1984 Question
Big Brother and Emmanuel Goldstein are two very important figures in 1984. Both are iconic mascots of two opposing forces, the Party and the Brotherhood. However, throughout the story, there is never a time where Big Brother or Goldstein themselves are actually seen. So do these figures of power actually exist? If so, why are they never revealed in person? And if not, why were these 2 characters made and what purpose do they serve?
(I'll share my answer after other people do.)
(I'll share my answer after other people do.)
I think that George Orwell didn’t make Big Brother and Emmanuel Goldstein physical characters in the story because this way they pose a bigger threat on the people. Winston is against the Party and always has been. He thinks that it is wrong that the government is become totalitarianism and is watching the people all the time. Winston becomes threaten by the government because he wrote in his dairy. “His pen had slipped voluptuously over the smooth paper, printing in large neat capitals – DOWN WITH BIG BROTHER over and over again, filling half a page” (Orwell 19). After he wrote that Winston was paranoid that he was going to get caught by Big Brother. Since the government watches everything through the telescreen. Emmanuel Goldstein was the supposedly leader of Revolution. Julia and Winston were behind him. The Party was threatened by Goldstein even though he wasn’t a physical character in the book. I don’t think that they were actual characters; they were symbols representing the two opposing sides. Big Brother is for the Party and Emmanuel Goldstein for the Brotherhood. “As usual, the face of Emmanuel Goldstein, the Enemy of the People, had flashed onto the screen… Goldstein was the renegade and backslider who once, long ago (how long, nobody quite remembered), had been one of the leading figures of the Party, almost on a level with Big Brother himself, and then had engaged in counterrevolutionary activities, had been condemned” (Orwell 13).
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ReplyDeleteThere's a great chance that both parties are used as a tool of propaganda. This is supported by the fact that O'Brien claims to have written Goldstein's book. Big Brother is known for his position in Oceania; in his hands he holds trust and provides protection. In other words, he is a figure of doublethink. World War II is referenced as Emanuel Goldstein is given a traditionally Jewish name. The name Emanuel means "God."Whether these powers actually exist or not, Orwell makes it clear that Winston's fate is already decided, as he lives in a sealed society. The only thing that matters to Winston is the existence of Big Brother and Goldstein. Both powers were intended to represent totalitarian power structures. A good quote for this is ""In accordance to the principles of Doublethink, it does not matter if the war is not real, or when it is, that victory is not possible. The war is not meant to be won. It is meant to be continuous. The essential act of modern warfare is the destruction of the produce of human labor. A hierarchical society is only possible on the basis of poverty and ignorance. In principle, the war effort is always planned to keep society on the brink of starvation. The war is waged by the ruling group against its own subjects. And its object is not victory over Eurasia or Eastasia, but to keep the very structure of society intact."(Orwell 211)
ReplyDeleteGreat reply! You did some research.
DeleteI don't believe they actually exist, they serve as authoritarian and resistance purposes. For example, on page 201 when Winston is reading the book to Julia while in bed it says "Chapter 1. Ignorance is Strength... Throughout recorded time, and probably since the end of the Neolithic Age, there have been three kinds of people in the world, the high, the middle, and the low. They have been subdivided in many ways, they have borne countless different names, and their relative numbers, as well as their attitude toward one another, have varied from age to age; but the essential structure of society has never altered. Even after enormous upheavals and seemingly irrevocable changes, the same pattern has always reasserted itself, just as a gyroscope will always return to equilibrium, however far it is pushed one way or the other" This emphasizes the natural social order that has always existed. Therefore i believe that Big Brother and Emmanuel Goldstein are just non-existent figureheads leading opposing causes like Resistance vs Government.
ReplyDeleteOk all of you thought that Big Brother and Goldstein did not exist and i agree with all of you. Well one obvious reason of course for why they are not seen is that they are not real. But i think that the fact that these people are not scene brings the government benefit. The fact that Big Brother isn't seen makes the public feel more controlled and watched all the time, with the big brother faces everywhere, and the idea that big brother was watching from the telescreens. Since Goldstein is not seen, it supports the party's belief of Goldstein as the ultimate enemy, in hiding with the brotherhood. So then why isn't Goldstein real if he is the party's enemy? I believe that he is just a figure made for the public to hate, so that they public will feel as if they have similar goals to those of the party's. He is also used as a scapegoat for the Party, used as an excuse for almost all of their mistakes. So from what i understood, Goldstein is just a figure made by the government to give the people a common hate and used as a scapegoat for the government.
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ReplyDeleteI think that Goldstein or Big Brother is never shown in the book because they do not exist. I believe that they are simply figments of imagination. The Party would like the people to believe that they are being led by some awe-inspiring leader while they are simply not. It could be another lie by the government to help keep people in check. They have the image of the Big Brother widely distributed because it gives people a sense that they are in fact being led by a noble figure which will make them take pride in their government and its affairs. Now for Goldstein, there are people in Oceania who do want the Party to be thrown. They then use Goldstein as a figure to guide the Brotherhood. But in reality, there is never a concise fact that the brotherhood indeed exists in the book. It is just simply a rumor. So both figures, Big Brother and Goldstein, are both non real and are simply imagined by people for something to believe in or even justify the actions of certain people. Also for the government, Goldstein can actually be beneficial for them. It could be beneficial for them because it could help band people together during the 2 minutes hate. That would allow people to start believing in the government and coming to hate Goldstein and everything antiparty. Also Goldstein can help the government justify some actions. It can help justify the amount of wars that Oceania is going in. People will then believe it. It could also justify the small rations that the people are getting, when in reality the high ranking officials can be hogging the food.