Independent Novel
'IT WAS A BRIGHT COLD DAY IN APRIL, AND THE CLOCKS WERE STRIKING THIRTEEN.'
Winston Smith works for the Ministry of Truth in London, chief city of Airstrip One. Big Brother stares out from every poster, the Thought Police uncover every act of betrayal. When Winston finds love with Julia, he discovers that life does not have to be dull and deadening, and awakens to new possibilities. Despite the police helicopters that hover and circle overhead, Winston and Julia begin to question the Party; they are drawn towards conspiracy. Yet Big Brother will not tolerate dissent - even in the mind. For those with original thoughts they invented Room 101. . .
Winston Smith works for the Ministry of Truth in London, chief city of Airstrip One. Big Brother stares out from every poster, the Thought Police uncover every act of betrayal. When Winston finds love with Julia, he discovers that life does not have to be dull and deadening, and awakens to new possibilities. Despite the police helicopters that hover and circle overhead, Winston and Julia begin to question the Party; they are drawn towards conspiracy. Yet Big Brother will not tolerate dissent - even in the mind. For those with original thoughts they invented Room 101. . .
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In sync with the course's theme of human rights, a good portion of the ENG3UI course is focused on an independent novel. My novel of choice was the classic totalitarian-society of 1984 by George Orwell, the synopsis of which is in bold above. It is a tale of constant human rights violations. The totalitarian-style government of the Party and their terrifying mascot, Big Brother, allows the existence of a world where even having the wrong facial expression or saying the wrong thing in your sleep is punishable by months of starvation, torture, and a death sentence. Telescreens and microphones litter every common place and allow the government to control society like a doll - every movement you make, every sound you produce is heard and recorded by the Party. The infamous Room 101, the final sentence for Thoughtcriminals, holds unspeakable horrors. And of course, Winston is aware he will someday find himself in this room after joining the underground resistance with the woman he loves, Julia.
I thoroughly enjoyed the book. It is a bit slow to start, but once you get into it, it's a fantastic read. While the spoilers are saved for my assignments, I'll just say I wasn't too pleased with the ending. For a book written eight decades ago, it's surprisingly relevant to today's society. With cameras on every block of populated cities across the world and built into millions of smartphones, smart televisions, and computers alongside microphones keeps the government just as updated about our lives in today's society as it had been in the novel. It opens up a new look to how little privacy and how little control we hold over our lives beneath the powers of the world.
Thus, my assignments for the course:
NGO Research
With the never-ending violations of human rights in the novel, it is obvious that Airstrip One is in need of some serious help. An NGO - non-government organization, could be very helpful in this situation.
Click on the link to see the organization I found best-fit the needs of Oceania and why.
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Setting Analysis
One of the media components for this course is creating a map which depicts the important settings of your independent novel. In my case, I made a custom Google Map on the novel 1984. Click on the icons below to see a description, picture(s), and matching quotes with each location on the map.
Map also available here.
Map also available here.
Essay
"In general, the development of mental health issues within an individual can be dependent on biological predispositions such as their environment and the people they surround themselves with, especially in prevalently-negative societies such as totalitarian-style government and other situations in which many human rights are violated. The environment present in George Orwell’s 1984 is not one that diminishes but rather reinforces the development of such disabilities. ..." Cont. reading below.
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Totalitarian-Style Rule Dooms Citizens' Mental Health | |
File Size: | 105 kb |
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