15-25 times a day- forcing American citizens to believe that their government’s tactics are closer than ever to those exhibited by 1984’s government. Much like the Orwellian government uses telescreens to capture “thought criminals,” America uses security cameras to capture criminals in its society. Both governments of America and Oceania over-examine their citizens through their monitoring devices and cause their citizens to suppress their beliefs and emotions. As a result, both governments fail to create a sense of privacy for their citizens, where they can be secluded and not gazed upon at all times.
Both governments mislead their citizens into supporting their war efforts. For example, the U.S. government has an agenda that it can force the media to promote, and as a result the citizens become believers of the government’s values. A credible example of this is when President Bush was seen on an aircraft carrier essentially saying “mission accomplished,” referring to the war in Iraq. This statement greatly influenced the thoughts of the media and the public by creating a false sense of victory. Research and observation publicized by the Washington Post’s article “‘Mission Accomplished’ Revisited” states that “the war is not over,” and that “the statement was unsubstantiated.”
The Essay on American Heritage Nation Government Citizen
"Our American Heritage and Our Responsibility for Preserving It " Our Country was founded on sound principles. These principles were constructed to preserve our natural rights. These rights include free speech, free press and the ability to think for one's self. America was established as a proud nation, who's destiny to become great was undeniable. In today's society, many are questioning the ...
Which further validates the point that the government misleadingly shapes the opinions of its citizens regarding war. Likewise, the government in 1984 pulled off a large publicity stunt (a parade) in which Eurasian soldiers were held captive and put on display. Although Oceania never fought a battle against Eurasia, they brought home captives to create the false assumption that Oceania is succeeding in war. These soldiers are meant to represent Oceania’s success in war, and is a perfect example of the government cleverly manipulating its citizens into supporting its war efforts. Today’s government deceives its citizens into believing that the war is justified, and success has been achieved using the media-much in the way the government of Oceania uses psychological control to make people believe that Oceania’s war efforts are thriving.
Through the actions of the government, one could say that George Orwell was very correct about the future of American government. The invasion of privacy and the governments’ deceptive basis for war are excellent examples of how the two governments are directly related. Orwell wrote his dystopian novel as a wake-up call to America. His writing suggests that he did not support the government’s actions and knew what was coming. Through his novel, he hypothesized a dystopian world in which the government expresses control over its people; a world much like today.
CITATIONS:
http://archives.cnn.com/2001/TECH/internet/04/17/mission.accomplished.02/http://www.washingtonpost.com/thefix/2004/05/mission_accomplished_revisite.html
