Title: An Analysis of the Use of Propaganda in the Dystopian Societies Presented in The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood, 1984 by George Orwell, and Fidel Castro’s Government in Cuba – Kylie's Blog
Headings: An Analysis of the Use of Propaganda in the Dystopian Societies Presented in The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood, 1984 by George Orwell, and Fidel Castro’s Government in Cuba
An Analysis of the Use of Propaganda in the Dystopian Societies Presented in The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood, 1984 by George Orwell, and Fidel Castro’s Government in Cuba
Figure 1: A Handmaid views the bodies of criminals hanging on the Wall, with their crimes visible for all to see on a plaque on their chests (Wong).
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Content: In his novel 1984, George Orwell implements propaganda, particularly the type that incites violence, as a very blatant means of promoting sentiments of nationalism throughout Oceania. Because Oceania is a militant state, its strength and stability comes from its tumultuous relationship with Eurasia and Eastasia, and Winston “could not definitely remember a time when his country had not been at war” (Orwell 32)These countries fight the wars without true motive, as these three major superpowers cannot decimate one another. The major function of wars, besides using up all the surplus of goods in the society, is to “preserve the special mental atmosphere that a hierarchical society needs” (Orwell 199), giving rise to the Party slogan “War is Peace.” Essentially, Orwell creates a society in which war and violence serve not only as a way of keeping balance and order, but also to serve as a rallying point for the citizens. For instance, posters that decorate the city center proclaim war with Eurasia, but on a whim, the Party changes the enemy nation to Eastasia and eliminates all traces of the past war with Eurasia. Immediately, the citizens blame Goldstein, the leader of the anti-Big Brother society called the Brotherhood. This renews their mutual hatred of Goldstein, the “primal traitor, [and] the earliest defiler of the party’s purity” (Orwell 12). The Party indoctrinates the citizens to believe that “all subsequent crimes against the Party… sprang directly out of [Goldstein’s] teaching” (Orwell 12), and consequently schedules Two Minute Hates (Orwell 2 Minutes of Hate) each day that feature videos of Goldstein speaking and the mobs of Party members expressing their deep hate of his teachings and their loyalty to the Party. In fact, the Hates work the citizens into such a nationalistic frenzy that “before the hate [s] had proceeded for thirty seconds, uncontrollable exclamations of rage were breaking out from half the people in the room” (Orwell 13). These overt forms of propaganda serve to unite the citizens against a common enemy and strengthen the sentiments of patriotism among Party members.