George Orwell and the political dystopia

​​In a nutshell

George Orwell, pseudonym of Eric Arthur Blair, was an author from the 20th century who became popular for writing about totalitarianism, communism, and fascism. His most emblematic works were Animal Farm and Nineteen Eighty-Four.

The Author's Life

Born in India in 1903, Eric Blair was the son of a colonial official, still a child he was taken to England by his mother. There he attended Eton college and developed an independent personality, indifferent to the established values, and became an atheist and socialist. From 1922 to 1927 he served the Indian Imperial Police in Burma. Back in London, he started to experiment with poverty by living in lodging-houses, wearing second-hand clothes, etc. In 1933, Blair published his first novel Down and Out in Paris and London, under the pen name George Orwell, followed by Burmese Days (1934) and then The Road to Wigan Pier (1937).

In 1936, Orwell went to Catalonia with his wife to cover the Spanish Civil War, while being there he joined the POUM (Workers' Party of Marxist Unification) and fought in the front of Aragon; these experiences inspired his next novel Homage to Catalonia (1938). When WWII broke out, Orwell moved to London and joined the BBC, later he published Animal Farm (1945), followed by Nineteen Eighty-Four (1949). Unfortunately, Orwell died in 1950 due to tuberculosis. 

Main Topics

George Orwell wrote about topics such as imperialism, communism, and fascism. However, his most predominant theme was totalitarianism. 

A CRITIQUE OF TOTALITARIANISM

Orwell presented a critique of totalitarianism as a warning against the privation of liberty and guide his readers to recognize tyranny in all its ways. For example, in his novel Nineteen Eighty-Four the dictator called 'Big Brother' is 'watching' which is a technique of control disguised as the idea that Big Brother is taking care of you.

Nineteen Eighty-Four

Nineteen Eighty-Four is a novel written by George Orwell and published in 1949. It was written to warn readers about the totalitarianism that was becoming popular after WWII.

THE PLOT

The novel depicts a future world divided into three territories: Oceania, Eurasia, and Eastasia. Oceania is under the regime of 'the Party' which is led by the dictator 'Big Brother', and is continuously at war with the other two territories. One of the ways to control people's lives is through 'Newspeak', an invented word-limited language. Freedom of thought, sex, and any expression of individuality are forbidden and punished by the 'Thought Police'. Winston Smith illegally gets a diary in which he writes his thoughts and memories for future generations. 

At the 'Ministry of Truth' where Winston rewrites historical records to favor the needs of the Party, Winston meets a beautiful girl called Julia, who shows to have rebellious thoughts as well, so they begin a romantic secret affair. One day, O'Brien (a member of the 'Inner Party') tells them he works against the Party as a member of the 'Brotherhood', led by Emmanuel Goldstein. O'Brien gives them the manifesto of the Brotherhood and while Winston is reading it to Julia in his room, some soldiers break into his house and arrest them. So, Winston finds out O'Brien is actually a Party spy. O'Brien brainwashes Winston for moths until he sends him to 'Room 101', where Winston was confronted with his deepest fears. After Room 101, Winston's will is broken so when he is back in the world, he has given up his identity and has embraced Big Brother. 

A DYSTOPIA

Nineteen Eighty-Four is a dystopian novel where Orwell introduces a scary image of the future under a totalitarian regime. Privacy does not exist because there are 'telescreens' that monitor every single thing people do; there is the 'Two Minutes Hate' to brainwash people and make them hate the enemy. The Party has complete power over the press, history, propaganda, and language, the lexis is even made up so people cannot express their own ideas; any form of rebellion is punished by torture or prison. This novel does not offer consolation but sympathy with all people murdered and persecuted by totalitarian ideologies in the 20th century.

WINSTON SMITH

Winston Smith is the last man to believe in human values over a totalitarian regime, thus, he represents the loss of beauty, truth, and identity. Orwell thought man's individuality arises from trust and interaction, this argument is depicted by Winston. He makes an effort to rewrite history through his diary, however, his individuality is destroyed after he is caught. 

The following text is an extract from Nineteen Eighty-Four, Chapter I:

In Chapter I, Winston observes the slogans of the Party on the Ministry of Truth. These words introduce to the reader the idea of 'double thinking' in which people are stuffed with propaganda all the time, limiting their possibility to form their own thoughts or even ponder on the logic of words. For example, the Ministry of Love's task is political torture, the Ministry of Truth alters history books to the convenience of the Party, and the Ministry of Peace manages war.