1984 In Today's Society Essay
The Relevance of 1984 in Today’s Society
There are many social developments in society that could be identified as “Orwellian”, in which these changes have encroached on the rights and freedoms that we are privy to. These social developments and events have presented themselves in the form of social media and exist in the way that we are surveillanced as a society by the government. These instances have highlighted both positive and negative impacts of Orwellianism.
The first example of Orwellianism seen in today’s society is how social media and third-party providers use these platforms to obtain information from their consumers. According to an article, “Government Using Social Apps to Spy on You”, the government stores your data, metadata, to keep track of you (Bloom, 2014). This article contemplating today’s society shares strikingly similar characteristics to the book 1984, by George Orwell, because both societies are watched and monitored as the book 1984 states, “Big Brother is Watching You!”. In 1984, civilians’ thoughts and actions are closely and constantly monitored by the government and through the thought police while in today’s society, our world is run on the constant use of technology which also involves the daily, constant use of social media to post pictures, set up meetings, and to share personal information. Through …show more content…
Some positive impacts of an Orwellian society would include citizens feeling safe, reduction in crime rates, which in turn would reduce the rate of police brutality and police forces, it would cut down military costs, and allow the government to prevent and/or quickly handle global pandemics and natural disasters
There are many social developments in society that could be identified as “Orwellian”, in which these changes have encroached on the rights and freedoms that we are privy to. These social developments and events have presented themselves in the form of social media and exist in the way that we are surveillanced as a society by the government. These instances have highlighted both positive and negative impacts of Orwellianism.
The first example of Orwellianism seen in today’s society is how social media and third-party providers use these platforms to obtain information from their consumers. According to an article, “Government Using Social Apps to Spy on You”, the government stores your data, metadata, to keep track of you (Bloom, 2014). This article contemplating today’s society shares strikingly similar characteristics to the book 1984, by George Orwell, because both societies are watched and monitored as the book 1984 states, “Big Brother is Watching You!”. In 1984, civilians’ thoughts and actions are closely and constantly monitored by the government and through the thought police while in today’s society, our world is run on the constant use of technology which also involves the daily, constant use of social media to post pictures, set up meetings, and to share personal information. Through …show more content…
Some positive impacts of an Orwellian society would include citizens feeling safe, reduction in crime rates, which in turn would reduce the rate of police brutality and police forces, it would cut down military costs, and allow the government to prevent and/or quickly handle global pandemics and natural disasters