Compare and Contrast Analysis of the Ethical Concepts in “1984”

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How Orwell’s Dystopian vision of the future has become a reality
George Orwell novel portrays a totalitarian regime ruled by the Party, led by Big Brother where the government suppresses individuality, and undertakes mass surveillance and dissemination of propaganda. Orwell describes installation of telescreens and hidden cameras to monitor the activities and thoughts of its citizens, creating an atmosphere of constant surveillance and paranoia. While this dystopian life seemed unlikely and fictional at the time, some states have installed various forms of this technology. One of the countries that have employed this technology on a massive scale is China. China has been surveilling its citizens to suppress dissent. This has grown exponentially with the advent of internet. In the last few decades, the government has installed over 200 million cameras especially in areas considered to be hotspots for dissent (Mozur). The technology is structured to have face recognition and collects a lot of data about its people to monitor their movements. The camera surveillance system is also aided by big tech companies. These companies are compelled to give access to the government to continue collecting information on behalf of the people. Companies that deny the government the right to collect data on its people are denied operational licenses.
This mass surveillance technology is not only limited to China. Democratic nations like the United States have also deployed similar systems especially in the software space to collect information on its people. In 2013, a whistleblower names Edward Snowden shone a light on this issue (Macaskill and Dance). His actions were considered treasonous and he sought refuge in Russia, a country without extradition agreements with the US. There are other many examples of mass surveillance systems deployed by governments around the world. They may not be telescreens as in Orwell’s novel, but they monitor movements and even thoughts through mobile technology that has become integral to modern civilization. Orwell’s novel depicts a society where privacy is almost non-existent and the government has invested in tools and equipment to intrude into the personal lives of the citizens. Today, in the information age, governments around the world have invested in technologies that collect personal data and to monitor political activism.
There are similarities between how dissidents were treated in Orwell’s novel and how some governments are violating human rights of the people who oppose it. In the novel, Orwell describes arrests and imprisonment for political activism and detained without trial. Winston was tortured and mistreated, subjected to inhumane interrogation techniques, physically and psychologically tortured to extract forced confessions. Countries around the world have violated the rights of its people to different degrees aiming to obtain forced confession or reeducating them. In China and North Korea, the government has incarcerated communities and individuals questioning the government in mass incarceration (Human Rights Watch). The Uyghur Muslim community in China have been subjected to mass incarceration in concentration camps for ‘reeducation’ and political indoctrination  (Office of International Religious Freedom). North Korea has continually been incarcerating political dissident in its country. In North Korea some political dissidents risk the lives of their loved ones and family  (Human Rights Watch). These problems are not only in the east, western nations have similar torture chambers where civil rights of individuals thought to be anti-government are tortured. The United States has continued to operate a similar facility in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Individuals who have been taken to these places have decried the government’s strong handed tactics to extract forced confessions  (Sutton). Citizens have disappeared without a trace into these torture facilities created and operated by the governments for speaking out. Most people in such countries live in fear of the government.
In Orwell’s novel the government is heavily involved in information control. This is aimed at political indoctrination. Winston is a low-ranking party member working in the Department of Truth to whitewash history to align with the wishes of the government. The government manipulated history to alter facts and rewrites it to align with the party’s ideology. In similar fashion, governments today have been whitewashing dark chapters in their history to align with the party’s ideologies. For example, China has been whitewashing some of its historical dark chapters such as the Tiananmen Square Massacre (Feng). Today, the version of events read in textbooks in schools is very different from what happened. Additionally, hardly is the events mentioned in the media. Russia has also been whitewashing its history especially Stalin’s era and ideologies. Most countries have also controlled their media outlets to ...