The oppressive society in "1984" is appalling to say the least. The entire notion of living in the type of world that has constant surveillance and oppression is unnerving, to say the least.
In my opinion, those who argue that surveillance in modern society is justifiable do not understand the gravity of the situation and the repercussions that accompany it. The most basic, fundamental needs of individuals are not being met in this society and people are completely oblivious of it. People are watched 24/7 in Oceania and even what you say in your sleep can get you arrested. There is no sense of happiness or joy because those things don't exist.
The limiting of language in "1984" ensures that people cannot rebel for freedom because freedom does not even exist. The elements of Newspeak limits the language in a way that also limits thought, which makes it easier to control the people. All in all, the society in "1984" should be understood fully to avoid it happening to us.
I agree with you that this type of society needs to be both understood and avoided by the world today. Even in America it's possible for a society like this one to creep up over us. Especially with the current technology and lack of privacy we have now. It's crazy the filter the government has like how certain books are banned in certain districts. This may not seem significant, but if you look it up there are a lot of good and important books that are banned. This is why English and Literature are so important and vital to society. Reading and writing is essential to expand our minds and how we think.
ReplyDeleteI personally don't think that so much surveillance is justifiable, but most of the time I don't really care about it. I understand that all this surveillance could definitely lead to a situation like the one in 1984. I am pretty conflicted as to how I feel since I can't just ignore this and worry about it when actually becomes a big deal because then it will be too late. At the same time I don't want to think about it because there isn't really much I can do about it and it is no use to worry about it all day long. Right now I feel like the main thing we can do is just to help spread awareness, so that at least people aren't blindly going about their day lives not knowing they are being watched.
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