2 and 2 makes 5

Author's Note: This is my theme essay using the theme of government control to compare the books 1984, The Giver, and Animal Farm. In this piece, I focused on trying to find unique subsections of "government control" and explaining them in creative and thoughtful ways. Enjoy!          

             Imagine living in your fantasy land, a place where all of your dreams would come true. It could be across the ocean, it could be across the globe, it could be across the universe. It could be a fictional place, or maybe a country just a few borders away. Where ever you may land, close your eyes and envision the society. Create everything—the people, the technology, the objects surrounding your everyday life. Now create a government for your community, and this won’t be any ordinary government, of course. No, this a kind of government that watches you intently, just waiting for you to screw up, waiting for you to be the hopeless, innocent creature you might call prey. They feed off of your guilelessness and brainwash you into their society. Wait, you may say, I thought this was my world… but the government will overpower you, and the only option for you to survive is corruption. In 1984 by George Orwell, and in many other novels alike, government control and misuse of power in government leaders is the overall theme.

            Children are the most innocent beings of them all-- their lives should be filled with laughter and smiles bright enough to shine through all darkness. As Whitney Houston quoted in her song, “Greatest Love Of All”: “I believe that children are our future/Teach them well and let them lead the way.” Although not just people of today’s world recognize children’s purity, so do the government leaders of 1984 and The Giver by Lois Lowry, resulting in brainwashed children who will do anything to  follow the path of their leaders.  The book 1984 represents this thought completely-- "Nearly all children nowadays were horrible. What was worst of all was that by means of such organizations as the Spies they were systematically turned into ungovernable little savages..." (24).  The next couple pages in the book even discuss children who will turn in their parents to the society in order to be called “A Child Hero!” The idea of controlling children is also perfectly executed in The Giver , as well: "It was a game he had often played with the other children, a game of good guys and bad guys, a harmless pasttime that used up their contained energy and ended only when they all lay posed in freakish postures on the ground. He had never recognized it before as a game of war " (133). This quote in comparison to the one in 1984 shows that children are the easiest targets to brainwash and create a whole new way, good or bad.

            Not only does the government in the book The Giver use kids to indoctrinate an entire society, but they misuse technology, as does the government in 1984. Both communities consist of high tech tools that can see, hear, and comprehend everything and anything you do.  As a page in 1984 states: "To keep your face expressionless was not difficult, and even your breathing could be controlled, with an effort; but you could not control the beating of your heart, and the telescreen was quite delicate enough to pick it up" (79). This is the kind of advanced technology that doesn’t give society members an option to do anything illegal, much less give them the opportunity to corrupt. Another comparison between the two books is that the technology usually always has some kind of monotone voice associated with it as both books tell us—“... in the self-important voice that all Speakers seemed to develop, saying things like, ATTENTION. THIS IS A REMINDER TO FEMALES UNDER NINE THAT HAIR RIBBONS ARE TO BE NEATLY TIED AT ALL TIMES. He turned toward Lily and noticed to his satisfaction that her ribbons were, as usual, undone and dangling" (The Giver 23). "The voice from the telescreen paused. A trumpet call, clear and beautiful, floated into the stagnant air. The voice continued raspingly: 'Attention! Your attention, please! A newsflash has this moment arrived from the Malabar front. Our forces in South India have one a glorious victory. I am authorized to say that the action we are now reporting may well bring the war within measurable distance of its end. Here is the newsflash--' " (1984 25-26). As I learned from Mr. Mamerow, technology is any tool used to make our lives easier, but when there is a misuse of it, societies are stripped of their knowledge and freedom.

            The books 1984 and Animal Farm were two brilliant books both written by George Orwell, and it’s easy to tell. Although each book may have different stories and backgrounds weaved into them, George Orwell’s writing style in both pieces are almost exactly the same, and they give you the same perceptions of government control. To start, both books have one main line that is in bold and often quoted throughout the rest of the book. "WAR IS PEACE. FREEDOM IS SLAVERY. IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH,” (26) says the government in 1984, compared to the writings of the pigs in Animal Farm: "ALL ANIMALS ARE EQUAL, BUT SOME ANIMALS ARE MORE EQUAL THAN OTHERS,” (133). The government in both books gradually changes rules as well—the chocolate rations in 1984 are slowly reduced, and in Animal Farm, all of the rules are slightly altered little by little to fit the needs of the pigs, not the farm as a whole. Slow and steady wins the race, we learned from The Tortoise and the Hare, and in this case, very true. By gradually changing rules, bit by bit, society will do what you say. As Winston in 1984 says "And what was terrifying was not that they would kill you for thinking otherwise, but that they might be right. For, after all, how do we know that two and two make four?" (80).

            Now, imagine living in a world where you are forced to follow the rules set by insanity itself, have your innocence stolen from you, and you are constantly watched, listened to, analyzed. Envision your only spark of hope being corruption… not anticipating presents on Christmas, or waiting for that day when your big baseball game finally comes—no, you are excited about overthrowing the government.

            Imagine living in a world where you doubt that two and two make four…