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Comments
I know that's not how you're supposed to read it, but...
^^ I laughed, but it's not that much of a parody--the actual series is so much worse. Take a look at this liveblog to see.
And I'm only halfway through it.
Imagine a boot stomping on a human face... forever.
I should buy a copy of that for my Kindle and reread it sometime.
Yeah, the point of 1984 was to make the people of 1948 think about their society. As overused as Orwellian comparisons are, it still manages to be really relevant.
On a related note, I really do dislike the Cold War mentality of "with us or against us." Both sides have done horrible things, yet idiots try to justify it in the name of fighting communism or capitalism. Mea maxima culpa.
Question: what do you guys think of the rejection of the artificial sense of belonging the Party attempts to create in favour of Winston's feeling of belonging with Julia as an example of the core idea of a thesis (focusing on rejection of certain, artificial types of belonging in favour of other, more genuine types)?
Well, the inverse describes cult mentality, which attempts to foster an artificial sense of belonging so that they will stay inside the cult and reject outsiders. A common cult practice is to claim that the rest of the world is evil and hateful (hence the Two Minutes Hate). Why invite their calumny and consternation? Stay in here!
And of course, Winston's feeling of belonging with Julia is based on love, the opposite of the Party's hate.
Out of morbid curiosity, have you read anything you thought was worse? As far as fiction goes, I mean.
I'm not sure that I have. If I sat and thought about it for a while, I could probably come up with something, but it's definitely one of the more disturbing things I've read.
I mean, I've read A Clockwork Orange and American Psycho, and people constantly say that those are disturbing books, but they really have nothing on 1984. Nor does anything else I can think of. Closest I can come is One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.
Surprising? No.
Senses of belonging. Security, connections and such.
Late point on 1984 - it's worth stressing how much of that book is based on existing elements in English society in 1948. It's quite comparable to V for Vendetta in that they're both saying "What if modern Britain became a totalitarian state?" and using this to satirise the Britain of the time.
For example, in 1984, the Ministry of Truth is supposed to have been partly based on Orwell's stint at the BBC and the comment: "I give them their two minutes' hate" was allegedly the explanation of Alfred Harmsworth, who founded the Daily Mail, for the success of his paper.
I think the Internet has tainted my perception of arts students. Every time I see them go off about how the uneducated masses are idiots for not understanding the inherent deeper meaning of media or rant about the degradation of humanity just based on some series, I hope to myself that not all arts students are like this.
Of course, I'm an engineering student, so part of it is that I don't speak their language.
I get this when it comes to other martial artists, actually. Every time someone introduces me to a martial art I've never heard of, they're always all like "Look, man, we fight dirty in this martial art, not like all the others out there."
Every. Single. Fucking. Time. Every asshole who knows half a thing about throwing a punch seems to think they're the only one who uses underhanded tactics and techniques to win. In addition, most martial artists I meet ignore entirely the academic aspect, practising and sparring but not "studying" as such, which I consider a necessity for greater mastery.
It doesn't help, I suppose, that a martial advisor of mine is ex-Australian SAS. He's given me some great perspectives and advice, but damn, am I sick of hearing about Krav Maga.
Well, that's probably because the Israeli Army developed it and they won four wars against superior forces, so it must be good, amirite?
Which rather ignores the fact that they won those wars with tanks, jet fighters and artillery, like any other army. I mean, they didn't go out and punch the Egyptian Army to death.
I'm a professional published asshole.