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Technology in 1984 is mostly used as means of control, with the main character being a victim of government’s oppressive use of technologies. Information is power, and the novel introduces different advancements that serve the sole purpose of distorting and controlling the flow of information in society, thus allowing to manipulate the population effectively and overtly.
One way of controlling the citizens of a country is to regulate what people believe in and are being told by the government.
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In the world of 1984, the different technologies are the essential tools that allow for Big Brother to spread his influence and to supervise for any possible deviation from the general flow of information.
One of the more notable technologies, used for such regulations, is the telescreen, a device that operates as both television and a security camera: “The instrument (the telescreen, it was called) could be dimmed, but there was no way of shutting it off completely”(Orwell). What is broadcasted on the telescreens across the country is completely determined by the government. The way information is being reported later suggests what information gets to the public and the way it will be interpreted. Everything that the public has access to, every form of communication, and everything a citizen mutters, believes in, and shares to other people, is mostly controlled and essentially adjusted by the government. Such an example in 1984 is he propaganda broadcasted on the telescreens, including military victories, economic affairs and production figures, and Two Minutes Hate. Winston quickly realizes the credibility of the news, as Oceania is constantly at war with either Eastasia or Eurasia, while becoming allies the next day (Orwell).
Similarly, to illustrate government’s control all communications and, hence, the flow of information, it has been talked upon in an interview about the 31th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution in 2010: “So those pipes, those cables are controlled by the government….it's just not that difficult for the government to decide what's going to get through and what's not going to get through”(Conan, Mr.Pike). Everything can be easily tracked and controlled by the government, whether it’d be smartphones and cars, or anywhere with security cameras, even restrooms (Mathieson). This allows for an outright surveillance of the population, which symbolizes decadence in society, but also shows how easy it is for the government to manipulate people's minds and thoughts.
The main purpose for governments to control what information reaches the public is to replicate information in the way they want it to be perceived and understood by the citizens. All sectors in society and governmental rule is engaged in a grand scheme, which creates a fictional construct in people’s minds. The main goal for a such scheme is to easily control how people perceive media and all the information that reaches them. It’s all about controlling the people, which allows them to reach certain goals and/or to enforce a certain ideology that they want the people to believe in, by implanting twisted information in the people. The governmental system in 1984 does just that, to ensure that the information that reaches the public is intended to abide by certain ideologies, that are integrated in society from people like Big Brother, so that the majority of the population remains “obedient”. The government uses different tactics to bypass what has been known as logical, so that the masses accept what they’ve been told, without critical thinking.
Technology And Policy in George Orwell`s 1984. (2024, Feb 22). Retrieved from https://studymoose.com/technology-and-policy-in-george-orwells-1984-essay
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