The Comparison Of Dystopian Worlds In 1984 And Brave New World

Huxley's Brave New World and Orwell's 1984 are both Dystopian novels written ahead of their time that, in their own way, frighteningly predicted the western world of today. 21st Century western society has turned out to be a combination of both Huxley and Orwell’s visions of society. The mass consumerism and the prevalent use of Soma in Huxley's Brave New World are relatable to western society’s technology led consumerism with the prevalence of drugs. Furthermore, the control and manipulation of language as well as the falsification of information plus the frightening level of surveillance from Orwell's 1984 reflect our current reality. In George Orwell's 1984, language is used as a mechanism of control by the Party, and there are examples of this in today's Western society. Newspeak, which is the language developed by the Party meant to replace old English, strips down language to its bare minimum. Orwell says, “Don't you see that the whole aim of Newspeak is to narrow the range of thought? In the end we shall make thought-crime literally impossible, because there will be no words in which to express it.' In 1984, the Party is constantly refining Newspeak with the number of words in each new edition of the dictionary growing smaller and smaller. By controlling language, the Party can control society. People become incapable of having rebellious thoughts because they don't have the words or vocabulary to express those thoughts, let alone think them. The goal of the Party is having a society where no one will be able to conceptualize anything to challenge the Party’s power. 

By eliminating the power of thought from the people and making orthodoxy part of unconsciousness, the Party can subdue nonconformity and create a society of relative peace. Although in today's world the control of language is nowhere near to the extreme portrayed in 1984, there is indeed the manipulation of language present, especially in the political arena. Furthermore, this concept that language controls thought applies to the world of today where language plays an important role in having freedom of speech and the capability to express those freedoms in order to question government policies. In 1984, George Orwell highlights how the Party controls society and manipulates thought when language is blurred with meaning. Orwell says, “Doublethink means the power of holding two contradictory beliefs in one's mind simultaneously, and accepting both of them.”

The idea that words have double, contradictory meanings is a way to control society in 1984. By doing this, it is nearly impossible for people to make sense or let alone express any concrete or precise thought. It is an effective form of suppressing any rebellious ideologies among society because words themselves are contradictory. Right is, at the same time, wrong, and lies are simultaneously truths. The doublethink ideas of “War is Peace”, “Ignorance is Freedom” and “Ignorance is Strength” also reflect today’s world in which our language is often blurred with meaning. As stated in Politics of the English language, 'If thought corrupts language, can language also corrupt thought?' As seen in political speeches and debates, politicians or those in power have mastered the art of the manipulation of words. They have the ability to convince the masses through a form of language based brain-washing. Furthermore, they oftentimes use a language which is too complex and confusing to get a concrete message across, and therefore confuse the public. 

As in 1984 the manipulation of language to create the falsification of information and the spreading of lies as truths is also prominent in today's world. Studies and experiments are manipulated by government funding or other powerful figures with their own agendas to produce desired outcomes. Statistical findings can be manipulated or changed to represent a desired outcome, whether it be by messing with the structure of graphical displays or altogether having a completely set up experiment. For the majority of the public who isn't a so called expert in these various fields of study, they accept this information like a child accepting a piece of candy. People are readily eager to accept information that they deem benefits them in any way. Studies that show that wine helps you live longer or that chocolate helps you lose weight are readily accepted by the public. George Orwell's 1984 uses the power of surveillance as a method to control and impose fear upon society. Although the level of surveillance in use in civilized societies today isn't as extreme, Orwell did a good job of predicting several examples strikingly similar to those of 1984 that of it that can be seen today. The quote “Big Brother is Watching You,' is repeated heavily throughout the novel. Whether it be through the telescreens or through the thought police, or through other people themselves, the people in 1984 are always being watched. 

The Party does an effective job of controlling society because they have instilled a constant state of fear in residents of their society. In today's western society, we can see a parallel of this phenomenon although it is more subtle. For example, we can see how Orwell frighteningly predicted telescreens in today's society in the form of televisions and other technologies such as phones and computers. However, the main difference is that people of today willingly subject themselves to a level of surveillance whereas in 1984 it was forced. People voluntarily give all their personal information and readily expose themselves to both the government and the public. All social media accounts are a perfect example of this. Additionally, modern technologies such as digital assistants like Alexa and the Echo Dot provide a new, and fascinating commodity. However, at the same time, users expose themselves to the possible danger of having people listening in on conversations in their own home. Another example is street cameras that manage violent crime in cities like Chicago and New York but, while providing an added sense of safety and security for residents simultaneously rob them of privacy by recording their every move in public. Huxley’s Brave New World is about a Dystopian society that is not controlled by fear, like Orwell's 1984, but instead by creating a state of false happiness through the administration of mind-numbing drugs and distracting mass consumerism. As Huxley says, it is a society in which “everybody’s happy now.' Their contentment causes little to no resistance. In Brave New World, the drug Soma is administered to the people as a method of controlling them through a state of false happiness and euphoria. Although we don't quite have a drug with the exact effects as 'Soma,' here is indeed a 'war on drugs' in today's world, both legal and illegal. Huxley says, ['And if ever, by some unlucky chance, anything unpleasant should somehow happen, why, there’s always Soma to give you a holiday from the facts. And there’s always Soma to calm your anger, to reconcile you to your enemies, to make you patient and long-suffering. In the past you could only accomplish these things by making a great effort and after years of hard moral training. Now, you swallow two or three half-gramme tablets, and there you are. 

Anybody can be virtuous now. You can carry at least half your morality about in a bottle. Christianity without tears—that’s what Soma is.' ] Soma makes the masses of society oblivious to the truth that is going on around them by keeping them in a state of delirious euphoria. They take Soma whenever a slightly unpleasant emotion is felt. Mustapha describes Soma as a tool that allows everyone to be moral, but it can also be seen as a tool that the State uses to keep its citizens from becoming unhappy enough to try to change the society in which they live. According to the UN World Drug Report 2016, 'one in twenty adults used at least one drug in 2014, and 29 million drug users suffer from drug use disorders, with cannabis the most commonly used drug with an estimated 183 million people using it in 2014.' These alarming statistics show how widespread the use of drugs is around the world. One could put into question whether governments and pharmaceutical manufacturers have an intentional role in this. Could they be purposefully not doing enough to stop both illegal and legal drug use in order to maintain some control over their societies by keeping people occupied with drugs, and in the case of drug companies making mo9ney off people's misuse/overuse of medications? I include legal drugs in this because it is an ever increasing issue in today's world as it can be seen in the opioid epidemic. According to The National Institution on Drug Abuse, 'every day, more than 130 people in the United States die after overdosing on opioids. The misuse of and addiction to opioids—including prescription pain relievers, heroin, and synthetic opioids such as fentanyl—is a serious national crisis.'

Additionally, antidepressants, although a powerful tool for the treatment of mental illness, have increased in their popularity which has led to one in eight Americans being on them right now. Furthermore, the rise of other medications, like Prozac, has drawn more attention to the seemingly growing need amongst society for self-medicated happiness. But equally alarming is the rise in prescriptions for ADHD treatments, like Ritalin, which control attention. By subduing difficult behaviour through the use of medication does this make someone easier to control? Although these drugs don't resemble the exact same effects as Soma, they do bear a striking resemblance in function and use. By creating a society of mass consumerism with endless distractions, the World State in Huxley's Brave New World is able to subdue individualism and create an atmosphere of relative peace. In today's western society, although the government doesn't condition people to be consumers, materialism ends up being the backbone of society because the culture sanctions it to be that way. In Brave New World, the stability of the World State has a lot to do with the fact that every person is occupied. There is total employment, with long tedious hours that keeps the masses of society for the most part busy at all times. In Brave New World since they were children, everyone has been conditioned to not only perform a certain job, but to be completely content in doing it. In Huxley's society, the purpose of this was that by having people constantly occupied, they wouldn't have the time or energy to question or think about the severity that is the reality in which they live. Furthermore mass employment goes hand in hand with mass consumerism. 

The World State, similar to today's society, implements numerous systems to assure everybody is constantly in the pursuit of more and more products even when they don't need anything.They are taught that when a good is in need of repair, they must get rid of it, Huxely says, 'Ending is better than mending. The more stitches, the less riches...' By not owning the most recent new and improved good, the worth of people in the World State is considered less and they are looked down upon. Similarly in America, most people view material possessions as something they can easily replace, and it is something that they believe defines them. Many goods have become disposable and even high priced technology is considered outdated relatively quickly and needs to be replaced regularly. Consumerism in a sense can be defined by the idea that you cannot be happy unless you surround yourself with things, which can be seen in both Huxley's Brave New World and today's western society. The society in Huxley's Brave New World bears a striking resemblance to the world of contemporary western society. However, in Brave New World, the people have no choice in what they do as they are taught to constantly consume and to never question authority. The government in Brave New World also implements this state of mass consumerism by limiting their knowledge which is not the case in western society however. Huxley says, 'You can't consume much if you sit still and read books.' People tend to choose not to educate themselves on topics like consumerism and why this current economic state exists. 

Autonomy of the people of society is the difference between Huxley's World State and western society. Today, it is a choice to become aware and it's also a choice to remain in the dark of the reality that we live in. In today's western society, consumerism is a major component of all major economies. While Huxley predicted that society would need to condition people to want to buy new things and throw out last year's products to buy similar but newer ones, this is still somewhat true to today's world although not to such a severe extreme. Although we aren't conditioned since birth to think and act a certain way, our culture and the influences imposed on our society from the government does play a role in this cycle of endless consumerism that people in western society find themselves stuck in. It is also something that occurs within ourselves and from our own free will. The constant pursuit of acquiring new and better things has been ingrained in our mind by society that it is something that brings us happiness. We aren't content with meeting only our basic needs of survival in the western world. This insistent want and desire of more things is something that we believe will bring us more and more happiness. This can be seen in the excitement for every new release of the IPhone or the immense lines at Black Friday sales. It is a form of stimulation and short term gratification that keeps the masses of society distracted from real world issues. It is a method of control by means of distraction. 

Although it seems logical that a company would have an incentive to keep the public buying things to remain profitable, Huxley points out that consumerism can be used as a method of control by keeping people pointlessly chasing after items that they think they need as a distraction from exploring other pursuits or questioning the government/figures of power. Both Brave New World and 1984 foresaw many of the problems afflicting our current 21st-century western society. However, both novels can be viewed as representing extremes on opposite ends of the spectrum with Brave New World representing the ultimate utopia of false happiness on one hand, and 1984 the ultimate totalitarian state on the other. Both books blur fiction versus truth, as well as not only what one is supposed to believe but what one ought to believe. These novels together foresaw the issues of drugs, mass consumerism, control of language, and surveillance facing modern western society today. Both books shed a light on many aspects of society, politics and governments which shockingly and quite accurately depict similarities and differences between today and the world of the novels.