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Old 09-12-2009, 12:44 AM
 
Location: Victoria TX
42,579 posts, read 86,655,442 times
Reputation: 36642

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I read this in about 1953, and everyone said Look, that's what Russia is like. Then when 1984 really came, everyone who re-read it said Hey, it looks more like America. They said it very quietly, and America just sort of hoped the book would go away and nobody would notice it.

Emmanuel Goldstein's 'book within a book' that explains how the world got to be that way is scarily close to the mark.

In the book, Big Brother appears on a living room screen to deliver propaganda to everyone, and they can't switch it off. Orwell was optimistic. Now Big Brother appears on a screen and people can switch it off, but they don't, so the absence of the propaganda dimmer is completely unnecessary.
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Old 09-13-2009, 01:02 PM
 
1,995 posts, read 3,367,289 times
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I remember reading this in the early 70s. I'd be interested in rereading it today to see how much of it has come true here in America.
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Old 09-13-2009, 07:33 PM
 
Location: Sunny Florida
7,136 posts, read 12,635,808 times
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I read it years ago and have thought of it often throughout the last three decades. It's kind of scary how prophetic Orwell was.
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Old 09-13-2009, 07:44 PM
 
Location: Michigan
89 posts, read 200,962 times
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I read it very recently because of all the references to it I have seen around the web. I figured I had better understand what exactly people were talking about when they said "Orwellian" and "big brother".

It was a very intriguing book and well written in my opinion. I was thrown off and upset by the ending. I guess I just always thought it would end well. Don't know why I haven't learned that 'required reading' never ends happily.

It made me nervous because I could see a lot of correlations to today's world. I guess I need to read Ayn Rand's "Atlas Shrugged" next so I know why people keep saying, "Who is John Gault?" :]
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Old 09-14-2009, 02:58 AM
 
Location: NYC
3,046 posts, read 2,373,441 times
Reputation: 2160
The objective of the book wasn't to tell a story. It is for this reason why I hate reading books that have some other much stronger agenda behind them. It makes it impossible to read.
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Old 09-14-2009, 05:37 AM
 
Location: Tennessee
37,752 posts, read 40,828,546 times
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I read it in the 70s and kept the book in paperback. I reread it again this year because of reality today.

I especially like the part about the renaming of things or the naming of things that are the opposite of what they actually are. The rewriting of history and events gave me pause, too.
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Old 09-14-2009, 10:51 PM
 
Location: Southern California
15,083 posts, read 20,411,360 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MissLariss View Post
I read it very recently because of all the references to it I have seen around the web. I figured I had better understand what exactly people were talking about when they said "Orwellian" and "big brother".

It was a very intriguing book and well written in my opinion. I was thrown off and upset by the ending. I guess I just always thought it would end well. Don't know why I haven't learned that 'required reading' never ends happily.

It made me nervous because I could see a lot of correlations to today's world. I guess I need to read Ayn Rand's "Atlas Shrugged" next so I know why people keep saying, "Who is John Gault?" :]
I recommend that book. I finished it about a month ago. Rand makes very interesting arguments which I am still thinking about.
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Old 09-15-2009, 03:04 AM
 
13,498 posts, read 18,108,960 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Sunnydee View Post
I read it years ago and have thought of it often throughout the last three decades. It's kind of scary how prophetic Orwell was.
In some respects, for sure. But I think the book that came much closer to predicting the tenor of life that developed in the U.S. is Brave New World.
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Old 09-17-2009, 11:19 PM
 
Location: In the middle of nowhere with nothing
246 posts, read 536,659 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JMadison View Post
Don't forget "Brave New World" if you are into this genre, LOL!
or " A Clockwork Orange"
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Old 09-24-2009, 07:23 PM
 
Location: In the middle of nowhere with nothing
246 posts, read 536,659 times
Reputation: 197
Brainwash being a central theme in all these books.
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