1984 is a dystopian novel by English novelist George Orwell. George Orwell was known to be against totalitarianism and democratic socialism, throughout 1984 he would constantly warn readers about the extreme effects of a government with unlimited authority, who would strive to regulate every aspect of society. An obvious and collective human experience resident in Oceania share is oppression and conformity. Besides exploiting technologies and training the juniors to spy on all individuals and inflicting fatal physical torment on enemies of the state, the totalitarian system which rules Oceania practices severe psychological torture through language. Language is manipulated to coerce Winston as well as force him to deviate from his beliefs or from what he knows to be fact, this is done while he is being tortured in Room 101. During the vigorous investigation, O’Brien begins to ask rhetorical questions. He uses this strategy to weaken the strength of Winston’s views and to imply that nothing can hinder the success of establishing such a totalitarian government. A powerful moment used is when he repeats “What difference would that make?”, forcing Winston to lose hope and question the strength of the government. After O’Brien compels Winston to embrace Ingsoc, Winston’s imagination decays as he “can no longer fix his mind on any one subject for more than a few moments at a time”. This limits thinking and disables arguments over crucial social and political issues. By implementing and upholding these totalitarian schemes Big Brother eliminates any hope for a future utopia. The minds of individuals, including Winston, become encapsulated as they lack the power to express their real feelings toward the dystopian society they live in. George Orwell has successfully depicted how characters become the vehicle through which the audience understands the impact of oppression as Winston’s mental state after intense torture entails how Big Brother controls the past, present, and future.
Throughout the second section of the tripartite story, Winston is highly confident as he believes he won’t be discovered. He joins the Brotherhood and receives a book in which he focuses on “The Theory and Practice of Oligarchical Collectivism”. This section gives the audience more of an insight into the history and ideology of Oceania. By including this excerpt, George Orwell stalls the action of the story in order to emphasize its anti-totalitarianism stance. Soon after, Winston’s world turns upside down while he is in bed with Julia. Both Winston and Julia say, “We are the dead,” and out of the shadows a third voice interjects, “You are the dead.” Suddenly startled, the two begin to realize that behind the drawing of the church, which was a symbol of virtuousness and sanctuary, was a vehicle for surveillance and capture, the telescreen. Mr. Charrington walks in uttering “Here comes the candle to light you to bed, here comes a chopper to chop off your head!”. Being the last line of St. Clement’s rhyme, it becomes ironic as Mr. Charrington helped Winston figure out the rest of the song only to be the one who turned him in for rebelling against The Party. This also acts as a foreshadowing conclusion as it is the end of the affair between Winston and Julia. On-demand, the window was shattered by the glass paperweight Winston previously admired. The small piece of coral from the paperweight is shown to be even smaller outside of the glass. Significantly, the paperweight represents Winston and Julia's relationship, just like the coral, which is revealed and is bare and small beneath the eyes of Big Brother. Mr. Charrington symbolizes the unsettling ability of the Thought Police to hide in plain sight as he was the main source of surveillance and deception used by The Party. Winston and Julia both begin to feel and reflect a sense of fear and strong betrayal. By displaying these characters, George Orwell impactfully allows them to be the vehicle in which the audience understands the human experience of surveillance and relationships.
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Alongside 1984, Joker by Todd Phillips is a social commentary. The audience is following Arthur Fleck in his dreams of becoming a successful comedian although due to his mental illnesses, he’s tormented by rich adults, kids, and even the idols he looks up to. By delving deep into the struggle of identity, recognition, and mental disorders, Joker has become a bold statement about our troubled era. As a character, the Joker appeals deeply to the human tendency toward self-pity. During the earlier stages of the movie, various close-up shots were implemented to subtly show Arthur being boxed in by society even whilst he is surrounded by many. Mirrors are used throughout the whole film as a symbol and representation of Arthur’s struggle with identity. In earlier frames, while Arthur is at work, a tired and gaunt face stares back as he can’t escape the dark thoughts that fill his head. While Arthur is putting on a mask he does it with a smiling face despite the fact he is painfully holding back tears, hence introducing the whole theme of “putting on a happy face” that carries on throughout the movie. It’s not until he assumes a new identity and fights back against society, that he’s comfortable in his own battered and bruised skin. Joker becomes the reflection of Arthur. When he finally recognizes himself as Joker, he begins to take on a Christ-like pose, a savior unto himself. By using various color schemes, Arthur’s multidimensional personality is portrayed. The dusk blue colors are representing his isolated and lonely side whereas the warmer light represents the more hopeful side of someone seeing a different future. By using darker lighting to build the downward pressure of feeling surrounded and confused, the producers successfully created a storm of energy representing Arthur’s feelings. This allows the audience to grasp his emotions. Arthut’s pitiful and angry tone is displayed when he begins to gain recognition for the murders of 3 rich men, he asks “What do you get when you cross a mentally ill loner with a society that abandons him and treats him like trash?” ... “You get what you f**king deserve”. This intense scene is followed by the shooting of the famous host, Murray Franklin. Unknowingly, Joker began a massive riot against the rich, uniting all those who felt wrong by society. This has allowed Todd Phillip to create a movie that challenges the audience to question vital themes such as mental health, identity, and recognition. By displaying the effects and destruction through the character Arthur Fleck he successfully depicts the impacts of multiple human experiences.
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