1984 and Brazil

The word utopia was first utilised by Thomas Moore in 1516 in his work Utopia. A utopia in essence is an imaginary place of sheer fear and desire. The word utopia used to describe an ideal society. The opposite of utopia is a dystopia which also is an imaginary place contrary to the belief of perfection. They include undesirable elements of society exaggerated to form a warning for the future generations. Terry Gilliam’s film Brazil shows a dictatorial society where freedom has been surrendered for a bogus promise of protection from terrorist activities. Nineteen Eighty-Four is a dystopian novel and is a story about the degradation of society under a totalitarian regime that uses perpetual warfare to fulfil its penchant for power. The theme of war and terrorism is also questioned by Karen Masterson in her report for the Houston Chronicle where she analyses the American war on terror. Each of the dystopias provides an example of state sponsored terrorism and a deep insight into its results. The concept of war and terrorism is used to outwit its citizens and strengthen their grip over the society. The stronghold over the society is established by using fallacious terrorism to create a scapegoat for the actions of the regimes. Deceptive terrorism is also used to neglect the needs of people and a government’s obligations towards its citizens.

Each government is successful in creating a gullible and oblivious society which fails to interpret the nexus between the terrorist activities and the government. A major theme in the novel is the use of continuous warfare by the Inner Party to create permanent war hysteria among the citizens of Oceania. An example of this hysteria is the official slogan of the party – “War is peace.” The Party believes in “War is peace” as a universal enemy keeps the citizenry united. The war hysteria makes it easy for the party to manipulate its citizens. The common enemy shares the blame for the bombings performed by the government.