George Orwell

1984

THE THINGS THEY CARRIED~ A NOVEL EXAMINING THE PAST

• Contesting the idea that we can know the truth

• Examining the historical truth, the factual truth, the seeming truth

• Author declares it a work of fiction

• Readers generate their own definition of the war story and what the author intended

1984: A NOVEL THAT SUGGESTS A FUTURE

• The author, George Orwell lived from 1903-1950

• Politically motivated writer~ identified as a socialist

• Wrote novels, numerous articles and non-fiction pieces

• Wrote 1984 in 1948

CONTEXT OF 1984

• Written in 1948, 3 years after the end of World War 2

• World still in a state of uncertainty after the traumas of war

• Huge divide emerging between Communist USSR and capitalist West

• Beginning of the ‘Cold War’

FICTION THAT PREDICTS A FUTURE: UTOPIAN AND DYSTOPIAN

• Utopian: A place, state, or condition that is ideally perfect in respect of politics, laws, customs, and conditions.

DYSTOPIAN • A futuristic, imagined universe in which

oppressive societal control and the illusion of a perfect society are maintained through corporate, bureaucratic, technological, moral, or totalitarian control.

• Dystopias, through an exaggerated worst-case scenario, make a criticism about a current trend, societal norm, or political system.

CHARACTERISTICS OF A DYSTOPIAN SOCIETY

• Propaganda is used to control the citizens of society.

• Information, independent thought, and freedom are restricted.

• A figurehead or concept is worshipped by the citizens of the society.

• Citizens are perceived to be under constant surveillance.

• Citizens have a fear of the outside world.

• Citizens live in a dehumanized state.

DYSTOPIAN CHARACTERISTICS CON’T

• The natural world is banished and distrusted.

• Citizens conform to uniform expectations. Individuality and dissent are bad.

• The society is an illusion of a perfect utopian world.

TYPES OF DYSTOPIAN CONTROLS

• Corporate control: One or more large corporations control society through products, advertising, and/or the media.

• Bureaucratic control: Society is controlled by a mindless bureaucracy through a tangle of red tape, relentless regulations, and incompetent government officials.

• Technological control: Society is controlled by technology—through computers, robots, and/or scientific means

• Philosophical/religious control: Society is controlled by philosophical or religious ideology often enforced through a dictatorship or theocratic government.

THE DYSTOPIAN PROTAGONIST

• Often feels trapped and is struggling to escape.

• Questions the existing social and political systems.

• Believes or feels that something is terribly wrong with the society in which he or she lives.

• Helps the audience recognizes the negative aspects of the dystopian world through his or her perspective.

SETTING• The novel is set in a future British society, years

after a nuclear war has occurred

• Society is split into two groups~ Party members and Proles

• Individual freedom does not exist

• Party members are constantly watched for signs of disagreement with the party

CHARACTERS

• Winston Smith: the protagonist in the story, a party member who resents the control the party exerts

• Big Brother: the semi-mythical leader of the Party. Images of his face are omnipresent in society

FIRST READING ASSIGNMENT: READ BOOK 1 BY MONDAY + READING LOG

Reading Log Entry (Different from TTTC):

1. What sort of Dystopia is presented? Identify the ways in which the society is controlled: Use a dialogue journal with quotes/notes. You should have several entries.

2. Newspeak dictionary: Dedicate a page or two in your binder to developing a “Newspeak” dictionary: write the word and the definition whenever you come across a newspeak word.