Control: 1984 vs The Matrix
Whenever I think of control, The Matrix trilogy comes to mind. And i'm a huge fan of the matrix.. so yay. =)
Firstly.. 1984 reeks of control. Every page has something related to control. From the diminishing number of words in the dictionary (which would probably take a whole entry in itself) to the threatening telescreens to the Thought Police to the Two Minutes Hate to.. the list is endless. 1984 IS control. Well, almost.
Like i'd mentioned in my first entry, the Inner Party attempts to control even your thoughts. Thoughts.. your most private possessions. And you can't even be free with that.
I guess the party slogan 'Freedom is Slavery' applies here. Through making each person a slave to their demands and orders, they are "free". Free as free can be, that is. They are allowed to live, breathe and work as they are instructed to, as opposed to being in jail. Ironically, the free-est people seem to be the proles, who are considered as outcastes. The slogan really makes sense, sort of, in a warped kinda way.
Anyway. Before I forget abt analysing the concept of control in the Matrix also..
In the Matrix, everybody's controlled by the machines, as in, really controlled. You lose your whole life, and give it to machines to direct. From birth, you are "plugged in" and electricity is absorbed from you to run the machines. So, it SEEMS like an exchange. You give them something, and they give you.. "life" in the Matrix. In 1984, you give them your loyalty and labour, and they give you "life" as part of the Outer Party. However, in any case, you are still on the losing end, cos they control you no matter what.
Choice. You do get a choice to get out of the Matrix system, and enter the real world (gee, whatever that might be now). Of course, it means knowing the truth, becoming unsafe and risk getting killed in the evictions of Zion everytime the population hits 250, 000 (i hope i got the number right). As in 1984, you have a choice of knowing the truth too. Where the Inner Party uses propaganda to make lies become the TRUTH, you can still choose to rebel inwardly.. maybe join the proles.. or be put in prison.. and risk getting killed. Honestly, looking at the options, i'd rather stay in the Matrix (even if it means that the delicious spaghetti i love doesn't really exist) and continue obeying the Inner Party.
Though scary, control is also darn important. To the people at the reigns, that is. Without it, Airstrip One wouldn't be operating the way the Party wants it, and life in the Matrix would be in chaos. Hmm. I guess this reflects a large part of our own present world right now. As free as we may seem, there are still many binding rules that control us. If not for laws and regulations, wouldn't everyone be running amok? Where would order be? Even in a scenario such as school.. control exists.
I don't think there can ever be a free world with no control. It's impossible for all mankind to live by one path alone. Each of us are different, and until there's a way to create a uniform thought for everybody, control MUST exist.
posted by ly*anna @ 1:25 PM
1 Comments:
Well written!
This is where I thought 1984 was so good, better than, say (well it's not a comparison, really) V for Vendetta. In V for Vendetta, he says that only when you are ready to accept death are you really free to acknowledge your real self. Here in 1984 Orwell shows us how there are things worse than death, like Room 101. You are not free to see your real self, in fact your real self can be moulded into whichever form the party wants.
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