Laying a Foundation: Context and 1984

Image from the film version of 1984

I'm about to teach the Intertextual Perspectives 1984 and Metropolis comparative study for HSC Advanced English, and boy am I excited. Studying 1984 could not have come at a more relevant time... okay, maybe that's a bit hyperbolic, the time in which 1984 was written was probably the most relevant time for it to be read, but my point is that Trump's gobsmacking rise to Presidency in the United States of America has suddenly rendered George Orwell's 1984 a lot more pertinent.  

In just the last week alone, the words 'Orwellian' and '1984' have permeated a near-unprecedented number of news articles and think-pieces, and all in connection to President Donald Trump. 

Here's a quick selection courtesy of a Google search:

2017 isn't '1984' - its a lot stranger than Orwell imagined - The Conversation

Sales of '1984' spike after Kellyanne Conway's 'alternative facts' - Sydney Morning Herald

Orwell's '1984' and Trump's America - The New Yorker

Amazon's Bestseller list takes a dystopian turn in Trump era - CNN

13 Quotes From '1984' That Are Horrifyingly Relevant in 2017 - Bustle

George Orwell's '1984' is a best-seller again. Here's why it resonates now... - PBS

I said to some of my students a few days ago that we're really lucky to have this happening right now because it links really well with what we're learning this term (dystopia, totalitarianism, power and control, etc.) Of course, America and the world in general is a lot less lucky than my classroom because Trump is now one of the most politically powerful figures on Earth. But, you know - small wins. 

My mentor and close friend Kira Bryant once told me that Advanced English hinged on context (I think her exact words were "Context, context context!") Thinking critically about where a text is coming from, the reasons why it was made, how the author intended for it to resonate with audiences, and how it actually resonates with audiences are all things that rely on a strong understanding of context. This is one of the reasons why Modern History and Advanced English are probably so beneficial to one another when students undertake both subjects. Modern History provides a lot of ideological background for texts studied in Advanced.

With 1984 there is a lot to wade through in terms of covering the values, attitudes and events that have influenced Orwell's magnum opus. I've seen various resources that cover everything from Italian fascism to emerging Cold War surveillance technology. All relevant, but all also reflective of each resource-designer's personal context. As teachers we suffer from selection-bias, just like everyone else, and what we choose is reflective of ourselves and not the population as a whole. This isn't a bad thing; our professional qualifications and ongoing professional learning put us in relatively good stead to be imparting knowledge of this kind. Selection-bias does however bear keeping in mind as an explanation for why no two teachers approach the teaching of context in the same way, especially in a subject like English. In short, there's no definitive way to approach this.

The way I prefer to look at Orwell's context for 1984 is as thus:

• Totalitarianism: Looking at this as a form of government with a particular focus on conformity, lack of freedom, and the concept of a one-party state. Students should first engage with this ideology from a relatively objective standpoint - evaluating the benefits and disadvantages of this form of governance before developing their own opinion. 
• Fascism: The terms 'fascism' and 'totalitarianism' aren't mutually exclusive despite being closely linked. It's worth mentioning that the two most famous totalitarians, Stalin and Hitler, occupied horizontal extremes on the political spectrum (with Stalin representing the extreme left, while Hitler was the ultimate in right wing politics). Defining fascism can be a bit challenging as it's a lot more nebulous than socialism, and this is partially due to the fact that it lacks a unifying manifesto like Karl Marx's theory of communism. Most simply put, fascism is both authoritarian and extremely nationalistic (whereas socialism in its purest form rejects the concept of nationhood). 
• Methods of Enforcing Totalitarianism: This is where a little case study of Stalin and Hitler (and maybe, depending on the enthusiasm level of your class, Franco and Mussolini) can come in handy. The 'personality cult' surrounding the leaders of totalitarian regimes is particularly relevant here as it links closely to the way Orwell constructs the figure of 'Big Brother'. Something else to consider is the way that Stalin used propaganda to manipulate the public's perception of Soviet history.
• The Cold War: The way that Eastasia, Oceania and Eurasia relate to each other throughout 1984 is deliberately reminiscent (and remarkably prescient) of the power blocs that emerged during the Cold War. It's no coincidence that the CIA formed just after WWII; this came about in response to the thinly-veiled antagonism that was bubbling away between the U.S.A. and U.S.S.R. In terms of 1984, the Cold War's relevance is made clear with references to atomic war and the technological advances brought about by the rise of espionage - things like CCTV, the drug LSD, voice recognition systems, lie detectors, etc.
• George Orwell: Finally, it's worth looking at the context of Orwell himself. A lot of 1984 was fueled by his experiences in the Spanish Civil War, as a military policeman in the British colony of Burma, his time living as a homeless person, and even his personal health. Many allege that writing 1984 was so taxing for the chronically ill Orwell that it actually killed him, and it's not difficult to see Orwell's poor health (driven by smoking and tuberculosis) in the sickly nature of 1984's protagonist, Winston. 

Resource

Context - here is a reading/summary sheet on the wider context of the novel. I'll upload a more specific one that links Soviet history to plot points in 1984 in the next week or so.