Hi,
It'd be greatly appreciated if anyone could take a look at this essay and point out any areas for improvement, etc. Even a mark would be greatly useful.
Thanks kindly for any advice.
Topic:
“The past was erased … the lie became the truth.”
Why is the refusal to record the past accurately so important in the world of Nineteen Eighty-Four?
Throughout history, many leaders – both political and otherwise – have utilised, and manipulated history to advance their causes. Indeed, this was especially the case with twentieth century dictators, such as Hitler and Stalin, who through the misrepresentation of history cemented their authority over millions of people. In his novel, Nineteen Eighty-Four, George Orwell takes this concept to its logical extremity by portraying the state as not only misrepresenting history, but also destroying it. Whilst the consequences of this should not be understated, it should be noted that such distortions of the truth are only symptomatic of more systemic problems in the world of Nineteen Eighty-Four.
It is true that without an accurate or at least comprehensive description of history, then the rise of political excesses in the form of totalitarianism becomes far easier, and far likelier. Indeed, without such an understanding of the past, it becomes impossible to understand alternate lifestyles. Moreover, this is no other time with which people are able to reference in order to establish whether indeed their current political apparatus is working in their interests. This is especially clear when at the a bar in the prole-part of town, Winston questions an older man as to whether the Party’s version of pre-IngSoc history is true – that is, whether there was “great suffering” perpetrated by capitalists in “top hats” who owned the factories and treated their workers as slaves. With the description of history as such, the people of Oceania are thus grateful towards the Party for saving them from these supposed excesses, a fact that as a result makes them less likely to rebel against the party, due to the belief that the alternate lifestyle – without the party – is much worse. A similar situation is true in the Party’s recording of rationing and other information where the Party alters the past in order to ensure they are always correct. This is true when the Party revises prior estimates of chocolate rations downward, so that they are able make more favourable rationing announcements, and hence gaining goodwill from the people. The same is also true when Oceania changes allies so as to be allied with Eurasia during Hate Week, by altering the history books and former new articles to reflect the fact that they were “always at war with Eastasia”. This in effect entrenches an atmosphere of infallibility around the party, and as a result, fortifying the Party’s dominance in Oceania.
This infallibility of the party is strongly juxtaposed against the clear weakness of human nature. Whereas the Party is able to present a single unified front, undoubtedly giving the impression of overt strength, individuals themselves seem unmistakingly weak in Nineteen Eighty-Four. This depiction of individual weakness is most perceptible in Winston throughout the novel, a character demonstrating weakness both in his physical characteristics – Orwell gives the description of a man with a ‘varicose vein’ –and mentally, with Winston ultimately succumbing to the way of the party. Likewise, human weakness is apparent when Winston questions the old man in the bar on life before the party. Rather than being able to give incisive detail on life before the Party, the old man is instead drawn into the trivialities of his own life, and even recalls that back in the pre-IngSoc days the “beer was better”. Indeed, even though this man may have a recollection of the truth, it appears irrelevant or at least uninteresting, suggesting that even if history were recorded accurately that this would not incite many to question the Party. This is especially important, if, as Winston theories, “if there is hope, it lies in the Proles”. Given the need for a mass movement to overthrow the Party to come from below, that the Proles are so unconcerned with political issues, and, as Winston observes are more interested in “quarrelling with neighbours” – the chance for a revolution seems low. Further, it would seem that even if an accurate history was available, this would not compel the Proles to revolt given the fact that they have seemingly little intellectual curiosity and because their most primal human needs – sex (PornoSec), drugs (VictoryGin) and gambling (the lotto) – are being fulfilled, there exists little reasons in their mind to revolt. Therefore, in this sense, it seems that rebellion or the toppling of a totalitarian regime may not simple be contingent on the availability of history, but also on the strength of society to act upon such information.
Just as the chances of toppling a totalitarian regime depend on the strength of society and human nature, they also depend on the relative power of the state. Throughout the novel, it is clear that the Party has a strong grip on power, with Winston at one point positing that the “Thoughtpolice was all that mattered.” With such a strong secret police enforcing the law, it is difficult to imagine that even with the availability of the past that a movement to overthrow the party could succeed. Indeed, the presence of an ‘accurate’ version of the truth – a photo of Aaronson, Jones and Rutherford – does not appear to have helped Winston overcome the asphyxiating control of the party. If anything, knowing the unaltered version of history in Nineteen Eighty-Four seems to be a curse, for it further motivates Winston to be intellectually curious – a trait that would ultimately result in Winston’s capture by the Thoughtpolice, and torture by the Ministry of Love. Given this, it seems that the distortion of the truth is but one tool utilised by the Party in their oppressive control of Oceania.
Although the misrepresentation of history itself is only one source of a totalitarian regime’s power, and true portrayal of the past itself cannot result in the toppling of a regime – the importance of the truth should not be understated. Orwell, throughout his novel, shows that totalitarianism is a creeping evil and although an accurate depiction of the truth may not prevent a totalitarian from arising, the lack of an accurate history will make the rise –and maintenance – of such a regime ever easier.
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