1984 George Orwell- a perfect brainwash in totalitarian world of lies

Orwell started an era of New Journalism, following the time of French Marxists, writers attempted deconstruction of narrative novels in order to find hidden meaning in all texts, but logically thinking, there is no such thing in some books and trying to see something that is not there would be simply over-reading it. Structuralism fought its way through, within the above idea of hidden symbols and disconnected language from the speech- meaning was separated from the form.

1980s was taken over by Totalitarian regime, fascism and Stalinism, brought times of deconstructing language, looking into atoms of meaning in words, fundamental building blocks of meaning and study of logic. “There is no logical structure in logic”, within philosophy there was nothing to be said.
George was a disillusioned socialist who became bitterly anti-communist, spreading how the idea of communism became corrupted. He was writing after Freud (sexual league). In 1984 pornography was spreading but no one was allowed to have sex. The key was an idea of “speech acts” in promoting linguistic philosophy in English tradition of Bertrand Russell, in the way, the pseudo scientific theories of Sigmund Freud. Winston, main character in the novel works for the party removing articles from the archive which contradict the current line on the party.

The book describes how the main character Winston Smith falls in love in Julia who hands him a note “I LOVE YOU”. They “commit a crime” of having sex. Winston is accused of making love to a spy in a house that he rents from a spy as well as keeping a journal of negative opinions about the Party and Big Brother. When “Inner party leader O’Brien believes that the Brotherhood have communicated with him. O’Brien gives Winston a copy of the latest edition of Newspeak dictionary, which was actually the book “ The Theory and Practice of Oligarchical Collectivism said to be written by Emmanuel Goldstein, leader of the Brotherhood which uncovers the perpetual war and the slogans.”

His actions lead to being caught and questioned in room 101. Philosophy of empiricists reflects in the scene of torture in room 101, thought takes place in purely linguistic terms when the idea of controlling the language forces control over the thought and therefore mind control is possible through the manipulation of the language (3 or 4 fingers dilemma) Being captured my Ministry of Love for interrogation, and Charrington, the shop keeper who rented the room to them comes out to be an officer in the Thought Police. After prolonged beatings and psychologically draining torture by O’Brien, it is explained to Winston that “There is learning, there is understanding, and there is acceptance” of the party’s reality; afterwards Winston is killed.
In USSR experiments with “linguistic reform” awaken thoughts on this utopian idea to ban words for racial difference and abolish racism. It resulted in horrible, ugly distortion into Communism affecting speech, creating controlled jargon, clichés, ritual phrases and slogans leading to invention a language designated to PREVENT THOUGHT. Ministry of Love organises police, Ministry of War is called Ministry of Defence despite politically changed name the role of these departments stayed the same. The project in 1984 was to reduce language vocabulary to few abstract euphemisms. They cut out all the words of passive opposition to the regime. You couldn’t say for example, “I am against the government” because these words have been obligated.

1. ‘Ingsoc’ (English socialism during the civil war with which the Party assumed power)
2. ‘Newspeak’ (all euphemisms)
3. Big Brother is watching you (pushing an effect of being constantly monitored)
4. Language is corrupted (War is peace, freedom is slavery, poverty is plenty, ignorance is strength)

1984 was a novel that described the regime of the party and an oligarchical collectivis society where life in the Oceanian province of Airstrip One, world of perpetual war, pervasive government surveillance, public mind control, and avoiding of citizens’ rights.

George always looked with fresh eyes and was not taken in by idea of “double think”.
Orwell worked on his novels in Spain where communism was responded to with resistance, he got shot after being called “objectively fascist”.

Inspiration:
Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell (movie and book)
Winchester University Journalism Course
History and Context of Journalism Part III , weeks 9 and 10
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1984