1984 Ignorance Is Strength
1984: Ignorance is Strength The novel 1984 reveals a society comparable to that of the year 1984. This society has progressed, and continues to progress in the direction pointed out by George Orwell. “Impossible!”, everyone says. “We would never allow ourselves to be controlled that way!” These same people go home and turn on their televisions in order to soak up some more “truths” presented by their “honorable” leaders. These are today’s proles. Hitler and Stalin burned libraries. Mas Tse Tsung wrote his Red Book. Ociania, Big Brother, and the world of 1984 have newspeak. All represent the limiting of minds though dictatorship, but need to be official dictators in order to repress their followers. This is evident in today’s world. Ignorance is strength; our ignorance to repression increases the strength of our leaders, allowing them to make proles of us all. Repression is achieved through various techniques of dictatorship, one being controlled participation. This provides the proles with the “appearance” of a voice. In many communist nations, people have been given the right to vote but the communist party is the only choice on the ballot. In a democracy, such as that which exists in Canada and the United States, there are various parties to choose from, but it tends to be a choice of whose promises may be the least false. Choices are made for the good of the party so they will be able to maintain power for a longer period of time. The opinions of the impressionable, little proles are talented, not conceded. Controlled participation is not necessary in 1984 because the people have accepted the voice of the Party as their own. This is achieved through indoctrination. Indoctrination is the ultimate, prole molding, repressive technique of dictatorships. We know only what the party allows us to know. They