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Big Brother speaks to the people, ” drawing a deep sigh of relief from everybody, the hostile face turned into big brother (18). This propaganda effectively sways citizens’ views by brainwashing them through constant repetition and blatant lies. The major goal of the party is to have the ability to boldly change a person’s thoughts about anything. O’Brien forces Winston to eventually believe that, “2 + 2 = 5. ” (239). If Big Brother could convince all of the citizens to believe that, it would have complete and utter control over them. Individualism would be dead. That, of course, is the totalitarian ideal that must be prevented.
The strong, symbolic aspects of George Rowel’s 1984, paralleling “Big Brother” in a sectional totalitarian world to Stalin’s Russian state are all too real. He warns of the dangers of mindlessly accepting propaganda in its many forms as truth without questioning and giving in to intimidation and fear without fighting back. Unquestioned power Just creates a greater sense of power, unleashing untold terror through abuses of that power. Even though this was written long before 1984 to warn about excesses of power then and in the future, and it is now long past 1984, it could not be more relevant today.
We are living in a time in the United States where many adders, both democratic and republican, are trying to consolidate power through whatever means possible, including redistricting and filibuster. The governor of California wants to hold a special election costing millions of dollars Just to try to change the voting districts when there is not enough money in the budget for schools. Propaganda is also alive and well. The President controls who may ask questions at his press conferences. Journalists appear to have been paid to write stories promoting certain points of view.
Many television and radio stations are partisan. There are still questions about recurring problems with electronic voting machines in the past presidential election. Also of great concern is that in the name of security since the September 1 1, 2001 attack, comes a loss of privacy. Large databases keeping track of citizens’ personal information have already been tapped into by criminals, adding to the epidemic of identity theft. There may soon even be a national identification card for citizens. If these topics are not debated, continue to be ignored, or go unchallenged, “Big Brother” may truly have become a reality.