“The further society moves away from the truth, the more it hates those who tell it,” - George Orwell.
Published in 1948, Eric Arthur Blair's dystopia, which took the pseudonym "George Orwell", tells of the second half of the 20th century. His book describes our reality so accurately that sometimes it is hard to believe that it was written 70 years ago. If you read this article to the end, then you will also have a question how it was possible to describe the future without a time machine in such minute details.
After the atomic war, the world is divided into 3 superstates, sometimes at war with each other, then establishing peace. The protagonist of the novel Uniston Smith lives in Oceania, the legal successor of the United States and some European countries. In this country, by 1984, absolute power belongs to the English Socialist Party. In the course of the plot, the main character betrays the ideals of the Party and prepares to join a kind of partisan community called the Brotherhood. But the party catches him in time and under torture, psychological pressure knocks out political heresy from him, and then releases him.
Among literary critics, there is a conviction that the novel was created as a black parody of the Soviet Union. But then why do the facts on the pages of the book copy our reality of the first half of the 21st century? Is 1984 really nothing more than a hidden prediction?
First prediction
Three superpowers including China
Surprisingly, George Orwell, in a novel written before 1948, predicted the final victory of the communists in China, which actually occurred only in 49th. He guessed the boundaries of real communist China with almost 100% accuracy - now they really do not extend beyond Manchuria, Mongolia and Tibet; but these regions were captured by China even later.
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Also, George Orwell predicted that China (in the plot it is East Asia) will become a superpower on a par with Russia (in the book it is Eurasia) and the USA (in the book it is Oceania). Some analysts believe that China will soon overtake two of its competitors in power. On the pages of dystopia, this eastern country is dominated by a “cult of death”.
And it’s true, for example, as of 2015, “China … still carried out the most executions in the world, but the true extent of the use of the death penalty in China is unknown, since this information is a state secret.” Nothing has changed over the years. Thus, Orwell turns out to be absolutely right about China, and it’s nothing that his book came out several decades before.
Prediction two
Technical innovations
Obviously, the author was referring to most of the products produced today, which are concocted from anything but natural raw materials? (show modern factories producing sausages, sausages, pates, and so on) For example, some samples of flour, when combined with water and squeezed, turn into paper. More and more products are now being produced from substances that are often toxic and cause various diseases.
The friend of the protagonist Julia gets shortages from the employees of the internal party: natural coffee and high-quality chocolate. Coffee for mere mortals of Oceania, according to descriptions, is very similar to modern instant coffee, and the dull brown chocolate, familiar to people like Winston, is similar to milk, which is popular in our time. We find these and other similarities in most foods.
Fourth prediction
Atonal music instead of harmonious
With the appearance on the big stage of the musical group "The Beatles" in the 1960s-70s of the 20th century, the fashion for atonal music, that is, a melody that has a repetitive drum rhythm, spread in the world. In our time, the famous journalist Daniel Estulin conducted an independent investigation and found out that this type of music, combined with the use of alcohol, tobacco and synthetic drugs, is capable of introducing people into a deep trance that destroys the brain.
Atonal music began to generate, with the help of specialists from the Tavistock Institute, more and more musical styles. And the harmonious, the so-called old, pre-war, has lost its popularity and has become practically folklore. And until now, musical groups regularly hold thousands of concerts, at which fans from loud, rhythmic music, alcohol and drugs turn into complete inadequacies for several hours.
Fifth prediction
The relationship between man and woman
The relationship between a man and a woman in the book also becomes synthetic. The true, the real, the spiritual degenerates, knocks out of the people in the world of Winston Smith. Society turns into a soulless machine, where feelings are not needed, on the contrary, they are harmful, dangerous for the preservation of the established order. A family is possible only with the approval of the Party and purely for the purpose of procreation. The petition in favor of one or another candidate for a spouse depends on the profitability of the intended family union, and not on personal sympathies, feelings and other sentimental rubbish.
In our time, such an attitude towards family, love between a man and a woman is especially strongly developed in Western countries - the USA and European countries. In the United States, it has gotten to the point where so-called “no-obligation relationships” have become the accepted norm. Intimacy there is nothing more than an emotional release, and it doesn't really matter with whom you are so discharged. The most important criterion for choosing a life partner depends entirely on his financial situation. There is no such thing as true love, fidelity, chastity in the worldview of the average American.
Prediction six
Military industry
We read further in the text:
Comments are unnecessary here
Seventh prediction
Provocations organized by the authorities
Those in power benefit from a paramilitary position, which not only unites society, but keeps it in constant fear and readiness to give their lives for the system. Even if the enemy does not exist, one must invent one. Trapped in the grip of fear, the mass of people is incapable of analyzing; it rushes about, is vulnerable and requires control over itself. By the way, Karl Schmitt, “the crowned lawyer of the Third Reich,” wrote about this, and perhaps Orwell took over this idea for the novel from Schmitt.
At the beginning of the third millennium, the globalists of the highest echelon of power invented such an enemy to intimidate and rally the whole world under their banner. Who is this enemy?
Another enemy is a state or a competing nation. For the USA - Russia and China, for Russia - the USA, for India - Pakistan, for the Israelis - the Palestinians.
We continue to read the novel "1984":
Or here's another excerpt:
The eighth prediction
The wretchedness of the housing stock of ordinary people
It is striking how much the housing described in Orwell's book corresponds to the Russian housing reality of the 21st century.
We read the book:
Prediction ninth
Encouraging child cruelty
In the book “1984” we read about the methods of raising children, very similar to the modern ones, which are accepted in the West. It is considered normal there to dissect animals in the zoo in front of children, it is not condemned to play computer games, where the main goal is to kill as much as possible and mercilessly:
And another piece as a continuation:
And here's what it can lead to.
We read further:
Thus, in our time, the adult generation needs to remember that the system will always interfere in the upbringing of children and try to set them against their relatives.
Prediction ten
Five Minutes of Hate
The novel "1984" is known for such a phenomenon as "five minutes" of hatred. After prolonged black propaganda with a demonstration of the horrors that the aggressor country creates, people in an organized manner go into hysterics.
Add to this the daily news on TV, radio and on the Internet, which expose the hellish nature of this or that enemy state, but almost never talk about the negative events that took place within the country itself. During the viewing of such issues, especially if scenes of violence, military actions are shown on the air, viewers do not behave much better than workers during the "five minutes of hatred" in the book by George Orwell.
What do you think: did George Orwell really foresee the future? If so, how did he do it? Or was he simply privy to the horrific plans of the world behind the scenes? Let's discuss in the comments!
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