In 1984, Ingsoc or English Socialism state employed Newspeak, a language meant to mislead and control its people. Even single words seemed to lose their meaning: peace meant war, love became hate and freedom referred to slavery. Orwell envisaged a disastrous and shocking consequences to a society where hypocrisy rules supreme. Doublespeak is not an innocuous euphemism meant to alter harsh realities for the sake of compassion or humorous disposition, doublespeak is an expression of duplicity that distorts and bents perception, allowing control and manipulation. Orwell has warned us against acceptance of doublespeak, showing terrifying state of suspicion, mistrust and dumbness it leads to. We all used to hear “substandard housing” instead of slums, “unlawful or arbitrary deprivation of life” in place of murder, or more recent air support that really means bombing. Doublespeak in politics gives us the most concern, since political life is most permeated with this dangerous vice. The most recent example is the war on terrorism September 11 has not only exposed physical vulnerability of American democracy, but also revealed duplicity reflected in double speak of key official and political leaders including the president; George Orwells gloomy 1984 comes alive as a warning that we should care for our spiritual freedom no less than we mind our physical well-being.
In the year 1984, people of Ingsoc have not yet communicated solely in Newspeak, but it was the language widely employed by party members and media, and by 2050, the Newspeak was to wipe out the last traces of Oldspeak or standard English. Newspeak was more than a perfect tools to express the party dogmas and mind frame, it made free thinking impossible. Newspeak was a mental jail, prohibiting any deviations from correct thinking. Any language is inevitably a reflection of human existence, but Big Brother employed Newspeak to make live of Ingsocs inhabitants appropriate. In this sense Newspeak is not an entirely fiction, but an everyday reality of every American citizen exposed to the flurry of press conferences and political speeches of official figures. Rather than allowing individual understanding, double speak of these speeches push public opinion in the right direction. Big Brother mistrusts your thinking, he wants you to like what he does without thinking and Newspeak is a way to achieve this goal.
The Essay on The Power Of Language 2
George Orwell, the writer of many highly regarded literary works, is extremely interested in the power of language, mainly how it is abused. By analyzing two of his works, 1984 and Politics and The English Language, it is clear that Orwell is using his writing to bring awareness to the dangers of the manipulation, misuse, and decline of language. In 1984 he demonstrates how language can be used to ...
The underlying message is simple look at this as I tell you to. While Newspeak as a language of Ingsoc took control to extreme, eliminating words or stripping them of all but desirable meaning for example, word free could only be used in sentences like The dog is free from like or This field is free from weeds, double speak most frequently substitutes direct meaning with some obscure phrase like collateral damage. 1984s counterpart of double speak is B vocabulary, a part of the Ninth and Tenth Editions of Newspeak dictionary. Interesting fact that B vocabulary was used mainly by official and political elite and was aimed to created desirable mental frame for every citizen of Ingsoc. In many ways B vocabulary parallels double speak. Moreover, both noticeably share the same purpose: they seek to destroy meaning rather than convey it(Source).
B vocabularys compound words obscure meaning as efficiently as double speak cliches do.
B vocabulary cares little about the meaning; uncritical support matters most. It effectively explains why no word in B vocabulary is ideologically neutral, good examples are joycamp (forced-labor camp) and Minipax (Ministry of Peace); the meaning is conversed, it is not difficult to imagine the joy of a forced-labor camp or peace of Minimax, which was really a ministry of war. 1984s ominous sign becomes even more frightening in the light of the war on terrorism. Ingsoc was also in the state of ongoing war with either Eurasia or Eastasia. War effort demands unity of a society. However, politicians tend to use a nations predicament to build their own popularity and cover up personal shortcomings. Double speak is widely employed in these situations.
The Essay on Curriculum Guide for Spoken Language and Word Recognition
Spoken language and word recognition are two language components that bear relevance for the development of language skills. This kind of development normally occurs during childhood but it also happens when a person attempts to learn a language or languages that are foreign to him or her. A special education guided with a comprehensive curriculum is important for the proper development and ...
Some messages of key players on the war on terrorism definitely deserve to be scanned for double speak presence. “The reason we start a war is to fight a war, win a war, thereby causing no more war!”, not Big Brother said these words, but the current president of United States of America, George Bush Jr.(first presidential debate).
This statement is perfectly matches 1984s slogan WAR IS PEACE. The president declared that the war on terrorism will last for 10 years or more; Ingsoc ghost comes closer, especially considering an opinion of critic Erich Fromm, “[1984]gives an impressive picture of how a society must develop which is constantly preparing for war.” At Press Conference held in San Cristobal, Mexico, Bush said: Q: What is the message that you want to send with the new bombing of Iraq? A: The US is engaged in the Middle East and Persian Gulf. We will remain so. Since 1991, our country has been enforcing whats called a no-fly zone.
A routine mission was conducted to enforce the no-fly zone. And it is a mission about which I was informed and I authorized. But, I repeat, it is a routine mission, and we will continue to enforce the no-fly zone until the world is told otherwise. And in Iraqs case are the following Bushs two quotes not an indication of double speak? Saddam Hussein has got to understand that we expect him to conform to the agreement that he signed after Desert Storm. We will enforce the no-fly zone, both south and north. Our intention is to make sure that the world is as peaceful as possible.
And were going to watch very carefully as to whether or not he develops weapons of mass destruction, and if we catch him doing so well take the appropriate action. (Press Conference, San Cristobal, Mexico Feb 16, 2001) It is clear our nation is reliant upon big foreign oil. More and more of our imports come from overseas.” (Beaverton, Ore., Sep. 25, 2000) Freedom itself is under attack, Bush double spoke, and it is true. However, the greatest threat might come not from terrorist but from the set of anti-terror brain washing campaign that Bush and his supporters trying to adopt. The government wants to tap phones, read email and seize our credit card records without court order.
The Term Paper on War On Drugs George Bush
Have we lost the War on Drugs The War on Drugs officially started in 1972 with President Nixon declaring that drug law enforcement was not strict enough. To enforce the laws of the original Harrison Act, a new and intensified plan was to be enacted. The war reached its peak during the Reagan and Bush administrations, in which $67 billion was spent in enforcement of drug laws. The plan had worked ...
FREEDOM IS SLAVERY, is that what the government is trying to tell? Double speak that Americans here clearly nowadays indicates that 1984 is not only past, but can be future. Works cited: George Orwell. 1984. Penguin/Signet Classic 1996 George Orwell “The Principles of Newspeak An appendix to 1984” . 7 May 2001. 11 December 2002 http://members.aol.com/orion1787/ns-prin.html Levich, Jacob. Happy New Year: It’s 1984 July 7, 2002.
December 11 http://www.commondreams.org/share.htm Lutz, William D. Language, Appearance, and Reality: Doublespeak in 1984 27 October 1999. 11 December 2002 http://www.soc.sbs.ohio-state.edu/classes/soc210/M cCool/doublespeak.pdf.
