The mutability of history in 1984

Orwellian Actions Today

In his novel 1984, George Orwell foresaw a future for humanity that was explicitly and completely under the control of the government. Every action, circumstance, and even thought that an individual within society holds in the society that Orwell creates is observed and to a large degree controlled by the actions of Big Brother, the all-encompassing government entity. The extremity of the situation in 1984 as well as the compelling manner in which the story is told have made the term "Orwellian" a standard reference on modern English, referring to many specific types of domineering social and cultural control by the government. Many of today's actions and figures, such as the level of devotion in which figures such as Glenn Beck are held by many, could rightly (and frighteningly) be seen as Orwellian.

1984 revolves around the character of Winston as he attempts to carve out his own personal identity in the world of Big Brother. After being captured and imprisoned for his seditious thoughts, he is told the government's psychological plan in full detail. This includes the over-riding principle that, "We [Big Brother] shall squeeze you empty and then we shall fill you with ourselves" (Part III, Chapter 2). The government becomes the only entity that holds nay meaning or value in this system and social structure; truly nothing else will eventually matter other than what the government says. Every sense of something higher or grander than the government, or any other way of thinking or defining values, will disappear and become inherently illogical in this structure.

This supports one of the common definitions of the term "Orwellian" as a process of removing religious faith and replacing it with the worship of the state in a semi-religious manner. As all other systems of values first become punishable, then seen as inherently wrong in the language provided for thought by the government, and eventually they become simply unthinkable (in the literal and Orwellian sense of the term), the government will necessarily emerge as the powerful value-creating force in society. This will lead automatically and inevitably to the near-worship of certain personalities and entities in the civic realm.

Glenn Beck is not actually an office holder, nor is he truly likely to become one (at least on a national level), and he also includes religious (specifically Christian, and even more specifically a brand of evangelical Christian) thought in many of his messages. Yet his following is also evidence of the Orwellian replacement of religious figures with civic figures, and the manner in which the state itself is becoming the focus of worship. Beck and others like him -- on both sides of the political spectrum -- attempt to make the government a matter of morality and directly codified values rather than a matter of ethicality and democratic equality. That is, these personalities insist that there are clear "rights" and "wrongs" in matters of policy that are part of moral absolutes, rather than the collective meeting of minds regarding achieving the greatest good or the greatest number without harming others. Such determination of morality has traditionally been a matter for religious order and individuals, but it is increasingly becoming part of the state's responsibility according to Beck and others. This means individuals look to these figures for guidance rather than to themselves or their religious leaders.