Transcript 1984 - HyattLangandCompHonors

1984
George Orwell
“Political language is
designed to make lies sound
truthful and murder respectable,
and to give an appearance of
solidity to pure wind.”
- George Orwell
George Orwell – 1903 - 1950
Born in India
Eric Blair
Educated in England
Imperial Police
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Shaped by India/Burma
Aware of injustice
Motivation to write
George Orwell – 1903 - 1950
Anarchist turned socialist
Fought against Franco
BBC propagandist
George Orwell – 1903 - 1950
Animal Farm (1945)
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A protest against Stalin
1984 (1949)
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Reaction to post WWII
Died in 1950 of TB
Why Read 1984?
It is as relevant today as it was 60 years
ago
Themes that we all can relate to:
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Government control
Privacy and Freedom
Human Rights
Abuse of Power
Power of Language
Propaganda and Media
1984 in our popular culture
David Bowie’s song:
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Inspired by the novel
Written in 1973
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gH9WnSOISv0
Someday they won't let you, so now you must agree
The times they are a-telling, and the changing isn't free
You've read it in the tea leaves, and the tracks are on TV
Beware the savage jaw
Of 1984
1984 still in our popular culture
Steve Jobs introducing the Mac
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Shown only once: January 22, 1984
Super Bowl airing
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_tWvmk4Y
0gw
1984 still in our popular culture
In 2000 the show
Big Brother debuted
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The show’s basis is
having people under
constant watch
Based on the novel’s
premise
Orwell’s estate sued
CBS over the name
1984 still in our popular culture
Musicians refer to the novel frequently
A few examples:
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Radiohead: “2 + 2 = 5”
Rage Against the Machine: “Who controls the
past now, controls the future / Who controls
the present now controls the past“ (“Testify”)
Incubus – “Come one come all into 1984”
(“Talk Show on Mute”)
Some more facts
Published in 1949
Still a worldwide best-seller
Voted in the UK Guardian as most
“definitive” novel of the 20th century
The Dystopian 1984 society
a flawless totalitarian society
the individual is of literally no
significance
Why read about dystopias?
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The critic Bernard Richards once said
“dystopias are useful; they warn us about
what might happen”.
Why read about dystopias?
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We like to read about death and
corruption, as long as we know that it can't
happen to us.
But is that really true?
Could it really happen to us?
Dystopian novels are not science fiction in
that they have plots where the scenario
CAN ACTUALLY HAPPEN!
Two basic premises to the form:
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Nasty Things Happen but Everything
Turns out Right.
Nasty Things Happen but Despite
Everyone's Best Efforts the Establishment
Wins.
The Individual
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Low
Uniform
Powerless
Obedient
Individuality is stamped out
The Nature of POWER
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An individual corrupt dictator or a corrupt
governmental entity
Absolute control over citizens
Freedom is crushed
No civil liberties
No rights
No voice
Communication and Language
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Almost non-existent
Meaningless
Artificial
unnatural
In 1984 English vocabulary gets smaller every
year.
Communication and Language
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One can control thoughts through communication
Less language leaves no room for connotation or
doubt: the meaning is pure denotation
Without nuance in language, there can be no
creative thought
Without connotation there can be no subversive
thought.
The individual cannot express himself because he
doesn’t have the words to do so, hence he is
thoughtless.
General form, etc.
Fiction
Winston is the protagonist
Written in third person omniscient
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We are in Winston’s mind and are privy to his
thoughts. His unique perspective
Set in London – constant wartime
Orwell’s writing
Simple without a lot of “flourish”
Difficult concepts but straightforward
diction
Tone is dismal, gloomy, matter of fact – so
Orwell allows us to experience Winston’s
world
Orwell’s writing tips:
Politics and the English Language
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He berates writers for:
Pretentious diction
Meaningless words
Orwell’s tips #1
Never use a metaphor, simile, or other
figure of speech which you are used to
seeing in print.
Orwell’s tips #2
Never use a long word where a short word
will do
Orwell’s tips #3
If it is possible to cut a word out, always
cut it out.
Orwell’s tips #4
Never use the passive where you can use
the active.
Orwell’s tips #5
Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific
word, or a jargon word if you can think of
an everyday English equivalent.
Orwell’s tips #6
Break any of these rules sooner than say
anything outright barbarous
Original New York Times review
http://www.netcharles.com/orwell/articles/c
ol-nyt1984.htm
Miscellaneous
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