1984 discussion

Carving out the future of a world completely uncapable of functioning according to the standards of western civilization, George Orwell set in stone a historical reference of tyranny that police departments and government workers depend on to act out their most evil inclinations. If anyone deserves to be shot, killed, dragged down a roadway and then hung on a noose for everyone to see... then let's hope that doesn't happen and we gravitate to a society where everyone can live of true peace, harmony and most of all love.

It happens. What can we do to change it?

Make rediculous comments enticing an emotional response to be exploited at a later date.

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1984: a novel where he author bends the Truth yet only in a slightest. Watch and Observe what's around you... what do you See?? perhaps some similarities concerning this book and the Real world. Now, continue to look, and you Begin to See more and more. How to escape? Power of mind, Power of Soul, Power of Heart, POWER OF BEING.

I liked the first and second caps, the rest of the book is ridiculous and bored.

of all the fictional novels I've read this is the one that's closer to being true

The poignant theme that I enjoy in the book is language. Orwellian philosophy lays out how language can morph society. This is alive today in the media and elsewhere.

Definitely with you on this one! Hardly any other book can map this the way this story does. From the characters to the ambiance, it paints a cool picture of a possible future

Orwell misleads every high schooler who reads 1984 to associate totalitarianism with the exaggerated imagery of pure disciplinary subordination. This outdated model of totalitarianism contrasts the more modern ruling ideologies that operate far differently than 1984 proposes.

1984 was a warning. Orwell was obsessed with the mortal dangers of totalitarianism and believed that the second world war was merely a response and not a silver bullet cure. He was alluding, amongst many other things, to the the dangers of the the TV eye and the manipulation of truth and information at a time when less than 1% of households in the US even had a TV.

And now everyone is plugged in, everywhere.

One of my favourite passages from Winston Smith from the book: "“To know and not to know, to be conscious of complete truthfulness while telling carefully constructed lies, to hold simultaneously two opinions which cancelled out, knowing them to be contradictory and believing in both of them, to use logic against logic, to repudiate morality while laying claim to it, to believe that democracy was impossible and that the Party was the guardian of democracy, to forget whatever it was necessary to forget, then to draw it back into memory again at the moment when it was needed, and then promptly to forget it again, and above all, to apply the same process to the process itself—that was the ultimate subtlety: consciously to induce unconsciousness, and then, once again, to become unconscious of the act of hypnosis you had just performed. Even to understand the word—doublethink—involved the use of doublethink.”

If you draw any stark similarities from this to the current state of affairs in western politics, especially in the United States this year, then I'd say you can't afford not to read this book.

I'll submit that 1984 is a slower read than what we moderns are used to but it is a seminal work that still aptly provides a scary glimpse of what can happen if we're not careful, thoughtful, reflective.

Hernan wrote: "of all the fictional novels I've read this is the one that's closer to being true"
Agreed.

I think it is overrated. Quite a basic concept and writing style. Still, it is a good book.

anti-octopus wrote: "Orwell misleads every high schooler who reads 1984 to associate totalitarianism with the exaggerated imagery of pure disciplinary subordination. This outdated model of totalitarianism contrasts the..."
You have explained it very well !!

Francesco wrote: "I liked the first and second caps, the rest of the book is ridiculous and bored."

WTF bro...

Cuando lo leí en los noventa me dio miedo. Cuanto más tiempo pasa más se asemeja la realidad a esta distopía. Podría haber sido blade runner con coches voladores y humanoides rebeldes, pero ha sido ésta control de la población, desinformación, manipulación...Grandes líderes megalómanos que dominan el mundo.

It's obviously been supplanted since but its very much of its time..

For those of us that read it before 1984, this was a terrifying prospect, albeit a farther off distant one.
The problem is, that he is right in his warnings.
The survivors always write the history.
The ubiquitous of the webcam and camera phones shows that it is impossible to be both in society and hidden from it.
While we have protections from the government, do we have protections from the bad guys? Do we have protection from the corporations?
Do we not give up our freedoms willingly to garner some modicum of comfort?
When you grow up inside the systematic oppression, it is hard to see it for what it might actually be.
Homeland security anyone?
We are both living in and living apart from the fears presented in 1984.
But as long as you toe the corporate/social/governmental lines... you may never see the underbelly that Winston saw.
The key ask is... can you stomach it... and live your life in acceptance, or can you see it for the oppression it might be?

Oh, and before you ask... I am a lemming

If you think this book is stupid, then you have yet to realize that we are moving in the same direction as those in this book have lived. Some may say we are already there, but this is just the beginning, and you need to open your eyes to the reality of our current political situation.

1984 is incredible, especially for when it was written. So many works and movies have been based on this theology including my own modern spin Manufacturing Artificial Intelligence Agency (M.A.I.A.). Without 1984.... many others like Divergent Hunger Games and others would not have found our bookshelves and TVs.

anti-octopus wrote: "Orwell misleads every high schooler who reads 1984 to associate totalitarianism with the exaggerated imagery of pure disciplinary subordination. This outdated model of totalitarianism contrasts the..."

Never thought of it that way. Thanks for that.