Meg Gardner 1984 Microtheme Could a society exist like the one in 1984. The answer is YES.

Surveillance states have, do, and will always exist. This is because the government and those in charge (the shepherds) do not like to let their citizens (the sheep) wander too far off into uncharted territory from what they believe and what is their culture (the pasture). Some basic examples of societies not terribly different from that of the society in 1984 include but are not limited to Medieval Europe, Puritanical America (especially the time of the Salem Witch trials), Nazi Germany, and the Soviet Union. Medieval Europe was a time in which the mass society was controlled by the Catholic Church. If you did not submit to the Church, you would lose your life. People were always on the lookout especially during the time of the Protestant Reformation and the Christian Crusades. Salem, MA back in colonial times was a place where religion WAS the rule of law. When children began accusing adults of witchcraft, everyone was being watched and everyone watched each other out of fear of being accused their selves. Nobody would have wanted to think or believe anything contrary to the Protestant views and no one wanted to seem or even LOOK different, or else they might be hanged. More recently, Nazi Germany was a time of heavy surveillance. There was a law that stated that Jews, homosexuals, criminals, the mentally challenged, and people who spoke out against the Nazi state and others were to be sent to concentration camps. If you attempted to harbor fugitives, or spoke out against Nazi Germany, than it could lead to your disappearance. The same fear of the government came from the former Soviet Union. Nobody truly felt safe because nobody was allowed to question or defy the Party. As a result millions of people were killed in the Soviet Union days whether they were innocent or not, if they looked suspicious they were gone. The fear of being accused of treason spread over into the US and was referred to as McCarthyism. Everyone was watching everyone else. Some people believe that the United States is currently on its way to becoming a surveillance state. With the rise of the internet, and the advancement of technology it is now more than possible for the government to keep a close eye on the private life of their citizens and abroad. Children are now raised in front of television sets instead of parents in many cases. In the early 1990s a campaign was launched by the FDA and the psychiatric field that promoted the idea of treating young children with alleged Attention-Deficit Disorder with prescribed stimulants, such as Ritlin, in order to qualm the hyperactive tendencies. While many people say that autism is on the rise, the reality is that more disorders (such as a childs natural curiosity and inability to focus), are becoming considered autism and treated with more mind-altering substances that very often put young children into compliant states and restrain them whilst they are fed be it atrocities or beneficial whatever information those in control of their lives want to be programmed in them. Whether it will come to full surveillance or not is yet to see. I feel there is another form of governmental surveillance that needs to be noted and that is the domestic Surveillance state. This is not as uncommon as one might think, but more often not as extreme either. Unfortunately for me, I have experienced the extreme case of a domestic Dystopia. I will admit, it has been very difficult to come to class the past month, and I have

often entertained the idea of avoiding attendance completely as this topic makes me physically ill. This is a very painful subject for me. Its very difficult to sit in a class with people who have never lived this life almost literally and discuss these issues. For as often as I hear complaints about corporations being all powerful, the Edward Snowden Controversy, and of course the conspiracy theorists who believe that we in fact ARE in an Orwellian nightmare I cant help but wonder exactly how many of these people have lived in constant fear of torture. I wonder how many have not had a right to freedom of speech at all. How often have these people had their rooms had to hide everything they felt precious to them for fear of confiscation or destruction by the police? How many have experienced the government raided and anything that the government didnt like destroyed, had their diary read and destroyed on a regular basis, had all outer communications heavily monitored at all times, had no right to a private email address, had no right to a closed door, had no right to be alone anywhere and at any time, had no right to technology without supervision, was not allowed to even go into therapy without monitoring, was put publically on the wall of shame for disobedience, been drugged so heavily that you can barely walk straight much less think, been told that the government knows you better than you know yourself, and have actually been told LITERALLY that they were not allowed to think? Its enough to make some people crazy. It was once my reality. I suffered a nervous breakdown finally at age 13. You dont quite know or understand it as it is until you have actually LIVED it. Although I refuse to use quotes reading the dialogue within Part III of 1984; the conversation between OBrien and the main character sounded almost like several of the conversations between me and my childhood government. In the end, I had to put the book down and be sick. As a child, I didnt even think that I was human anymore either. I remember sneaking around out of fear of being found out by the thought police myself. Dystopian Governments arent always grand scale governments. Sometimes they can exist on small, even domestic scales as well. Why are governments such as these existent, and why can they exist? The desire to know other humans thoughts and feelings is human nature. The hunger and desire for control and sovereignty is an unquenchable hunger, and the idea that anything could undermine ones control is terrifying. The best way to prevent such issues is to control from the inside. By use of intelligence, ideas and thoughts of revolution or dissatisfaction are easily detected and removed. Fear is a powerful weapon as was told in 1984. With it, one can mold their own little dollhouse and have no troubles. A dystopia is nothing more than a rulers utopia born from human nature. The paradox however is the fact that this power control by fear is birthed from fear of those with powerful control. It is a full circle. Regardless, Surveillance states like that of 1984s surveillance state can, do, and in fact always will exist. *Yes, I realize that I did not use any quotes from the book in this paper. I did not open this book again due to the impacts of my mental health. It would be far better, in my head, to lose a few points on a paper than to put myself in a vulnerable place in my head, and the contents of 1984 is a psychological trigger.