“All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.”
The pigs are responsible for this mind set and the pigs’ subjects are powerless to go against this. Before this problem is a problem (though it is never really exposed as a problem because of the animals’ ignorance) though, the initial problem of man had to be solved. If you oppress a group, they will raise up in a fiery rage and overthrow the oppressors. This is one of the first points of George Orwell’s Animal Farm. All of the animals on the Manor Farm grew weary of working for the humans, receiving nothing in return other than a place to sleep and just enough food to be able to continue working. Major, a twelve year old boar, called a meeting of all the animals after the humans had gone to sleep. At this meeting, he felt it his duty to pass on some knowledge before his inevitable death. He told the animals of a song his mother and the other sows used to sing when he was a little piglet. This, coupled with the belief that one day, animals will rise up and take back what is rightfully theirs, the farm and then the earth, which he passed on to the other animals as well, motivated the animals to start the revolution.
After the successful overthrow of the humans, the animals worked together for the common goal of preserving and bettering their lives. The pigs served as the overseers; they were the smartest ones, it only made sense that they should be fill the position that the humans filled, with the exception, of course, that the pigs were nowhere near as maniacal and tyrannical as man was. This continued for a while, with few problems. The main problem was the rivalry between Napoleon and Snowball, the two main pigs who ALWAYS disagreed on every subject brought before them. When this problem was solved, a new problem arose. This new problem is summarized in the last words of the story: “The creatures outside looked from pig to man, and from man to pig, and from pig to man again; but already it was impossible to say which was which.” If a ruler’s power is not kept in check and only increases, that ruler becomes a pig, a dictator. The problems that affect his people do not affect him, meaning they are not solved and only grow worse.
Orwell’s “voice” in this story could be heard from one of the oblivious animals’ mouths. He writes about a traitor of the animals; if this book was transferred to the silver screen, a sheep could be saying all the narrator says about the traitor (sheep follow the pig leader blindly, not allowing for any words that go against the leader to be said, without the leader’s maxim of “Four legs good, two legs bad!” being uttered enthusiastically, drowning out “anarchistic” words). He writes from the point of view of the animals, never acknowledging what the reader gathers. While reading the story, the reader will realize that the pigs have put the animals under a dictator’s rule again, but the author never states this, and only speaks from the point of view of the other animals, who never realize this.
Animal Farm, like 1984, is a book worth reading that elicits analysis of one’s government, world and self. Unlike 1984, the only reason one would need to reread this book would be to identify the satirical identities of the animals, mainly the pigs. That is not to say, though, that it is not worth reading twice.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
1984 By George Orwell
“Do not imagine that you will save yourself, Winston, however completely you surrender to us. No one who has once gone astray is ever spared. And even if we chose to let you live out the natural term of your life, still you would never escape from us. What happens to you here is forever. Understand that in advance. We shall crush you down to the point from which there is no coming back. Things will happen to you from which you could not recover, if you lived a thousand years. Never again will you be capable of ordinary human feeling. Everything will be dead inside you. Never again will you be capable of love, or friendship, or joy of living, or laughter or curiosity, or courage, or integrity. You will be hollow. We shall squeeze you empty, and then we shall fill you with ourselves.”
This is what Winston Smith heard from one whom he believed was an ally during his imprisonment in the Ministry of Love. In 1984, the world is divided into three main factions: Oceania, where Winston dwells, Eastasia and Eurasia. In 1984, the government in Oceania is divided into four main branches: the Ministry of Truth, which handles the news, entertainment, education and the arts, the Ministry of Peace, which concerns itself with the war, law and order is maintained by the Ministry of Love, and the Ministry of Plenty is responsible for economic affairs. In 1984, even though nothing is illegal, because there are no laws, the simple act of keeping a diary could result in the death of the writer, if the Thought Police were ever to capture him (it is not a question of whether or not the Police would discover it, it would be inevitable for the writer to keep it secret forever). George Orwell’s 1984 ensnared me completely, using a well written story as the bait, the content of that story being the trap.
Orwell wrote this book in the `40's, using what was happening in the world as inspiration. 1984 illustrates what would have happened if democracy had been lost and communism and socialism had prevailed. Of course, in this book, none of the governments claim to be either communist or socialist, but considering their policies and methods of handling matters, it is only completely clear to someone from our time that the governments are what they claim they are not. Hardly anybody in 1984 realize this, though, because the government essentially brainwashes all of its people. If a person is not completely brainwashed and is able to think for themselves thoughts that contradict that of the government’s ideals, the Thought Police handles them. Kidnaping and vaporizations are common but are almost ignored completely. A coworker may be talking to someone one day and that will be the last day he is ever seen. If who he was talking to is inquisitive and asks around for news about him, he will be shocked to learn that the coworker who went missing never existed in the first place! The Thought Police handles any opposition to the government harshly and swiftly, whether the opposition is a single thought (“I doubt that the government actually cares about its people as long as it can remain in power,”) or the massive bombing of a building. “The more power a government holds over its people, the less human its ‘people’ become.” With the use of Newspeak, a language in progress (basically English but limited greatly; this was so to be able to limit the thoughts of the people), Big Brother, the government of Oceania, held more and more power over the people with each passing day. With each passing day, the people became more and more inhuman, following and listening blindly, with independent thought becoming more and more obsolete.
Doublethink is prevalent in 1984. Doublethink is the ability to KNOW that black is white when told so and to forget that black and white used to be two different things (2+2=5. to be able to know this when Big Brother proclaims that this is correct is to use doublethink; two plus two was four, as it used to be known, but when Big Brother says differently, it is different. so two plus two may equal anything but right now it equals five. to be able to know that two plus two equals five and to be able to forget that it used to be four and to know that it has always been five and to forget that doublethink is being used at all in the process (to forget that you are lying to yourself) is to use doublethink itself). Orwell uses a myriad of contradictions in his story, proving that the government has absolute control over its subjects and that the subjects are oblivious to this (in the story, though this possible future may become the present soon enough). Big Brother is always right. “Yesterday we were at war with Eastasia and it had always been so...”,“Today, Eurasia is the enemy, Eastasia is our ally and this has always been so.” It may be difficult to understand how the people could be so ignorant. All records that contradict what the government says now are destroyed or edited to ensure that the government has always been right and correct. The people in the Ministry of Truth, where Winston worked, tamper with history (newspapers, books, movies, etc.), making sure that Big Brother has always been right and that his/its mind has never changed (to change one’s mind is to show weakness). The editors then forget that they edited history at all and remember what they had edited to be truth. The Ministry of Truth is based on nothing but lies. Doublethink is prevalent in 1984.
1984 is a complicated story and needs to be read at least three different times to be able to understand every part of it completely. This should not be a chore though. This book is written well enough that each time it is read, it should still captivate the reader. Other than needing to read it more than once to catch every detail and contradiction, despite how complicated and how hard the story is to follow at times, this is one of the best books, if not THE best book, I have read and I recommend it to anyone who can read it. If a person can not read it, they should master the craft of reading and/or the English language just to be able to read this book.
(NOTE: this is not a good book in the sense of “happily ever after.” this is a good book in the sense that it provokes analysis of oneself, of the government and of the world.)
This is what Winston Smith heard from one whom he believed was an ally during his imprisonment in the Ministry of Love. In 1984, the world is divided into three main factions: Oceania, where Winston dwells, Eastasia and Eurasia. In 1984, the government in Oceania is divided into four main branches: the Ministry of Truth, which handles the news, entertainment, education and the arts, the Ministry of Peace, which concerns itself with the war, law and order is maintained by the Ministry of Love, and the Ministry of Plenty is responsible for economic affairs. In 1984, even though nothing is illegal, because there are no laws, the simple act of keeping a diary could result in the death of the writer, if the Thought Police were ever to capture him (it is not a question of whether or not the Police would discover it, it would be inevitable for the writer to keep it secret forever). George Orwell’s 1984 ensnared me completely, using a well written story as the bait, the content of that story being the trap.
Orwell wrote this book in the `40's, using what was happening in the world as inspiration. 1984 illustrates what would have happened if democracy had been lost and communism and socialism had prevailed. Of course, in this book, none of the governments claim to be either communist or socialist, but considering their policies and methods of handling matters, it is only completely clear to someone from our time that the governments are what they claim they are not. Hardly anybody in 1984 realize this, though, because the government essentially brainwashes all of its people. If a person is not completely brainwashed and is able to think for themselves thoughts that contradict that of the government’s ideals, the Thought Police handles them. Kidnaping and vaporizations are common but are almost ignored completely. A coworker may be talking to someone one day and that will be the last day he is ever seen. If who he was talking to is inquisitive and asks around for news about him, he will be shocked to learn that the coworker who went missing never existed in the first place! The Thought Police handles any opposition to the government harshly and swiftly, whether the opposition is a single thought (“I doubt that the government actually cares about its people as long as it can remain in power,”) or the massive bombing of a building. “The more power a government holds over its people, the less human its ‘people’ become.” With the use of Newspeak, a language in progress (basically English but limited greatly; this was so to be able to limit the thoughts of the people), Big Brother, the government of Oceania, held more and more power over the people with each passing day. With each passing day, the people became more and more inhuman, following and listening blindly, with independent thought becoming more and more obsolete.
Doublethink is prevalent in 1984. Doublethink is the ability to KNOW that black is white when told so and to forget that black and white used to be two different things (2+2=5. to be able to know this when Big Brother proclaims that this is correct is to use doublethink; two plus two was four, as it used to be known, but when Big Brother says differently, it is different. so two plus two may equal anything but right now it equals five. to be able to know that two plus two equals five and to be able to forget that it used to be four and to know that it has always been five and to forget that doublethink is being used at all in the process (to forget that you are lying to yourself) is to use doublethink itself). Orwell uses a myriad of contradictions in his story, proving that the government has absolute control over its subjects and that the subjects are oblivious to this (in the story, though this possible future may become the present soon enough). Big Brother is always right. “Yesterday we were at war with Eastasia and it had always been so...”,“Today, Eurasia is the enemy, Eastasia is our ally and this has always been so.” It may be difficult to understand how the people could be so ignorant. All records that contradict what the government says now are destroyed or edited to ensure that the government has always been right and correct. The people in the Ministry of Truth, where Winston worked, tamper with history (newspapers, books, movies, etc.), making sure that Big Brother has always been right and that his/its mind has never changed (to change one’s mind is to show weakness). The editors then forget that they edited history at all and remember what they had edited to be truth. The Ministry of Truth is based on nothing but lies. Doublethink is prevalent in 1984.
1984 is a complicated story and needs to be read at least three different times to be able to understand every part of it completely. This should not be a chore though. This book is written well enough that each time it is read, it should still captivate the reader. Other than needing to read it more than once to catch every detail and contradiction, despite how complicated and how hard the story is to follow at times, this is one of the best books, if not THE best book, I have read and I recommend it to anyone who can read it. If a person can not read it, they should master the craft of reading and/or the English language just to be able to read this book.
(NOTE: this is not a good book in the sense of “happily ever after.” this is a good book in the sense that it provokes analysis of oneself, of the government and of the world.)
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
THE TIME MACHINE (And The Invisible Man) By H.G. Wells
“I stood up and looked round me. A colossal figure, carved apparently in some white stone, loomed indistinctly beyond the rhododendrons through the hazy downpour. But all else of the world was invisible. My sensations would be hard to describe. As the columns of hail grew thinner, I saw the white figure more distinctly. It was very large, for a silver birch-tree touched its shoulder. It was of white marble, in shape something like a winged sphinx...It chanced that the face was towards me; the sightless eyes seemed to watch me; there was the faint shadow of a smile on the lips,”
The Time Traveler recollected his whole story in vivid detail, this detail, the first thing he saw when he reached the future, being no exception. Wanting more than anything to witness the fantastic, advanced world of tomorrow, the Time Traveler builds himself a Time Machine. After some consultation with his fellows, he rides the Machine forward in time, to the year 802,701 A.D. Once there, he realizes that his perception of what the future would be like is very wrong. Discovering this, the Traveler attempts to return home. Attempting this, he discovers a worse discovery: the Machine has disappeared. Venturing to reclaim it, from whom he does not discover til later, the Traveler explores the future and draws conclusions about what has yet to happen. H.G. Wells’ Time Machine enveloped me in a mind boggling report of what the future may be like in the form of a fantastic science fiction story.
The Morlocks and the Eloi, the underground monsters and the aboveground dwelling folk respectfully, are the results of several thousand years of the separation of classes: the Eloi representing the capitalists, the money holders, the ones in power and the Morlocks being the equivalent to the common people, the workers, forced to live with the machines they worked underground (contrary to the comparisons, it is actually the Morlocks who are in power, control (meaning that the potential revolt that is sure to come when a people are supressed must have already happened when the Traveler appeared)). The hopelessness of both existing illustrates Wells’ point very well, which is that an equal government, such as communism, is ideal if society and humanity are to prevail and defeat the natural decay that time causes.
Other than the people in the present, which is, of course, now the past (such as the Psychologist and the Provincial Mayor), and the Time Traveler himself, the characters that inhabit this world are not portrayed as people. Instead, they are portrayed as animals with somewhat high intelligence, considering the fact that they are animals. Weena, for example, is not perceived by the Traveler to be a human companion, but as a favored pet. Because the Morlocks and the Eloi never say anything, other than the short, choppy sentences that compose the remnants of any kind of language, spoken by the Eloi and the sinister sounding mutterings of the Morlocks, the idea that they are people is even more absurd and harder to prove.
The Time Machine can be read by almost anybody (some of the terms used in the book require a broader vocabulary to be understood/known) and should be read by the capable. Even though many countries are democratic and only a few are communists/socialists/etc., and one of the author’s points clashes with democratic-like governments, this short story is well worth the time it takes to read.
The Time Traveler recollected his whole story in vivid detail, this detail, the first thing he saw when he reached the future, being no exception. Wanting more than anything to witness the fantastic, advanced world of tomorrow, the Time Traveler builds himself a Time Machine. After some consultation with his fellows, he rides the Machine forward in time, to the year 802,701 A.D. Once there, he realizes that his perception of what the future would be like is very wrong. Discovering this, the Traveler attempts to return home. Attempting this, he discovers a worse discovery: the Machine has disappeared. Venturing to reclaim it, from whom he does not discover til later, the Traveler explores the future and draws conclusions about what has yet to happen. H.G. Wells’ Time Machine enveloped me in a mind boggling report of what the future may be like in the form of a fantastic science fiction story.
The Morlocks and the Eloi, the underground monsters and the aboveground dwelling folk respectfully, are the results of several thousand years of the separation of classes: the Eloi representing the capitalists, the money holders, the ones in power and the Morlocks being the equivalent to the common people, the workers, forced to live with the machines they worked underground (contrary to the comparisons, it is actually the Morlocks who are in power, control (meaning that the potential revolt that is sure to come when a people are supressed must have already happened when the Traveler appeared)). The hopelessness of both existing illustrates Wells’ point very well, which is that an equal government, such as communism, is ideal if society and humanity are to prevail and defeat the natural decay that time causes.
Other than the people in the present, which is, of course, now the past (such as the Psychologist and the Provincial Mayor), and the Time Traveler himself, the characters that inhabit this world are not portrayed as people. Instead, they are portrayed as animals with somewhat high intelligence, considering the fact that they are animals. Weena, for example, is not perceived by the Traveler to be a human companion, but as a favored pet. Because the Morlocks and the Eloi never say anything, other than the short, choppy sentences that compose the remnants of any kind of language, spoken by the Eloi and the sinister sounding mutterings of the Morlocks, the idea that they are people is even more absurd and harder to prove.
The Time Machine can be read by almost anybody (some of the terms used in the book require a broader vocabulary to be understood/known) and should be read by the capable. Even though many countries are democratic and only a few are communists/socialists/etc., and one of the author’s points clashes with democratic-like governments, this short story is well worth the time it takes to read.
THE STRANGE CASE OF DR JEKYLL AND MR HYDE AND OTHER STORIES (The Body Snatcher. Markheim. The Bottle Imp) By Robert Louis Stevenson
“When this shall fall into your hands, I shall have disappeared, under what circumstances, I have not the penetration to foresee; but my instincts and all the circumstances of my nameless situation tell me that the end is sure and must be early...,”
So wrote Dr. Henry Jekyll to his friend and lawyer Mr. Utterson. Dr. Jekyll is a respected and pretty well liked member of society. Mr. Hyde is a shady character whose visage sparks disgust and terror into the hearts of any who are unfortunate enough to witness it. These two, though two completely different humans, are actually one human and must share the same body. Utterson realizes, after the situation is made perfectly clear to him, that to discover and utilize the remedy to this is extremely important. Robert Louis Stevenson’s Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde tantalized me with a captivating tale of mystery and suspense.
One of the most significant problems humanity faces is addressed in this tale: the ability to balance a life between good and evil (this is, of course, only an issue to the “majority” of people). Jekyll lives a righteous life, meaning problems are rare for him, and are even nonexistent, other than the desire he has to release his darker side. Rather than to commit misdeeds occasionally, Jekyll uses his science, he is a doctor after all, to construct a solution that grants him his wish. Edward Hyde overthrows Jekyll for control of the body and runs rampant. Because Jekyll could not find a healthy medium, adopting neutrality as his manner and not good, his need to transform consumed him and drove both Hyde and the doctor to their death(s).
The way in which Stevenson wrote this book appeals to readers that possess an extended vocabulary of and who know a considerable amount of “Old English” terms; that is to say that if your lexicon is only filled with modern English, this story is, for the most part, un-understandable. Extended sentences that may last for a whole paragraph occur often and incite annoyance, making it hard for any impatient, uneducated (of the old forms of English) potential readers to read this. If these two proposed “problems” are, in fact, NOT problems, by all means, read this. Other than those two obstacles, the finish line that is the end of the tale is easily obtainable.
Intelligence and patience are ideal to the complete understanding of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, but persistence would allow anyone to be able to read this classic; and anyone who does finish this composition will more than likely have enjoyed the time spent reading it.
So wrote Dr. Henry Jekyll to his friend and lawyer Mr. Utterson. Dr. Jekyll is a respected and pretty well liked member of society. Mr. Hyde is a shady character whose visage sparks disgust and terror into the hearts of any who are unfortunate enough to witness it. These two, though two completely different humans, are actually one human and must share the same body. Utterson realizes, after the situation is made perfectly clear to him, that to discover and utilize the remedy to this is extremely important. Robert Louis Stevenson’s Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde tantalized me with a captivating tale of mystery and suspense.
One of the most significant problems humanity faces is addressed in this tale: the ability to balance a life between good and evil (this is, of course, only an issue to the “majority” of people). Jekyll lives a righteous life, meaning problems are rare for him, and are even nonexistent, other than the desire he has to release his darker side. Rather than to commit misdeeds occasionally, Jekyll uses his science, he is a doctor after all, to construct a solution that grants him his wish. Edward Hyde overthrows Jekyll for control of the body and runs rampant. Because Jekyll could not find a healthy medium, adopting neutrality as his manner and not good, his need to transform consumed him and drove both Hyde and the doctor to their death(s).
The way in which Stevenson wrote this book appeals to readers that possess an extended vocabulary of and who know a considerable amount of “Old English” terms; that is to say that if your lexicon is only filled with modern English, this story is, for the most part, un-understandable. Extended sentences that may last for a whole paragraph occur often and incite annoyance, making it hard for any impatient, uneducated (of the old forms of English) potential readers to read this. If these two proposed “problems” are, in fact, NOT problems, by all means, read this. Other than those two obstacles, the finish line that is the end of the tale is easily obtainable.
Intelligence and patience are ideal to the complete understanding of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, but persistence would allow anyone to be able to read this classic; and anyone who does finish this composition will more than likely have enjoyed the time spent reading it.
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