1984 Contemporary Literary Criticism George Orwell creates a society in his novel 1984 in which decency, individuality, and consciousness have all been abolished to obtain a utopia. Utopia in this sense means “an imaginary political and social system in which relationships between individuals and the state are perfectly adjusted.” Orwell believed that in order to achieve this perfect society, the state must use a “completely unlimited use of torture and brainwashing.” (Fromm, 261) However, Orwell’s intention of …showed first 75 words of 943 total…

…showed last 75 words of 943 total…has become more and more like an instrument and less and less human. Through oppression, society has lost all individuality and integrity. Through brainwashing, society has been taught to value cruelty over love. Altogether, society wants to preserve the power of the Party and the everlasting war. In this way, George Orwell proves that men can be made to forget that they are human and that with it, they become more and more like machines.