"1984" novel terms

Terms of the Novel

• Airstrip One signifies Great Britain as a province of Oceania.
• Oceania is one of the three warring superstates ruled by the Party and Big Brother.
• East Asia is one of the three superstates with the ideology of "obliteration of the self."
• Eurasia is one of the three superstates with the ideology of Neo-Bolshevism.
• Big Brother is the leader of the Party, wielding absolute power and inspiring fear and loyalty.
• Goldstein is the enemy of the Party, symbolizing rebellion and serving as a scapegoat and tool for Party control.
• An Unperson is someone erased from existence by the Party, representing the Party’s control of history through the destruction of records and the banning of names. Winston's job is in service of this.
• Two Minute Hate and Hate Week are brainwashing and manipulation tactics employing hateful propaganda for the Party's benefit and the INGSOC ideology, targeting opposing ideas like those of Goldstein.
• INGSOC, or English Socialism, is the totalitarian political ideology of the Party that aims to control citizens and every aspect of their lives 24/7.
• The Ministries include: The Ministry of Peace deals with war; The Ministry of Love maintains law and order; The Ministry of Truth handles news, entertainment, education, and the fine arts; The Ministry of Plenty is responsible for economic affairs.
• The Party Slogans are: "War is Peace," a contradiction implying control through perpetual conflict; "Freedom is Slavery," manipulating the concept of freedom to maintain power; and "Ignorance is Strength," enforcing ignorance as a means of control.
• The Thought Police enforce loyalty to the Party, with mental subversion considered a major offense punishable by severe penalties, including torture. Thought Crime is the act of thinking against the party.
• To be Vaporized is to be made into an unperson, typically at night, after going against the Party, resulting in murder and erasure.
• Doublethink is a Newspeak word for cognitive dissonance.
• Newspeak is a shortened form of English and the official language of Oceania, while Oldspeak refers to standard English before the Party's rise to power.

Language and Control

• Newspeak is Oceania's official language designed to provide a medium of expression while eliminating undesirable words and thought.
• Doublethink is a process of indoctrination where people simultaneously accept two conflicting beliefs as the truth.
• Language is manipulated for control through repetition, selective presentation of words, and the suppression of thoughts that counter established norms.
• Newspeak vocabulary is divided into: A-vocabulary for daily life with literal definitions; B-vocabulary for political purposes using compound words; and C-vocabulary for scientific and technical terms.
• The Appendix Analysis explains how the Party altered English to create Newspeak to eliminate the possibility of verbal or written rebellion, with the goal of transitioning to Newspeak by 2050 and making Oldspeak a dead language.

Political Ideologies

• Communism is the belief that replaces private property with public ownership.
• Fascism is an ideology marked by extreme nationalism, authoritarianism, militarism, anti-democracy, social hierarchy, propaganda, and economic control.
• Oligarchy is a government controlled by a small, powerful group.
• Kleptocracy is a government where leaders seek to maximize their own power at the expense of those governed.
• The Mao Zedong Ideology captures state power through strategic alliances, mass mobilization, and armed insurgency, utilizing propaganda and promoting state control.

Propaganda, Psychological Manipulation, Censorship, and Surveillance Technology

• Propaganda and psychological manipulation involve using techniques, posters, and language to shape public opinion, influence behavior, and create distrust in society.
• Stochastic terrorism refers to violent rhetoric used by public figures, often through social media, contributing to political violence and inciting hatred toward specific groups.
• Censorship and surveillance technology watch citizens and keep them in "check" to maintain control, affecting freedom of speech and limiting individual liberties.
• Manipulation techniques include: Name-calling or stereotyping to eliminate individuality; using virtue words or glittering generality to glorify ideas and appear peaceful; deification to make leaders appear holy or above the law; and using testimonials from respected figures to make ideas more acceptable.
• The Party's ideas are derived from 1920s Nazi Germany, both being totalitarian dictatorships that suppressed opposition.
• Mao had three main rules of discipline/PRC.

Modern Examples of Authoritarian States

• Turkey, lacking separation of powers, arrests political opponents of the President and resists change (monolithic), evidenced by the Gezi Park protests involving environmental concerns, water cannons, and plastic bullets, with disregard for the constitution.
• Afghanistan is led by the Taliban since August 2001, enforcing authoritarian rule with a strict social order aimed at restoring peace and security while rejecting Western influence, resulting in 85% of the population living off one dollar a day, restricted rights for women, food insecurity, and high unemployment rates, with repression of differing cultures or religions.
• Hungary, under Viktor Orban since 2010, is seen to have hijacked democratic institutions, shows disdain for minorities, considers the European Union anti-nationalist and anti-Christian, has one of the lowest living standards in the EU, with 44.6% of people in overcrowded flats, and has adopted anti-refugee stances.
• Syria, led by Bashar Al-Asad, who was elected under standards deemed not free or fair, opposes imperialism and colonialism, ignores class divisions, and maintains a centralized and authoritarian structure, suppresses peaceful protests with force, denies civil liberties, discriminates against minorities, interferes with privacy, and is known for disappearances, torture, and abuse.
• Singapore, under Lee Kuan Yew since 1994, is characterized by strategic leadership and strong governance, with 0.07% of the population making up the world's millionaires, excellent healthcare and education, but a high cost of living, which may pose challenges for diverse cultures or religions due to resource competition.