Where does this view that we live in 1984’s world come from? Does 1984 simply mean “dystopia” now? 2025’s reality isn’t 1984, it’s Idiocracy slowly transitioning to either Cyberpunk or Fallout. And even then it’s not universal.
You’re right. People say “1984” to mean “dystopia” or “things I don’t like about modern society”.
Tangentially related, there was a survey a while back that found most people who say they have read 1984 haven’t actually read it. So that may be part of it.
Personally, if we’re going with the classic dystopian novels, I think we’re more aligned with:
The anti-intellectualism/distraction from the real issues like we see in Fahrenheit 451. Arguably we have already started the book-burning. (Tbf, there’s also practically no pre-big brother material in 1984, so clearly they went down the same route, although Orwell didn’t go into that as deeply as Bradbury)
Keeping people docile with an endless stream of entertainment content and consumerism like in Brave New World.
…than we are with the “Oppression through fear and brainwashing from an all-powerful, all-seeing government” that we see in 1984.
But even then there are significant differences. E.g. unlike in Brave New World, there’s no government-provided Soma drug to further placate us. Well, not unless you believe the chemtrail conspiracy theories lol
Except it literally is. Every dissenting view gets called fake news and ignored. Trump supports ukraine yesterday and russia today. Violence gets threatened and used on those deemed “woke” and bathrooms are being surveiled.
The US (or at least part of it) literally lives in 1984.
It absolutely is not. Ocania is a socialist state gone wrong, what 1984 fears is a fully centralized, all powerful, all seeing state controlling each and every aspect of it’s citizens’ lives and hell bent on keeping them unintellegent and subservient so it could control them forever.
America doesn’t even have the spine to tell cryptobros to stop scamming people, or AI bros to cease mass copyright infringement, you cannot tell me those are the same state. America is a corporatocracy, it’s government is pitiful. Trump got where he is by telling people things they already wanted to hear. What brought America to this point is the two party system it so stubbornly refused to get rid of. If people had more of a choice other than the two of the most unpopular candidates in a long time, but one with a more firey performance, things could’ve been different.
Probably better than the 2025 reality version.
Where does this view that we live in 1984’s world come from? Does 1984 simply mean “dystopia” now? 2025’s reality isn’t 1984, it’s Idiocracy slowly transitioning to either Cyberpunk or Fallout. And even then it’s not universal.
What, you expect people to read? To be familiar with a piece of media before they reference it?
At this point there’s been a meme for years about people misusing it.
So what you are saying is this is more like Fahrenheit 451?
You’re right. People say “1984” to mean “dystopia” or “things I don’t like about modern society”.
Tangentially related, there was a survey a while back that found most people who say they have read 1984 haven’t actually read it. So that may be part of it.
Personally, if we’re going with the classic dystopian novels, I think we’re more aligned with:
The anti-intellectualism/distraction from the real issues like we see in Fahrenheit 451. Arguably we have already started the book-burning. (Tbf, there’s also practically no pre-big brother material in 1984, so clearly they went down the same route, although Orwell didn’t go into that as deeply as Bradbury)
Keeping people docile with an endless stream of entertainment content and consumerism like in Brave New World.
…than we are with the “Oppression through fear and brainwashing from an all-powerful, all-seeing government” that we see in 1984.
But even then there are significant differences. E.g. unlike in Brave New World, there’s no government-provided Soma drug to further placate us. Well, not unless you believe the chemtrail conspiracy theories lol
Except it literally is. Every dissenting view gets called fake news and ignored. Trump supports ukraine yesterday and russia today. Violence gets threatened and used on those deemed “woke” and bathrooms are being surveiled.
The US (or at least part of it) literally lives in 1984.
It absolutely is not. Ocania is a socialist state gone wrong, what 1984 fears is a fully centralized, all powerful, all seeing state controlling each and every aspect of it’s citizens’ lives and hell bent on keeping them unintellegent and subservient so it could control them forever.
America doesn’t even have the spine to tell cryptobros to stop scamming people, or AI bros to cease mass copyright infringement, you cannot tell me those are the same state. America is a corporatocracy, it’s government is pitiful. Trump got where he is by telling people things they already wanted to hear. What brought America to this point is the two party system it so stubbornly refused to get rid of. If people had more of a choice other than the two of the most unpopular candidates in a long time, but one with a more firey performance, things could’ve been different.
We’ve always been at war with…
Checks notes
…Ukrainada