Generally, Utopian and Dystopian texts explore the contextual social and political structures and are usually set in the future, the two provided texts are no exception. In 1984 by George Orwell, the composer is relating ideas in the novel to their ideals of society through revealing the faults of a totalitarian civilisation. The Matrix by the Wachowski brothers is very much inspired by social contextual events, and relates heavily to the composer’s own personal experiences during the Y2K crisis. The composers relate their respective texts to the contextual concerns of society through futuristic predictions of a totalitarian hierarchy and the downfall of mankind. 1984 was written by Orwell as a warning to the world as he saw it, he opposed totalitarianism in all it’s forms and, on one occasion said “I believe that totalitarianism, if not fought against, could triumph again”.
The rise of totalitarianism governments started before WWII, but after the Great Depression when fascism became an ideology of society. Socialist leaders told the people what they wanted to hear. These leaders not only took advantage of their powers, but became totalitarian dictators of communism and Nazism states. In 1933 Hitler became the dictator and ruler of Germany. Hitler was known for his totalitarian government, which referenced his act based on Darwism.
In dystopian society, technology, social manipulation, and control are all factors used to maintain oppressive societal control and the illusion of a perfect society, even at the expense of universal human values. The film Metropolis by Fritz Lang and the novel 1984 by George Orwell offer a variety of social and political perspectives that allow the audience to gain insight into the oppression of freedom, truth and love within their context. Both address loss of these values within society through control and oppression, but they differ in perspective, due to the contrasting views of each composer. Lang made Metropolis during the era of the Weimar Republic. This was the country's first attempt at creating a democracy in the very difficult years following the first world war, as he tapped into Germany's power struggles, issues of poverty and conflict.
To What Extent Was Charismatic Leadership a Contributory Factor In The Rise Of Totalitarianism? Richard Rothwell I will look at three different regimes and their respective leaders and analyse their rise to power. I shall consider the long and short term factors that had an effect on each regimes rise and consider them in comparison in an attempt to gauge just how much the charisma of each leader was accountable to the rise. Fascism was largely born of the ruling classes’ fear of democracy empowering the lower classes and the fear of wide scale socialist revolution. Since the Enlightenment liberalism had flourished.
Who are the composers of the texts? 1984 – George Orwell The Matrix - Andy and Larry Wachowski When were the texts composed? 1984 – First published in 1948 The Matrix – Released 1999 George Orwell – Biography and Influences George Orwell uses 1984 to publicise the danger of political authority and the dangers of a totalitarian society. Orwell had witnessed this in countries such as Spain, the Soviet Union and Germany as a result of the age of advancing technology. 1984 remains as one of the most powerful sources of warnings issued against totalitarian societies.
Now it is being said the Fourth Amendment’s promise of protection from government invasion of privacy is in danger of being replaced by the futuristic surveillance state Orwell described (Liptak, 2011).” By the same token, does 1984 present a startling and haunting vision of the world today? In Chapter One, Orwell writes about “Big Brother,” the authoritarian leader of Oceania, a totalitarian state where the ruling Party wields total power for its own sake over the inhabitants. Big Brother is the face of the Party and he sees all, knows all and controls all. Big Brother is watching everyone. The citizens are told that he is the leader of the nation and the head of the Party.
George Orwell (1903-1950), was an English novelist, essayist, journalists, and critic. His writing focuses around totalitarianism, government over controlling.Nineteen Eighty-Four is a dystopian novel about a totalitarian government that oppresses its people and controls all aspects of their lives. The intended audience is a past WWII population who feared total government control. Orwell believes that the government should not have all control over the people and in 1984 they are always being watched and cannot do anything in privacy. Many writers have pointed out similarities between the modern world and the world of 1984 such as in the articles.
Dehumanization of Society in 1984 by George Orwell In the novel 1984, written by George Orwell, the world is split into three main areas. Now the area in which Winston lives in and the story takes place is Air Strip One, Great Britain, Oceania. Within Oceania the people of London, also called Air Strip One, live together as a Utopia. The people are becoming dehumanized which is defined as “deprive of positive human qualities” by the Oxford English Dictionary. As Mr Orwell describes, through Winston, the government, or by a more common name “Big Brother,” as “brainwashing” and “mental torture.” Big Brother would use many different methods of “brainwashing” across the cities though different means, such as huge banners taking up entire walls or huge spaces.
The reason why this role is taken away from governments is that they are obstacles to a nation’s development because they are inefficient and corrupt systems. A trend towards Neoliberalism began as early as the 1970s as a direct attack on the Keynesian ideology. The ideology came to the forefront of politics when both Prime Minister of England, Margaret Thatcher and President of the United States, Ronald Reagan implemented Neo-Liberal policies. While the practice of Neoliberalism can be seen in many countries, like other ideologies it is not without flaws; however, these flaws greatly outweigh the positives that occur through its practice. Therefore, Neoliberalism is an ineffective Pro-Market approach to development that contributes to inequality and causes more harm than good for both the global south and north.
Orwell may have used Nazi Germany as a influence for the strong ‘surveillance of society theme’ Stalin’s rule and the Russian revolution were also another key influence in Orwell’s novel 1984. The events in the novel 1984 where quite closely related to certain aspects of the Russian Revolution. Both of these had a powerful leader that thought he was always right and leaders that were overthrown. In essence the novel 1984 showed how people tried to put revolutionary ideas in practice for a greater good, but ultimately this ends up in corruption and a worse solution all together. Orwell tells in interviews that he wanted to "make political writing into an art".