Curie Kim
English Portfolio
6 word memoir
Hard work leads to desirable result.
Author Study
Childhood
George Orwell was born as Eric Arthur Blair in Montihari, India on June 25, 1903 and had one older sister and one younger sister. Orwell moved to England with his mother, but his father stayed in India. Orwell could not see his father until 1912. When he became six, he went to a small school located in Henley-on-Thames. Two years later, he was sent to a preparatory school called St. Cyprian School with a scholarship. Orwell first wrote a poem when he was four and had his poem published by a local newspaper when he was eleven. After finishing St. Cyprian School, he went to Wellington and Eton College with scholarship. Orwell later joined the India Imperial Force. However, he resigned after five years and returned to England.
Career
George Orwell first used the pseudonym George Orwell for his work Down and Out in Paris and London written in 1933. Following his second major work Burmese Day, he married Eileen O’ Shaughnessy in 1936, and after few months, he moved to Spain to fight in the Spanish Civil War against General Francisco Franco. In 1938, Orwell was diagnosed with tuberculosis and to support himself, he wrote literary criticism and became a BBC producer. However, he hated writing propaganda so he became a literary editor for a newspaper. Two of his major works are Animal Farm (1945) and Nineteen Eighty-Four (1949), influenced by totalitarianism of Nazi Germany and Soviet Union and his experience when he was in Indian Imperial Police in Burma and BBC.
Life
Eileen O’ Shaughnessy died in 1945 after adopting a son in 1944. After her death, George Orwell married editor Sonia Brownell in 1949 but dies on January 21, 1950 in London.
Awards
For his work Animal Farm, George Orwell won Retro Hugo Awards for best novella and Prometheus Award, or Prometheus Hall of Fame Award. For his work 1984, he won another Prometheus Award, or Prometheus Hall of Fame Award.
Bibliography
Bio.com. A&E Networks Television, n.d. Web. 18 Jan. 2016.
"Early Life and Education Georgeorwell.org." Early Life and Education Georgeorwell.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Jan. 2016.
"1984 Study Guide." 1984 Study Guide. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Jan. 2016.
"1946 Retro-Hugo Awards." The Hugo Awards. N.p., 26 July 2007. Web. 18 Jan. 2016.
"Prometheus Awards." Libertarian Futurist Society. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Jan. 2016.
Are we heading towards a Dystopian Society?
Expected future
Future world would look very different from now. One of the main and obvious change would be technology. Increase and improvement of technology is expected in the future, and because of that, people's privacy will decrease, always being under surveillance. However, as technology usage increases, people's ability to communicate and express their thoughts would also expand, and it will be much more difficult for the government to control people. There would be no major changes in government. Just like now, each country will have its own leader. In a democratic country, people elected will hold the power. In a totalitarian country, a dictator will rule the country. Some type of technology that might exist in the future would include humanized robots or androids, virtual reality, and aerospace technology. In the future, people will be more aggressive primarily because of economic reasons. Rich people are getting richer, and poor people are getting poorer. As people's job availability decreases due to working robots, people will expresses that anger towards both robots and also towards each other.
Dystopian Society
I do not think that this world is heading towards a dystopian society. Some characteristics of dystopian society includes freedom being restricted, society being perceived as utopian world, citizens always being under surveillance and fearing the outside world, and a figurehead or concept worshiped by the population. Although always being under surveillance might come true, it would be very hard for those in power to completely control the population. There could be a possibility if communism rises up again, or too humanized robots starts taking over the world. However, with improved communication methods, it would be almost impossible for a concept or a figurehead to suddenly rise up to take over the society by brainwashing and indoctrinating the population. Currently, most people are knowledgeable and knows that totalitarianism is not the perfect form of government in this society. Although there are some countries that are moving towards and are already living under a dystopian society, overall, this world is not heading towards a dystopian society.
Ideals of Freedom
Freedoms of This Society
As a democratic country, United States of America offers great amount of freedom to its people, including freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom of press, freedom of assembly, freedom to petition, the right to bear arms, and etc. The freedom that I enjoy the most is the freedom of speech. Freedom of speech allows me to express my thoughts. Freedoms offered by United States allow me to think the way I want to, which may be different from many others, and the freedoms also allow me to say the thoughts and to communicate with others even though others may disagree me. For now, the other type of freedoms do not impact me as much as the freedom of speech.
Unbalanced Freedoms
In a country or civilization without balanced freedom among the citizens, ones without freedom will rebel against the government to fight against the unfairness, and eventually, when a large mass of people gather to rebel altogether, the government, or the ones holding the power, would have no choice but to let the people have equality and freedom. However, if the issue gets to serious and if freedoms and rights are completely taken away from some citizens, those without freedom will loose their individuality. In a dystopian society or in a totalitarian government, the first thing government tries to take away from citizens is individual freedom or rights. If a country is trying to completely take away freedom from its citizens, it would be a proof that the country is heading towards dystopia. For example, in the novel 1984, members of the society are strongly restricted under the government, especially members of the Party while proles are less restricted. The Party says, "Proles and Animals are free" (Orwell 64). Freedoms of Party members are greatly restricted. One example of restriction is freedom of thought. Having individual thinking is a crime, called "thoughtcrime". Language is shortened for Party members so that individuals would not have the ability to think while Proles are not under the restriction. Party members are always watched by the Big Brother and have no freedom over their actions or mind while Proles are not under the same surveillance.
10 Rules of My Dystopian Society
- You must never be alone. No matter where you go, there must be government surveillance near you.
- You must never say your thought or an idea that others might disagree with.
- Internet, especially social media cannot be used.
- Books, radios and TVs will be regulated by the government.
- As kids turn into age to 13, they will be regularly trained under the government.
- Rebellion against the government would result in death.
- Your Occupation and marriage partner will be chosen by the government.
- You cannot question anything.
- Everything that necessary for living will be provided. However, anything else will not be available.
- You must have a child unless you are specifically excluded from this responsibility by the government.