1984 was first published in 1949 by George Orwell, during which it was a pivotal moment in world history that led to the Cold War. Orwell, having lived as a child in communist-run countries Spain and Russia, wrote the political novel to warn the Western world of the dangers of totalitarian government. While the book could be considered a social commentary on many topics, I chose the following three to focus on: power, media manipulation, and language. In the book 1984, Orwell uses the disturbing Big Brother to describe what a government with all the control would feel like. Pleases; giving the reader a real sense of how powerless a population would truly be under a regime of total control. Winston, the novel's main character, sees posters all over London with a man looking down containing the words "BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU". Even though Big Brother is practically everywhere, Winston secretly wonders whether or not he exists. Orwell uses Big Brother to symbolize the vagueness of a totalitarian government, what it means to leave all the power in the hands of government officials, and then simply trust their words for what they say or what they do. Although the term Big Brother can in some sense be considered a reassurance of protection, the following words “Big Brother is watching you” also insinuate that it is an open threat. Although this story takes place after Big Brother has come to power, Orwell does not fail to point out that this power has not been taken; power has been given, as it always will be. The only way Big Brother, or a totalitarian government, can really work is only after you give them the power to take that kind of control. If we look back at history, we can see situations similar to those of Adolf Hitler... middle of paper... introduced to replace English and constantly refined to strengthen government power. In conclusion, I found 1984 fascinating and Orwell's ideas eerily accurate as a warning to future generations. Even though we live in a democratic nation, there are ideas to reflect on and consider in today's world, even though 1984 was written sixty years ago. The fact that in this dystopian society no one was happy is perhaps a sign that there should not be a totalitarian government. Freedom is one of humanity's best traits. The language used makes society stupid, even people who should be intelligent are not because of "newspeak". If life were like this today there would be no happiness in the world and we would all be sad. I am happy that Mr. Orwell's prediction did not come true because I could not live in such a society.