Welcome all to the 2015 Annual Festival of Intertextual Insights.
Humans cannot operate efficiently within a society which consists of complete totalitarianism. Texts which explore this are two of the most influencing pieces of our society, Fritz Lang’s Metropolis (1927) and George Orwell’s 1984 (1949). These two texts, when studied in comparison, I believe, enrich our understanding of the significant values presented in each due to the intertwining themes; and the differences between texts arise from the differing perspectives of both composers. I believe Authority & power and Sex are two of the most dominant themes explored in the in the texts, because even 87 years after …show more content…
If you are wealthy, you live in areas of high-rise buildings with interiors which are spacious. You have freedom of speech, you don’t have to work, you have a lifestyle where anything is possible. Yet, the underground workers of the lower class are only differentiated by numbers, they have no individuality and the areas in which they reside in are cold and style-less. This is represented by the long shot at the beginning of the film; the workers’ faces are not shown, the bars keeping them in represent prison walls and restriction, and they can be merely be perceived as …show more content…
In metropolis there is a shimmer of hope after the revolution has occurred and there is an understanding between the elite and the lower class. This is represented by the meeting of hands between Grot and Joh Fredersen, yet this reconciliation between classes is only possible with the assistance of a mediator (Freder). This meeting occurs at the conclusion of the film and creates the feel of a possible utopian world.
How easy is that? A bit of hand holding and the differences in social disorder are fixed and the complete destruction of the underground working-class is justified.
In 1984 however, the conclusion of the novel could not be more dystopic and juxtaposes everything Winston said about Big Brother leading up to the revolution that Julia and himself created. “He loved Big Brother” as opposed with the previous statement of pure hate, “Winston’s hatred was turned against Big Brother, the Party and the Thought Police and his heart went out to the lonely derided