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Luis Suarez

"Dissent, Assent, and the Body in Nineteen Eighty-Four" by Naomi Jacobs - 2 views

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    In the literature critique "Dissent, Assent, and the Body in Nineteen Eighty-Four", Naomi Jacobs analyzes how George Orwell groups the public in what is called the 'Body' in order to explain the totalitarian oppression in Oceania. Both utopian and dysutopian empires utilize the collective mind of the public in order to sway opinions, build ignorance and subjugate the masses. Utopian empires aim to build a country where "suffering is minimized and pleasure is maximized" (Jacobs 1) while on the contrary a dysutopian empire maximizes ignorance in order to keep the masses from questioning the totalitarian authority. Jacobs claims that the government in Oceania created by Orwell uses the degradation of the physical body as another way to homogenize the population in hopes of destroying any outliers that may question the government. While a utopia uses the "powers of eroticism to regenerate the [individual]" (Jacobs 4), Oceania undergoes a change towards uniformity where everyone is described as "small, dark and ill-favored" (1984, Orwell 52-53). A dysutopian government suppresses natural human instincts such as lust and desire as a way to break the all desires of humans such as rebellion and reform. Ultimately, Jacobs argues that Orwell builds a dysutopian government through the use of population homogenization and the suppression of human instincts.
Jonah Malloy

Literature Resource Center - Document - 0 views

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    Privateness Sex and murder are really the same - things done in private. Linked together pain and pleasure not for entertainment, but to show how isolation brought on by keeping to oneself. Privateness=self-isolation.
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    Jonah, clearly label the argument, claims, and evidence you will use for your paper to avoid losing points on future posts.
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