1984

Humans are always curious about what the future will look like. They are also concerned about the state impinging on their privacy and interfering with their lives. George Orwell masterfully combined these two human impulses in his classic novel. He wrote the book in 1949 to present his view of the future.

I read this book when I was in my mid-20s. I found it an interesting read, especially since many of his predictions did not come true. I was curious to know how past generations viewed our generation. 

Ok, so I’m probably not the first author to cite 1984 as a major influence, but I do recall reading this–the ultimate dystopian novel–while I was commuting to and from work on the London Underground (The Tube). And reading about Doublespeak and Big Brother seemed all too familiar to me as a young man living in London.

At the time, I recall saying to friends the book should have been called 2004, not 1984, because in 2004, there were more CCTV cameras in London than in any other city, the free newspapers were obsessed with the War on Terror, WMDs… show more.

While it seems less and less like sci-fi every day...this book forced me to face the consequences of failing to take a stand for freedom. And without the influence of the book it would have been much easier for me to take easier paths in life.

It helped me see early on something all too many discover too late: the easier paths are syren calls that, while beautiful and seductive, lead to self-destruction and decay.

Personally, it cemented my idea that I wasn’t the crazy one. Society was doing insane things. Many things in our times made little sense when examined. Take the twenty years of wars in the Middle East. We gave weapons to the Afghanis, then we attacked them. We gave arms to the Iraqis; then we fought them twice!

Am I the only one who thinks this is crazy?

And to top it off, the Department of Defense was once called the Department of War! Man-made institutions in our society deliver the opposite of their stated goal. Mass surveillance, memory hole, thought… show more.

So much has been written about this masterpiece that I debated putting it on my list. But each time I read it (three times now, about ten years apart), this novel keeps getting better.

Orwell’s ability to conjure shattering nightmares is as powerful in the third reading as in the first. And the depth of insight he provides keeps growing as if the author and reader are learning together, exploring the limits of isolation and heartbreak. Any book that can do that deserves a place among the best.

1984 is the better-known political work of Orwell. This was the author’s ninth and final book, and what a legacy it left for us.

Thematically, it presents its reader with the consequences of totalitarianism, repression, and mass surveillance of one’s citizens. The story is modeled on the brutal regime of the Soviet Union, but equally Nazi Germany, who, with such ease, manipulated truth and fact within a perpetual war.

This old science-fiction novel was recommended to me by a neighbor who let me borrow her copy.

It gave me some intriguing ideas to think about like how history may not always display the actual truth, but who decides what’s true in history? The book uses new forms of language to instill beliefs, which is also an interesting concept. I read this book after living in Thailand for three months, and it was something to sit down and reflect on as I returned to Alberta, Canada. 

I first read Orwell’s 1984 as a youngster, perhaps 50 or more years ago. It was a scary book then, and it is an even more scary book now!

First published in 1949, it was aimed at the then-Soviet Union and the totalitarian countries in its emerging ideological orbit. Today, one would list Russia, China, North Korea, and similar countries. But wait! With the advent of the internet, CCTV, “smart” phones and their data gobbling “apps” and (un)social media, data brokers, and the “dark” web, privacy today has vanished everywhere. State and corporate surveillance has become commonplace even in so-called… show more.

I do not recommend 1984 because it is one of the most powerful books ever written. Readers know that. I love this book for its artful prescience.

While Yevgeny Zamyatin’s Me normally gets credit for being the first dystopian novel, Orwell perfected the genre. The novel becomes more important with each passing decade. Winston Smith works for the Ministry of Truth altering documents for the government.

Catchphrases like “doublethink” and “thought police,” coupled with the pervasive use of surveillance technology highlight why science fiction shines a light on a future our “betters” had just as soon we not see and… show more.

AI and the exponential rise of invasive technology make 1984 more relevant today than ever.

George Orwell’s prophecy of an oppressive society where privacy and their ability to speak and think freely is an uncanny premonition of our current and projected condition. Written over seventy years ago, 1984 reveals the deadliest form of control – the dissemination of selective information by an unseen group of totalitarian autocrats.

Hitler’s propaganda machine was testament to the consequences of this form of manipulation. For me, 1984 is Orwell’s warning that next time, we might not win the war.