What is there to write that hasn’t
already been written about George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-four? Like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, the
novel’s ideas proved so fundamental they have become idiomatic in the English
language. ‘Big Brother’, ‘Thought
Police’, ‘Orwellian’, and to some extent ‘doublethink’ and ‘2+2=5’, are
expressions most are familiar with and part of everyday speech. Given the depth political and social
realities are delved into in realistic, eye-opening fashion, it’s an
understatement to write Nineteen Eighty-four is one of the most
significant works of science fiction to have been written.
Ignore the title; Nineteen
Eighty-four is not an attempt at futurology. Intended as a cautionary, the book is the story
of Winston Smith, an ordinary government worker living in unordinary
circumstances. His job to revise history
per orders from above, Smith’s life is filled to the brim with cameras,
listening devices, and government snitches trying to maintain a status quo that
is anything but free. The Party’s
totalitarian regime—generally nicknamed ‘Big brother’ by citizenry—monitors
nearly all aspects of life, including work, home, even people’s love
lives. Beyond voyeuristic, Smith et
al must watch their every move lest the most minor of statutes or laws be
broken. The Thought Police watching and waiting, most offenders are dragged
away, never to be seen again. Smith’s
days filled with anxiety and dread as he trudges from work to home, meeting the
enigmatic Julia one day moves life in new directions. But is Big Brother watching?
