1984+Essay

Dear Boethus,

I am writing to tell you about what is happening in the world present-day, hundreds of years after your death. It is a cruel, harsh world, and I am sorry to say that it contradicts the principles of your book.

For example, today there is no such thing as your "own" mind. You have no thoughts to yourself, that is unimaginable. If you do have your own thoughts, you are what Big Brother calls a "thought criminal". "Thought crime does not entail death, thoughtcrime is death." Anything you think should be about your love and dedication to Big Brother. Oh, have I not told you about B.B.? In our society of Oceania, Big Brother is the leader. We do whatever Big Brother wants, and if we don't obey...well you can probably imagine. Another example of society today is our slogan: "War is peace, Freedom is slavery, Ignorance is strength." What that means is, for instance "war is peace" is pretty much saying that we can never really end the war, it's the opposite of peace, but then again it's pretty much the same in our society. War is peace. "Freedome is slavery", we're all slaves here. We are free people, we have our own homes, but we are being watched 24/7. Our jobs are helping the party, doing whatever they want us to do, eating the disguting food and drinking the horrible beverges that they give us. We can never omplain. "Ignorance is strength", the inner party are all ignorant, whether they want to be or not, but that gives them power. It is a backwards society, if you ask me.

My last example is about what you say in your book. "You cannot impose anything on a mind, and you cannot move from its state of inner tranquility a mind at peace with itself and firmly founded on reason." Now, I wish that was true, but it's not. Let me explain the process to you. If you are caught as a thoughtcriminal or something of that sort, you will get taken to the Ministry of Love, a prisoner for a while, then taken to Room 101. You get tortured and brainwashed. This is where your statement is untrue. They will make you believe that "2+2=5." No matter how much you believe in yourself and think that nobody can get inside your head and change your views, you're wrong. In Oceania, it happens every single day. You will get tortured for hours, manipulated, and forced to love Big Brother. By the time they free you, you will be completely brainwashed, and feel no hatred towards B.B., or have any of your past views. They change your mind, and you never go back.

In conclusion, our society now is so much different than yours, and when you were alive I'm sure your statement and book were true. You had no telescreens that watched your every move, no technology to torture people for hours on end, I wish it was still like that, but as you can see, it is the opposite. I am writing to tell you what is happening in present day and how your beliefs simply do not align with the world today. You were lucky they were true when you were alive, and you don't have to live in the world today. Thank you for reading, I hope I won't be alive much longer in this world.

Sincerely, Baylee Gatlin