Essay Example on 1984: A Vision of a Dystopian Future With Technological Control

1984 by George Orwell is one of the great literary works as it brings to the fore the ideal situation of technological advancement and how it creates fear among the people and effectively manipulate and control their minds to match the existing political beliefs. Furthermore, the family and human bonds are closely monitored and influenced by the totalitarian party led by Big Brother who puts in place various telescreen in every realm of life to monitor the activities of the people. The society mirrored in 1984 is one bedeviled by various ills perpetuated by the regimes that instill great fear and terror among the people to achieve their selfish interests (Dahrendorf, 2017). The society envisaged in this novel is one that experiences every form of oppression in their family and human bonds and imposed hunger on anyone who may be reluctant to comply with the set regime's standards and values.

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Instructively, Parsons and children represent the ideal middle class ostensibly because they are inside an apartment. The connection between Parsons and children illustrates the extent to which the society fabrics, the family structure, and morals have been wiped out. The traditional values in the society just after the World War II was stable and there were negligible cases of separation and divorce and the children were naturally civil and respectful to their seniors, and there were notable prosperity and growth among the middle-class (Dahrendorf, 2017). Understandably, this novel portrayed a futuristic family characterized by constant chaos. "Everything had a battered, trampled-on look, as though the place had just been visited by some large violent animal." This quote portrays an apartment in tatters and chaos. Moreover, Winston is ordered around by a nine-year-old boy to put up his hands and Winston's reflection is hinged on how children have become horrible and developed a strong allegiance to the Party and its values (Dahrendorf, 2017).

Notably, the family bond is further elucidated between Winston, mother, and sister. In his dream he sees his mother fixing a look on him from a strange and unclear bottomless place that looks like a well. He remembers seeing his mother holding their sister as they stand in a sinking ship. In this situation, he gets overpowered by the strong feeling that the lives of his family are sacrificed for the betterment of their lives. Winston becomes exceptionally emotional as he watches his family perish. " He feels that his mother's death was tragic and sorrowful in a way that is no longer possible in the modern world" (Dahrendorf, 2017). The quote points to the Party's ill-deeds that disconnects and destroy the family bonds with the selfish aim of gaining control of every facet of life in society. The family bond is important as it promotes the growth and progress of society.

Winston considered as the novel protagonist meets Julia who hails from the fiction department and this makes him restless. Winston heavily suspected her to be a member of the Thought police. They are then compelled to set a meeting in a secret place notably because any sexual relationship between Party members is prohibited (Dahrendorf, 2017). The Party is keen to stifle any form of attachment and connection between men and women because they believed that any flourishing affection between men and women would redirect their thoughts and ultimately their much-needed loyalty. "The more men you've had, the more I love you." In light of this quote, it is evident that their relationship is premised on the rebellion against the Party and not necessarily affection towards each other. It should be noted that human needs bonding and the Party employs every available tactic to ensure that these bonds are compromised to get loyalty from the people. Winston and Julia worry hinges on their understanding that they can be captured and killed if they rent a room directly above Mr. Carrington's premises. This illustrates the totalitarian rule by the Party and the extent they can go to wipe out any form of rebellion.

Winston together with Julia paid a visit to O'Brien's apartment. The relationship between Winston and O'Brien seems to be getting stronger when he turns off the telescreen that monitors everyone in society. Winston gets a sense of freedom from the grip of the Party, and he bravely asserts that they are rebelling against the Party and that they will join Brotherhood. O'Brien maintains that the Brotherhood is valid (Dahrendorf, 2017). This makes Winston stay optimistic, and he instantly developed a sense of trust toward O'Brien. This is however short-lived when it became evident that O'Brien was merely in his usual actions unleashing the impending psychological torture to Winston.

Moreover, the relationship between Mr. Carrington, Big Brother and Winston depicts strong destruction of human bonds and connection. The rebels are subjected to extreme torture in the Ministry of Love and not directly killed. The torture intends to make the rebels change their minds and beliefs and comply with the rules of the Big Brother. Carrington hesitates to apprehend Winston and Julia and waits until a false feeling creeps in the mind of Winston that they are making progress in their rebellion (Dahrendorf, 2017). The extent to which Big Brother is revered in the society is depicted when Winston pretends to love Big Brother, and he watches a woman worshiping Big Brother. "With a tremulous murmur that sounded like 'My Savior!' she extended her arms towards the screen". This reverence towards Big Brother demonstrates the great strides the regime made in distorting the relationship between people to derive more loyalty from them.

Reference

Dahrendorf, R. (2017). Out of utopia: toward a reorientation of sociological analysis. In Utopia (pp. 103-126). Routledge.