1984 is Everywhere

It is undeniable that the fictitious world of George Orwell's 1984 can be seen in the modern world everywhere. Be it simple wordplay or extensive indoctrination, for better or for worse, manipulation of language and covering things up it a constant presence in our lives. 

No matter how simplistic in content, a slight alteration of any given word can alter the opinion's of the masses. 

Examples of the themes running throughout 1984 include manipulation of language, persuading people’s thoughts, and forcing people to forget events, which have happened.

Firstly, the manipulation of language is a constant aspect of today’s life. Be it through colloquialisms or common sayings, this word manipulation even reaches the highs of media and government control, which has constant effect on everyone.

When I say that Newspeak affects everyone, well, it really does as it infiltrates all aspects of everyday life, no matter how mundane. Examples include such words as “downsize”, which at a basic level means firing someone from their job, but by replacing the harsh word with a somewhat less abrasive one, the process sounds less daunting despite the fact that it is not.

Further, more extreme employment of newspeak is a lot more worrying due to the flippancy of its use. To me, it is very unnerving when words such as “regime change” is used to describe a government being overthrown, or even more disconcerting is terminology such as “neutralize” instead of “kill”! What is so crazy about newspeak is that people are so susceptible to using it that it becomes commonplace and the seriousness of what is happening around us is being dulled down as we become increasingly desensitized and ignorant.

In 1984 the citizens are made to believe certain things and also forget events that have happened in living memory. So many parallels can be found between the modern world and Orwell’s fiction world e.g. in 1984 Oceania are told that they have always been at war with Eurasia when they haven’t; for me there are parallels between this and the way Saddam Hussein has been perceived; For the past decade we have been told he has been behind much of the problems in the world, however when it was convenient for the developed world to cooperate with him in the past, the media did not convey him as an enemy. As with 1984, the modern world is awfully susceptible to media misinformation.

For part of our current module we have been asked to produce a production on some form of newspeak, which surrounds us everyday and I have decided to cover the topic of Aspartame use. For me, this is a topic which has been very much overlooked as regards to its safety, and it was and still is not being addressed due to financial and political reasons.  This is very relevant as in 1984 things,which could hinder the power system are simply overlooked as is the case with the world’s most widely used sweetener.

Watch this space.