Aim: How are the readers of 1984 warned about the power of manipulation?
Notes/Discussion for the Day
Do Now:
Today’s Do Now started off with a quote from the book in which Winston said, “They could not alter your feelings; for that matter, you could not alter them yourself, even if you wanted to.” We were then advised to think about and discuss the nature of feelings and emotions.
1. Can you alter your own feelings by force of will? Why/Why not?
There were several answers from the class debating this topic. I believe that it is possible to alter your own feelings by force, though it is very difficult. All of our feelings are influenced by the experiences in our life. Thus, it is possible to forcefully change your feelings by making new experiences, which can ultimately change your outlook on different aspects of life. Others in the class disagreed with this, stating that it is impossible to alter one’s own feelings by force of will, claiming that many people just hide or attempt to suppress these feelings in an attempt to alter them, which always proves unsuccessful.
2. Can someone else alter another person’s innermost feelings?
Again, there were disagreements amongst the class on the extent of this answer. In my eyes, it is possible to alter another person’s innermost feelings. In fact, most of our feelings today are made up from the actions and words we have experienced from other people. As a result, if someone continuously pressures with new ideas, actions, and words, it is very plausible that they can alter our feelings over an extended period of time. Many other students claimed that this was impossible. These students stated that, although people can be forced to hide their innermost feelings, they can never be forced to truly stop believing and and feeling a certain way within.
Next, we had an activity in which we were supposed to create 3 questions about things that have occurred in the novel thus far that seem to be unanswered or are confusing to us. One question that the class came up with was: “Why does Julia not seem to care for rebellion as much as Winston does if she also hates and despises the party?” Some answered this question stating that Julia is more concerned with her own personal life and whatever works for her. She enjoys the disobedience, but unlike Winston, she cannot see a future for rebellion. Another question from the class was the following: “ Is Thoughtcrime just a scare tactic by the ThoughtPolice? If not, how do they detect thoughtcrime? “ Some students stated that Thoughtcrime was truly just a way to scare citizens into complete obedience of Big Brother, while others disagreed. These students stated that though Thoughtcrime was partially a method to scare citizens, thoughtcrime could actually be detected through one’s actions, words, any activities deemed unorthodox and suspicious.
As demonstrated by the Venn diagram above, the next activity was to analyze the individual characteristics of Winston and Julia while also finding their similarities. For Julia, the class came up with several characteristics. Some described her as self-centered but realistic. Others said she was carefree, optimistic, and vibrant, while some took a more negative outlook describing her as promiscuous for sleeping with many men. For Winston, the class described him as imaginative and contemplative, yet radical in his thinking. He was accurately described as cautious and serious, but very intellectual as compared to Julia. In all cases, the class adamantly agreed that he had a genuine concern for humanity and its future. Though these characteristics tend to be contradictory in a sense, Julia and Winston shared many similarities, one being their rather lustful nature. Additionally, they both had a drive to disobey and were freethinkers with unorthodox beliefs.
In the next quick write activity, we were required to record what we did last Friday morning . For myself, I had to take a couple minutes to think about it, and still, I could hardly remember any details. After discussing, I found that the class felt the exact same way, with most of the responses being extremely brief and undetailed as students failed to remember what had happened just last Friday morning.
In response to these reactions, the whole class discussed the following questions:
1. Why was there such difficulty recording what happened?
The class agreed that there was so much difficulty in recording what happened due to the “insignificance” of that Friday morning. As with most days of the week, that day’s morning just got mixed in with our typical repetitive cycle of days and we failed to differentiate between the days of the week.
2. Why is it so easy to forget what transpired, even though only a couple days had passed?
Even though less than a week had passed, it was so easy to forget what had transpired because there were no significant or extraordinary events that had occurred on Friday morning that would cause us to remember that day. Many students said that it was just a typical Friday morning in which they got up, got ready, ate breakfast and continued with their schoolwork. Thus, it was forgotten and blended with every other morning of the week.
3. How can forgetting leave people vulnerable?
Forgetting leaves people extremely vulnerable, as it allows and makes them more susceptible to an altercation of the past. As the class discussed, forgetting allows other people to dictate and slightly change what has happened in the past, which can be extremely dangerous if rooted in bad intentions. If this does occur, slightly altering one’s past can inadvertently change their future in both mild and major ways.
Forgetting allows those like Big Brother to manipulate the truth of the past
ENRICHMENT VIDEO LINKS:
Our homework activity was to read chapters 6-8 of part 2 in 1984 in preparation for the next lesson.
THOUGHTS:
Thoughts Regarding the Reading
In Chapters 4 and 5, we were shown another side of Winston and Julia, and their differing ideals. I felt that Julia seems to be preoccupied with the idea of disobedience but cannot comprehend rebellion like Winston feels. She rather live her life in secret disobedience without getting caught, whereas Winston searches for something deeper - a different future. To me, Winston and Julia’s relationship seems to be deteriorating slightly as Winston is getting frustrated with her lack of ambition and his dire need and desire for the truth. Julia seems as though she couldn’t care less for the truth since it doesn’t affect her. She even fails to remember the change in names of Oceania’s enemy, and frankly, she doesn't care, though this troubles Winston deeply.
What you learned in your online English classes
Throughout this remote learning, especially within the last few weeks, I’ve learned about the power of manipulation, language and authority control. Not only has literature such as 1984 and Animal Farm greatly impacted my views on rebellion and government, but also the “application” of what I have learned from these books on everyday life has changed my views. For example, many times in my remote learning English classes, we discuss how language manipulation is seen even in our societies today, through propaganda and politically motivated ads. As a result, I was able to see the power of manipulation by those in authority in order to get their way and power.
What are you learning about your world/community based on the reactions?
Based on people’s responses and reactions to the coronavirus, I am learning about the kindness of many in my community and communities around the world. I have seen and been involved with many individuals who have created simple “organizations” to send letters and words of encouragement to those working on the front lines. I have also seen many people in my community trying to support small business owners by purchasing items from them in order to allow these people to keep their businesses open even amongst all this chaos. Additionally, after the recent events regarding Black Lives Matter protests, I’ve seen many communities stand in solidarity against racial injustice. However, unfortunately, we’ve seen some violence erupt in riots and looting, which I believe cannot solve the problem. Nonetheless, people are still attempting to find a solution through peace and create a better society for all regardless of our differences.
REFLECTION
Through the lesson, I learned about the power of manipulation on one’s feelings and memories and how the truth can be so easily altered. During the lesson, we were demonstrated with ways in which 1984 continually wanted us about the control of government through manipulation of our feelings. The lesson repeatedly touched upon how easy it is for our past memories to be manipulated and thus, our feelings altered due to our faulty memories. I learned this information in order to apply it to the real world, as the power of manipulation can be so easily seen in our lives today. It is evident that forgetting even the smallest of details can leave us vulnerable to manipulation and altercation. Thus, being warned of these issues in 1984, and being able to then reflect these ideals on our lives is ever so important in the real world today. I will use what I learned by carefully considering and examining those in control and power they hold. Since I learned how easy it is to manipulate one another, I will use my newfound knowledge of this and remain completely observant and aware of everything around me in an attempt to prevent manipulation of even the smallest memories.
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