How to keep 1984 a fiction

I think the fact the 1984 is still relevant is actually really positive. We all know that history tends to repeat itself, so for 1984 to be able to address concerns raised by WWII and keep these concerns relevant for so long is significant. So, my answer to this question of avoiding an Orwellian future is simple - remember and learn from history. We also need to make sure that we maintain a form of government where the people have power, because as soon as citizens begin to lose their voice in the government it's a very slippery slope.

I think this historical relevance is a huge part of why 1984 is still popular and Brave New World isn't. WWII nearly led the world down the path towards global authoritarianism, while the technological developments of the early 1900s had nearly none of the effects that Huxley predicted. I don't think we need to obsess over the possibility of becoming an Orwellian society (like some people do) but we need to keep 1984 in the back of our minds as a world that we never want to approach.

Do you think we need more stringent measures to keep our society away from Orwell's prediction? Or is remembering enough?

Comments

How Disney perpetuates voodoo stereotypes

In the opening chapters of Mumbo Jumbo , we've been introduced to Papa DaBas, a voodoo priest. In class we talked a bit about the largely negatively perception of voodoo in America. This immediately made me think of the Disney princess film, The Princess and the Frog . This movie is set in New Orleans, and follows a princess who falls in love, blah blah blah...but the villain is a voodoo-practicing witch doctor, Dr. Facilier. I found it really interesting to look back at Dr. Facilier's character after discussing the American perception of voodoo, because Dr. Facilier is portrayed as a man of pure evil (here's a picture if you haven't seen the movie to show how creepy he is). His soul belongs to evil loas (his "friends on the other side", as he calls them), and he uses their power to achieve his greedy goals, convincing the loas to continue working with him by feeding them the souls of innocent victims. He's manipulative and extremely powerful. ...

Paul D and Sethe's shared trauma

Paul D and Sethe have an extremely complicated relationship that constantly morphs and shifts throughout Beloved . They spent lots of time at Sweet Home together, and therefore have an established emotional bond. Though a more physical aspect of their relationship develops, the glue holding them together is their shared trauma of living at Sweet Home and of their respective escapes. Generally speaking, relationships held together primarily by shared traumatic experiences are fragile and unstable: Paul D and Sethe's relationship is no exception. Though they understand each other's experiences with slavery, they have little else in common. Crucially, they haven't seen each other in eighteen years, and there are significant gaps in their knowledge what has happened in the other's life in the nearly two decades since their last encounter. Most importantly, Paul D is unaware of what Sethe did in the shed on that fateful day when schoolmaster came to 124. With the presen...

Final thoughts

Before I get into this, I want to start by pointing out that Jill was #1 on my most likely to die list, and she is the one who died. It feels wrong to congratulate myself, but I am a little bit proud. The ending was quite satisfying. It felt almost too good and peaceful for the end of such a wild and tragic novel. Nearly the entire group survived, they moved on from their ghosts of the past, and they have great resources that they can begin their Earthseed community with. I'm a little upset that Lauren is still in a relationship with Bankole, but it's good that there are so many relationships within their community as they plan for the future. The most surprising part of the ending was when Lauren discovered that Greyson, Emery, and their kids are all sharers. I was not expecting this at all, because sharing was Lauren's most unique trait. However, it does alienate her less from the rest of the group, and it makes the former slaves more united with the rest of the group. T...

Crafting Creative Concepts with Charlotte

Search This Blog